Ferrari's 1974 Concept Car: A Radical Departure From Tradition

Automakers always try to show off what the future of their brand could look like through concept cars. While some of these concepts become pillars upon which companies build their new models, most of the cars are only for display and never end up on a production line.

Throughout its history, Ferrari has had a long list of crazy concept cars that don't fit in the typical road-legal racecar frame we're used to seeing from the Italian automaker. Among these, the Studio Cr 25 is a concept car from the '70s that not many car enthusiasts pay attention to. However, its radical departure from Ferrari's purist design language makes it an important case in the company's history.

Designed by the Pininfarina studio, the Cr 25 concept car was an aerodynamic study that set new records for what's achievable in terms of wind resistance and airflow. To understand what makes this concept car so special, we need to go back to when the collaboration between Ferrari and Pininfarina started.

It all started back in 1951 after Enzo Ferrari and Battista "Pinin" Farina had a meeting and decided to collaborate on building new performance-oriented cars together. The meeting was arranged by Battista Pinin's son, Sergio, who also shouldered the responsibility of designing all bodies for Ferrari and maintaining contacts between the two companies. From that day until 61 years later, in 2012, the only road-legal production car that rolled out of Ferrari's factory without a Pinifarina-design bodywork was the 1973 Dino 308 GT4.

Pininfarina was keen on introducing more aerodynamic elements to its performance-oriented designs for Ferrari. After purchasing a new wind tunnel in the early '70s, it was time to work on its most aerodynamic model yet for Ferrari. Aldo Brovarone, one of the most experienced designers of his time, decided to use the 365 GT4, a four-seater GT car, as the basis of this project. This was new for Pininfarina since it had only designed two-door Ferraris with chassis suitable for racing.

Also, this was the second time Pininfarina was designing a concept car for Ferrari. The first was the award-winning 512 S Modulo in 1970, a futuristic sports car that looked straight out of a science-fiction setting.

Ferrari introduced the Cr 25 concept to the world at the Turin Motor Show in October 1974. The main purpose of this concept was to show that a car can be both aerodynamic and aesthetically pleasing.

Thanks to the determination of the Pininfarina design team and, of course, its new wind turbine, the Cr 25 achieved groundbreaking results in aerodynamics. The name came from the car's drag coefficient value, which was 0.256, something that no other car could come close to at that time.

Although not a conventional Ferrari, the Cr 25 featured an eye-catching and futuristic look. Upon first glance, you'll notice that the concept car's exterior is divided into three distinctive sections, each with a different color.

The lower level of the Cr 25 was made out of unpainted aluminum. Besides aesthetics, the raw aluminum helped reduce the weight of the car for better handling. The rims were also made of aluminum alloy. The middle part was a black rubber wrapping around the car. The large front bumper acted as a spoiler that increased downforce on the front axle. Painted in pearlescent white, the upper section of the car played a major role in reducing drag,

The pop-up headlights on the Cr 25 made the car look cool and enhanced the car's aerodynamic qualities, but that wasn't all. One of the most outstanding aerodynamic features of the Cr 25 was its air brake plates. Marked with red triangles, these plates divided the rear side windows in two and would open to increase drag when the car needed to slow down or stop.

Although impressive, the Cr 25's brake plates were more of a gimmicky show-off than a practical feature. Ferrari never mentioned what powertrain it put under this concept car's hood. Assuming it's the same as the 365 GT4 the Cr 25 was based on, the 340-horsepower output of Ferrari's 4.4-liter V12 shouldn't need that dramatic of a measure for braking.

Another futuristic feature of the Cr 25 was its hidden touch-sensitive door handles. Not only did the lack of mechanical door handles make the car's side profile look smoother, but it further improved the aerodynamics ever so slightly. You'll also notice that the Cr 25 lacks side-view mirrors, which was another measure to reduce drag.

Moreover, the interior of the car followed a minimalistic approach. The dashboard, roof, pillars, and seat frames were made out of dark brown Alcantara. The seats themselves featured a bright blue color that fitted the design styles from the '70s quite well. The few buttons mounted at the top of the transmission tunnel were also touch-sensitive.

After presenting it at the Turin Motor Show, Pininfarina took the car back to repaint the upper section for publicity photos. After that, the Cr 25 had no public appearance and slowly faded out of the conversation in the automotive world.

Ferrari didn't use the Cr 25 as a direct approach for manufacturing V12 four-seaters. However, some styling features made it to later models. The first generation of the Ferrari Mondial, for instance, featured a large black bumper that resembled that of the Cr 25.

The Cr 25 was never intended to go on the road. It was a study for Pininfarina to test how far it could reach in reducing drag and creating an aerodynamic GT car — and it excelled at that and achieved record-breaking results. The Ferrari Cr 25 is a prime example of Pininfarina's professionalism and urge to deliver beautiful designs without compromising practicality.