360 GT Atlanta GA

The perfect sports car. A simple phrase, yet rather profound when you consider that it's virtually impossible to define. Say the word "perfect" and you tend to imagine something totally flawless, but in Webster's New International Dictionary, perfect is described as "to bring to a state of supreme excellence" and "having its distinctive characters fully developed." So although there may not be anything in this universe without fault, the term is often used to describe something extraordinary, such as a crime or a storm. As for sports cars, ask 10 people what they think the perfect sports car is, and you'll probably get 10 different answers. Yet, there is one car that'll probably rank consistently high on most everyone's list; and in my opinion, is the sole example that rightly embodies the term both physically and spiritually. That car is the Ferrari 360 Modena.

The 360 Modena possesses all the necessary elements of a sports car developed to perfection, with first-rate performance, stunning good looks and an exotic quality that sets it apart from the BMW M3s and Chevrolet Corvettes of this world. Ferrari seems to agree; that's probably why it created its first factory GT racer in about 20 years using this car as a foundation.

Therefore, I wanted to know everything possible about Maranello's new race car, the 360 GT. Great sports cars usually make great race cars, as evidenced by the Porsche 911s, but what kind of racer would something as exotic as the 360 make? I called Cort Wagner, who had just driven the Ferrari 360 GT to victory at Watkins Glen and Daytona in the Rolex Sports Car series. Instead of giving me a verbal explanation of the virtues and drawbacks of the factory-developed racer, Wagner told me I should find out firsthand.

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