Enzo Ferrari established Scuderia Ferrari in 1929.

The brand was created out of Enzo’s hometown Modena, an Italian city that was famed for its balsamic vinegar and opera history, rather than car manufacturing.

A lot has changed since Ferrari’s founding days and Maranello has been home to the Ferrari headquarters for over 75 years.

A limited exhibition dedicated to the renowned red car, fittingly titled ‘90 Years’, tells the 90-year-old story of Ferrari through some of its most important cars.

There are many standouts to this exhibition, including the Ferrari 500 F2, the first Ferrari to win a Formula One title in 1952 and again in 1953, Michael Schumacher’s F2004 from 2004, the late Niki Lauda’s first title-winning Ferrari and so much more.

The exhibition is now open and showing at Museo Ferrari in Maranello until May 2020. 

Ferrari’s start

Interestingly, the start of Ferrari as an auto manufacturer is often recognised as 1947, not 1929. 

This is because the first Ferrari-badged car was not built until 1947.

Before Enzo managed his own racing team, he was responsible for the racing division of Alfa Romeo, from 1929.

Although the racing cars were engined and made by Alfa Romeo, Enzo worked under his own badge of ‘Scuderia Ferrari.’

But these were not Ferraris.

In 1933, after several years of Enzo’s influence, Alfa Romeo directed the entire job to him.

This saw Alfa Romeo withdraw their full team and allow the Scuderia Ferrari team to take control instead.

The period didn’t last long as Alfa Romeo eventually took the reins back in 1938, plus relocated their racing operations from Modena to Milan.

Inevitably, Enzo was forced to move to Milan to manage Alfa Romeo’s racing unit.   

With Enzo’s old team in Modena left behind and workless, the Italian decided to leave Alfa in 1939 and birth his own manufacturing unit.

The team would be called Auto Avio Costruzioni, an odd change from their previous title. 

The name change was due to legal issues with Alfa Romeo that prevented Enzo from using the ‘Scuderia Ferrari’ name for at least four years after his departure.

Located in the former headquarters of Scuderia Ferrari in Modena, Enzo’s team were working on, what would become, the first ever Ferraris. 

It would take a fair few years before Ferrari manufactured and placed the iconic horse symbol on one of its cars. 

In 1947, the first Ferrari badged car was showcased - the 1947 125 S.

The legend of Ferrari was born.

Ferrari Headquarters in Maranello

Ferrari has only had two headquarters since its founding: the original location in Modena and the current location in Maranello.

The team was forced to move from Modena during World War II, when the factory was was bombed.

Ferrari chose the nearby village of Maranello for its new headquarters, as Enzo happened to own property there.

This location has remained Ferrari’s headquarters ever since, and the factory there even offers tours to see Ferraris in the midst of being built. 

Modena and Maranello are approximately a 30-minute drive from one another and are both worth visiting.

In Modena, one can visit the Museo Enzo Ferrari, the original birthplace of Ferrari, not to be confused with Museo Ferrari in Maranello, which is currently hosting the ‘90 Years’ Ferrari exhibition.

Head to the Museo Ferrari’​s website for ticket information.