On the latest episode of Jay Leno’s Garage, the former talk show host, lifelong gearhead and car collector, takes viewers on an in-depth tour of one of LA-based Ferrari collector David Lee’s latest acquisitions, a Daytona SP3. Delivered on Lee’s birthday in October last year, this particular example, with a green exposed carbon fiber finish against matte gold rims, takes a new direction for his collection. It steps away from the signature mustard (yellow) and ketchup (red) colors found on most of his 30 Ferraris, and is part of his growing new ‘Relish collection,’ which also includes a similarly spec’d green 812 Competizione.
While Leno may have had a complicated history with Ferrari, that hasn’t stopped him from admiring and appreciating the Italian marque’s engineering prowess, especially when they harken back to the good old days of analog driving. This is something that the Daytona SP3, part of Ferrari’s Icona Series, which also includes the SP1 and SP2 Monzas, truly embodies. These three models are all about driving purity, and unsurprisingly, Jay was excited about taking a closer look at the Daytona SP3.
This is so much more fun than electrification and turbochargers. This is what Ferrari is all about. No turbos. No hybrid motors. Just raw, visceral power – Jay Leno
With only 599 examples slated for production, the SP3 was conceived for some of Ferrari’s most loyal customers and draws design cues from the ‘67 Ferrari 330 P4, Daytona winner. Built upon the underpinnings of a La Ferrari Aperta, the SP3 packs the same naturally-aspirated mid-mounted 6.5-liter V12 engine found in the 812 Superfast and puts out 829 horsepower.
While Jay was smitten by the car’s exterior design and was particularly happy to find a V12 and rear-wheel drive setup in a modern Ferrari, one thing that he felt was missing and could have elevated the experience even further was a manual transmission. The SP3 Daytona packs a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission with paddle shifters.
Much to Leno’s relief, Lee quickly pointed out that there are already rumors of an SP4 with possible inputs from seven-time F1 world champion and current Ferrari F1 grand prix driver, Lewis Hamilton. This car is supposedly the spiritual successor to the F40 and could potentially feature a manual gearbox.
Get Jay Leno’s overall thoughts and driving impressions of David Lee’s Ferrari Daytona SP3 in the video below.
Image Source: Jay Leno’s Garage/YouTube
