Top Gear Garage
The perils that come with converting a racecar to the road
Internationally renowned photographer Mark has been working with TG for many, many years. When not taking photos he’s buying inappropriate cars. Here he shares his addiction with the world…
There are many things you don’t expect to find in a racecar. Cup holders seem fairly obvious, aircon also a tad excessive. As for a radio? Only if it’s being used to shout obscenities at your engineer.
Moaning about the (lack of) driver comforts is a bit like buying a house next to the sea and wondering why your gates are rusty. There’s a simple solution to both of these issues; buy something else.
Ferrari never intended the 360 Modena Challenge to go on the road. Which is absolutely fine up until you put one on the road and then realise it’s missing some fundamental basics every road car should have.
There’s no alarm or immobiliser; in fact, there’s no actual key. The entire ignition system is a kill switch and a starter button. There’s no central locking because there are no locks. And while you could buy some blanks and retrofit a locking system, it’s a pointless exercise. Those Perspex windows – with slide hatches fitted – can be opened from the outside. Oh, and the interior door handles are a large piece of cable.
All of these things aren’t ideal when trying to insure your vehicle, let alone a bright red Ferrari with an exhaust so loud even Yiannimize would say it’s a bit strong. Clearly there’s a solution or else this is a pretty bleak update.
Chorley-based Scorpion Automotive has been dealing with idiots like me for nearly 50 years now. And with so many new cars (and bikes) boasting remote start, keyless entry and other easily bypassed systems, it’s not exactly short for work right now.
Not that it seems to be much of an issue. Its average recovery time (from theft) is just 57 minutes. The fastest recovery? 12 minutes.
This was all music to my ears, but a GPS tracker doesn’t help the physical theft bit, does it? Scorpion’s sales operations manager Dan Balsamini thought differently, recommending its ScorpionTrack S5+ system for the Ferrari instead. It’s essentially a tracker and immobiliser all rolled into one, and it’s brilliant.
By using a small key fob no bigger than a 50 pence piece, the ScorpionTrack S5+ disables the vehicle’s ignition unless it’s physically present inside. On the Ferrari, the electrics can still be put on with the kill switch, but importantly the starter button won’t engage until the fob is detected. Simple but properly effective.
As for the tracking system, Scorpion’s app gives you a real-time update on its location at all times. It monitors and records your journeys and if it detects any unusual activities it’ll automatically alert you. Car being stolen? Oh dear, Scorpion will inform and work with the police instantly to get it back.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not about to go and leave the 360 unattended in east London, but the ability to use a motorway service station without someone driving off in it is an absolute result.
Keyword: Things you should know before driving a Ferrari race car on the road