A Day Trip from Milan: How to test drive a Ferrari
Test drive a Ferrari is a must if you visit anywhere near Modena, Italy! Do you happen to love fast cars but don’t own one? Have you ever dreamt of driving a fast car on a race track? These questions describe my husband perfectly. So when we went to Milan, Italy, we took a day trip down to Modena to take driving a Ferrari off my husband’s bucket list.
How my husband got to test drive a Ferrari.
It all began with me researching day trips for our trip to Milan, Italy. Test driving a Ferrari was an option. Before asking my husband if he wanted to do test drive a Ferrari, which, of course he would, I needed to check how close Modena was.
For us, it was a 2 hour trip. We looked at our options on getting to Modena and decided to rent a car.
How much does it cost to test drive a Ferrari in Italy
Once I knew Modena was a day trip for us. I told my husband who was very excited. He looked into the cost to test drive a Ferrari. The price range varied from €90-€1,610.00. He found that there were different packages. One package was to test drive a Ferrari on a race track. The other package was to drive from another location in a road Ferrari and then test drive a Ferrari.
As this was an item on his bucket list, he wanted to get the whole experience. He chose a place where he got to drive two different Ferraris. He booked his Ferrari experience with I Love Marenello.
When he looked at the site, he clicked on the words “Test Drive/Find out more.” Which took him here.
Under the video are the different prices. My husband picked the last one. The one called “Ferrari Experience with test drive on the road on racetrack” which cost €1,190.00.
From this choice, there are more choices. It all depends on what you want to spend. My husband picked the first one: test drive on the road with Ferrari California (+ 3 laps on the track with Ferrari 458 challenge).
What else comes with the “Ferrari Experience with test drive on the road on track package?
The package includes (from their website):
- Ticket entrance to Ferrari Museum in Maranello: live the prancing horse dream. The museum offers a unique voyage of discovery through cars that have made automotive history on streets and circuits the world over.
- Test drive Ferrari on the road with instructor alongside for 30 minutes on your way to Autodromo di Modena
- Arrival in Modena circuit, welcome coffee, technical briefing and start of the activity on the track: 1 warm-up lap with Peugeot + 3 laps with Ferrari F458 Challenge with a co-pilot alongside.
- Helmet and helmet lining given by Autodromo di Modena.
- Test drive Ferrari on the road with instructor alongside for 30 minutes on your way back to Maranello
- Possibility to add a passenger on Ferrari California who has included also ticket entrance for Ferrari Musuem, €40
Ferrari Day!
It was a beautiful for a fast drive! I am going to talk about the package items above down below and not in order. The number next to the larger text applies to where you find it in the package above.
After renting our car, which went quite smoothly, we headed to Maranello. It was a two hour drive on the highway. The one thing I noticed that stood out different were the trucks that drove slower than the cars. Otherwise highway driving was quite simple.
Arriving in Maranello, Italy.
We had no problem finding the store. It was the typical Ferrari store with two Ferrari’s sitting out front. We walked through the door into what looked like a retail store for Ferrari. We approached the counter and met a friendly Italian lady. She went to get the man who would be my husband’s guide for the day. He had a great name. Perfect for racing fast cars. The older man introduced himself as Fabio! No kidding!
2. Test drive Ferrari on the road with instructor alongside for 30 minutes on your way to Autodromo di Modena
After taking pictures of sitting in the Ferrari, I got in the back seat. Fabio sat in the passenger side and my husband sat in the drivers seat.
My husband started the engine and we were off. Fabio talked to him about the car and how to handle it the entire way. We down a rather long road with about 10 round abouts. Between two of the round abouts, we were behind a truck. Fabio instructed him to pass him. My husband looked and there was a car in the distance. Close enough that in a regular car, I wouldn’t normally pass. Fabio told my husband to push hard on the gas and go for it. I closed my eyes and hid behind the seat. We made it of course because we were in a Ferrari!
We arrived at the track where my husband would get to do 4 laps. Now you might be thinking, “Wait, the package he picked gave him 3 laps.” You are right. The reason he got an extra lap is because he agreed to change his time. The company wanted to accommodate the change so he got an extra lap.
3. Arrival in Modena circuit, welcome coffee
We were led in by Fabio. He introduced us to the workers and then led us to our table.
The package included more than welcome coffee. There was actually a nice assortment of snacks and drinks sitting on the table. Perhaps Italian’s think ‘welcome coffee’ includes the snacks and drinks I mentioned. I know when I read it, I think they will be friendly and I will be offered coffee.
3. Technical briefing
Fabio then introduced my husband to the driver that would accompany him on the track. The driver had Dennis sit in another section next to where the food was. He watched a video on how to drive the Ferrari.
Now I would say, you might want to do some study on how to drive a Ferrari before you come. I will talk about my take aways at the end.
3. 1 warm-up lap with Peugeot
The first lap was done by the driver. He drove a Ferrari not a Peugeot. With helmets on, they belted themselves in. During this first lap, the driver talked again about how to take the turns. I watched this from the second floor. That the floor where my table of snacks were on. When he returned, I went down and talked to Dennis. He loved it!
3. 3(actually 4) laps with Ferrari F458 Challenge with a co-pilot alongside.
Checking off one of the items on Dennis’ bucket list had finally arrived. With helmets on they once again got in the Ferrari but with Dennis in the driver seat.
I hope you get a sense of how fast he past me from the video. He really loved his extra lap. However her said, when he got out of the car, “I wish I had more time. With 4 laps, I felt I was just getting warmed up.”
6. Possibility to add a passenger on Ferrari California who has included also ticket entrance for Ferrari Musuem, €40
My husband paid the extra money for me to ride along for the ride. I was glad he did as I enjoyed watching him drive a Ferrari. I also got the video above. However, I Love Maranello will give you a video of your driving on the track on an USB Flash Drive. I can’t remember if it’s extra or not.
7. Ticket entrance to Ferrari Museum in Maranello
We drove to the museum following the test drive experience. Honestly, we weren’t too excited to go. To our surprise it was great museum. It did a great job to catalog the history of the Ferrari car.
My take aways from all of this:
- Make sure you bring a fully charged phone and a battery pack. We didn’t have what we needed and thankfully made it back before my husband’s phone died.
- Spend time before you come learning about how to drive a Ferrari. This might help you feel like you get a great experience.
- Watch the movie Ford v Ferrari before you go.
What a fantastic day!
I love when something I plan turns out to be awesome for those involved. This happened only because I researched possible day trips in Milan. So do your research!
Would my husband recommend this experience to others? ABSOLUTELY! So if you love fast cars and you will be a day trip away from Modena then don’t let this pass you up! Happy travels! Share your experience with in the comments below!
