It wasn’t hard to like the idea of the 355 by Evoluto very much indeed. Take one of Ferrari’s prettiest cars ever, improve every single bit of it, tweak the design just slightly and sit back to wait for the swarm of millennial tech bros – who still fondly remember Goldeneye and F355 Challenge – to scoop up all 55. Now, with thousands of miles of testing complete, the Evoluto can begin production next month.
There’s more to this story than simply ‘car intended for production soon to be built’, too, as the engineering process has created more areas of improvement than first confirmed. Perhaps most excitingly is the announcement of a ‘3.7-litre programme’, which takes the V8 from the originally billed 420hp at 8,500rpm to 480hp at 9,000rpm thanks to ‘extreme’ cam profiles, valvetrain upgrades and the increase in capacity, with the engine’s internals strengthened and the promise of ‘noticeably stronger acceleration throughout the rev band.’ Both the 3.5 and the 3.7 are listed in the newest spec sheet, though it’s hard to imagine anyone spending Evoluto money and not now going for the 9,000rpm engine. A five-speed manual is the only gearbox option for the 355, and the driveshafts are now two kilos lighter each despite being longer for the increased tracks. That’s the sort of attention to detail that’s gone into this car.
While we knew about a stronger, lighter chassis, better brakes and wider tracks, a lot more has now come to light about the Evoluto 355 spec. And, unsurprisingly, it’s all very special stuff. The steering now features all-new electro-hydraulic assistance, with the rack significantly sped up from 3.25 to 2.0 turns lock to lock. Along with the wider front end and modern rubber, expect a much pointier Ferrari experience as a result; Evolution suggests that assistance ‘has been carefully calibrated to retain natural weighting and feedback.’ The flat-bottomed (when will this fad ever end?) wheel at least looks slim enough to get some road sensation.
Suspension for the 355 is by R53, a bespoke version of its three-way adjustable, remote reservoir ST46 setup; it’s said to deliver ‘a transformative increase in composure and confidence on both road and circuit.’ So if you do spin out in the hills above Monte Carlo like Xenia Onatopp, that’ll be on you this time rather than the car. As part of a new partnership, R53 will be providing suspension to all the DRVN Automotive brands, so expect to hear about them when there’s a new Boreham Motorworks car as well. There’s far more to the Evoluto than merely better suspension, too, with the entire architecture reengineered to accommodate the wider tracks (and make parts that are now impossible to obtain). So there are new arms, drop links, uprights, bearings – you get the idea. Ball joints have been moved to improve scrub radius and castor angle. If there was a bit of the 355 platform to improve, even the stuff that nobody sees and is seldom thought of, has been optimised. Hopes will be high for how this thing drives.
With the first cars close, we can now get a better look at the 355’s interior as well. The ‘peak analogue’ theme continues inside, with the only concession to modernity appearing to be a slot for your phone. Otherwise it’s vital displays, the bare minimum of (illuminated) switches, and a slightly strange carbon gearknob that surely didn’t need any changing. However, as with much of the rest of the Evoluto, there’s more to this driving environment than meets the eye. So there’s a fully reworked HVAC system now powered by the battery for improved efficiency, more carbon reduces weight further, and any imaginable material can feature. The idea is that this is a ‘production environment built to be used, driven and lived with’, so let’s hope all 55 are treated as intended.
Next steps for the Evoluto will be a full strip down of the first customer car next month (as part of validation), then durability sign off in April. All being well, deliveries will begin towards the end of 2026, all cars supplied with a 20,000-mile, two-year warranty. A Ferrari 355 with modern performance and dependability really does sound like the very best of both worlds – not long now until customers begin to discover the reality.