Ferrari Testarossa Goes Up In Flames In California

Unveiled at the 1984 Paris Auto Show, the Ferrari Testarossa was one of the most dramatic cars the Italian manufacturer had built at the time. It didn’t take long before it became a cult icon, thanks partly due to its starring role in TV hit series Miami Vice. Nowadays, the Testarossa is still highly prized but sadly, there’s one fewer that’ll be on US roads.

The images you’re looking at show a Testarossa that caught fire at a property somewhere in California. Excusing the fact that this doesn’t look like the kind of house you’d typically expect to find a prized mid-engined supercar, seeing a Testsarossa in such a sorry state is enough to upset any car enthusiast.

Read: Six-Wheeled Ferrari Testarossa Will Give Maranello An Aneurysm

According to Reddit user /Grootdrew who uploaded the photos, the car was owned by his neighbor, an electrical engineer who frequently buys different project cars to fix up. He says the car caught fire at night and has suggested that the old fuel lines and wiring could have caused it to spontaneously combust.

Of course, unless police investigators were called to the scene, actually identifying the cause of the fire would be difficult. The fire likely started in the engine bay, and the entire rear half of the Testarossa, including its famed 4.9-liter naturally-aspirated flat-12 engine, was destroyed. The rear window has also been busted, as have the two rear quarter windows.

The blaze also spread to the house, damaging a small section of a wall, but fortunately, it was extinguished before the entire house went up in flames. Here’s hoping the owner of the car has a comprehensive insurance policy on it and will get paid out. If not, they’ll likely be out in excess of $150,000 and perhaps as much as $200,000, roughly the range that used Testarossas are currently trading hands for.

Photo Reddit/Grootdrew