In 1992 Ferrari announced the all-new “Challenge” race series, followed immediately by the launch of the 348 Challenge—a track-focussed variant of the 348 TB with conversions taking place at official dealerships. Beneath the eye-catching “348 Challenge” decals lurked the road car’s 3.4-litre V-8—lightly tuned to produce 320 horsepower—a modified exhaust system, slick tyres, and uprated brakes cooled by special air intakes. A full suite of safety equipment included an electric circuit breaker, front tow hook, fire extinguisher, OMP bucket seats, and a six-point roll cage.

This example, chassis 93646, is an early 348 Challenge that was supplied new and converted by the renowned French importer, Charles Pozzi. It was delivered to first owner, Christian Heinkele of Auvergne Moteurs, on 25 July 1992, finished in Giallo over a Nero interior. The Ferrari made its race debut on 3 April 1993 at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours, where it was driven by Heinkele to a 10th-place finish. The series continued until November that year, with Heinkele finishing 11th overall and rounding out the season on 12 points. For 1994, the car was more competitive; a series of strong performances resulted in Heinkele scoring 57 points and finishing the season 6th overall.

Building on that success, Heinkele made an impressive start to the 1995 season, placing 2nd in class at Circuit Paul Ricard on his first outing. He returned the following day and left victorious, leading the field of 348 Challenge cars. The rest of the season continued in a similar vein, the owner-driver steering the car to victory in all-but-two races, where he finished 2nd and 5th, respectively. He closed the season on 230 points and secured overall victory in the West European Ferrari 348 Challenge.

Today, this 348 Challenge retains its factory-correct colour of Giallo, while the odometer reads 73,897 kilometres at the time of cataloguing. It was serviced by Foskers on 29 September 2022, with the brake fluid, cambelts, and engine oil changed at a cost of £6,494, as well as receiving a fresh MoT certificate. Accompanying the car is an impressive history file containing invoices dating from 1993 to 2016, period photographs, and race results. Having competed in all three years of the Ferrari 348 Challenge series, chassis 93646 presents a wonderful opportunity to acquire a series-winning example of Ferrari’s first Challenge car.