The Gruppo Four Tributo builds on experience preparing Ferraris for tarmac and gravel racing and keeps the recipe delightfully simple.

Ferrari’s new 12Cilindri Manuale offers buyers a slightly ersatz version of the six-speed-manual Maranello V-12 grand tourers of the past, complete with a metallic gated gearshift. There’s a bit of electronic trickery going on behind the scenes, but we were pretty convinced by our test drive of the tech. However, a suggestion: What if the manual gearbox was real, and the Ferrari part was the tribute?

Say hello to the familiar shape of the iconic Ferrari 308 GTB, albeit one without a single Ferrari badge on it. Rather than being a restomodded version of the car that Magnum P.I. waggled his caterpillar-sized eyebrows in, it's a ground-up build by longtime Ferrari motorsports specialist Michelotto working in partnership with a newer firm, AC Motorsport, itself founded by a former Michelotto employee. It’s called the Michelotto Gruppo Four Tributo, and it’s a featherweight wonder.

Michelotto has more than half a century of experience taking already well-bred cavallino rampantes and getting them ready for the track. The company’s past hits include belters like the F40 LM, the competition version of Ferrari’s ultimate 1980s supercar. Michelotto also prepared the 308 for rally racing in Group 4 competition, eventually leading to Ferrari's sole WRC podium victory.

This road car pays homage to that rally car, but it is set up purely for tarmac work. The foundation starts with a tubeframe chassis with a built-in roll cage, upon which is layered that immediately recognizable wedge-shaped body, formed of carbon composite panels.

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