Hamilton rescues dust-covered Ferrari F40 from 30-year garage slumber to fulfil childhood dream

Lewis Hamilton has fulfilled a lifelong ambition by acquiring a neglected Ferrari F40 and sending it to Maranello for a full restoration, the seven-time Formula 1 champion revealed on Monday 31 August.

Hamilton shared photos of the iconic supercar undergoing what appears to be an engine-out rebuild, writing: “My very own F40. This is the car of my dreams and has been for as long as I can remember. As a kid I dreamt of having one. When I joined Ferrari last year I made sure to have one with me on my first day at Maranello. That’s how much it means to me.”

The 41-year-old said the car had spent more than thirty years sitting in a garage before he tracked it down. “These cars are works of art and incredibly rare, so when I found this one, covered in dust after being sat in a garage for over thirty years, I knew I had to bring her home,” he wrote. The restoration was carried out by engineers and mechanics at the Ferrari factory over several weeks.

The acquisition carries extra significance given Hamilton’s decision earlier in 2025 to sell his entire car collection — a fleet understood to have included a Pagani Zonda 760 LH, a Mercedes-AMG Project One, a Ferrari LaFerrari and a 1966 Shelby Cobra 427, among others. Speaking ahead of the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Hamilton confirmed the sale but made clear one car remained on his wish list. “I don’t have any cars anymore,” he said at the time. “If I was going to get a car, it would be the F40. But that’s a nice piece of art.”

Hamilton hinted that a behind-the-scenes look at the restoration process would follow, teasing: “I can’t wait to share more with you all. Stay tuned.” The post had already accumulated more than 278,000 likes within hours of being published.