It is hard to deny that Ferrari has produced some of the most iconic race cars in history. From the 250 GTO through to the Formula One cars that led Michael Schumacher to five consecutive titles, Ferrari knows what it takes to make a good car.
However, just like every other automaker, there have been a few hiccups in Ferrari’s fabled history and the 312 B3 Spazzaneve is certainly one them.
Conceived by Mauro Forghieri, the Spazzaneve came to life in 1972 as a concept for Ferrari’s latest and greatest Formula One car. It never ended up racing which is probably quite fortunate because it’s certainly not a looker. The one thing it does have going for it is its engine.
Beneath the strange bodywork is a flat-12 engine which sounds absolutely glorious, as the video below shows. The exhaust note is dramatically different to the howling 12-cylinder engines of the early 2000s you may associate with F1 but it’s just as intoxicating, making us yearn for the time when open-wheeled race cars were like nothing else on earth.