Owning a Ferrari is a dream for many, but getting your hands on one often requires more than just a fat bank account. There are some rules to follow when driving a Ferrari. The brand’s selective sales process can make ownership feel like an elite club with a high barrier to entry. And why wouldn’t it? The prancing horse has built its legacy on powerful engines that deliver the type of performance you would expect from an elite sports car. But what if you could enjoy a slice of Ferrari’s performance without the hurdles of actually buying a Ferrari?

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As it turns out, Ferrari engines aren’t always confined to cars bearing the prancing horse badge. Over the years, Ferrari has supplied its powerplants to several other manufacturers. This was either through special collaborations or established corporate ties. While some of these are ultra-rare collector’s classics, others offer a surprising level of accessibility compared to Ferrari’s own lineup.

Fiat and Ferrari couldn’t be more different. Fiat is known for its practical, everyday cars. On the other hand, Ferrari builds some of the most sought-after performance machines in the world. Despite belonging to different worlds, the stars aligned in the late 1960s when the two brands came together for an unusual reason—homologation. Ferrari needed to produce 500 units of its 2.0-liter V6 engines to qualify for Formula 2 racing. However, it simply didn’t have the production capacity. This is where Fiat came in, as it had the means to mass-produce the engine and put it into a car of its own.

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This led to the birth of the Fiat Dino, a stylish grand tourer available in two forms: as a Bertone-designed coupe and a more exclusive Pininfarina-built Spider. Under the hood, the Fiat Dino featured a Ferrari-designed V6, the same engine that powered the legendary Dino 246 GT. In 1969, Fiat acquired a 50% stake in Ferrari. That same year, production of the Fiat Dino moved to Maranello, where it was built alongside Ferrari’s own Dino models.

Over its production run from 1966 to 1972, the Dino’s engine evolved from a 2.0-liter to a more powerful 2.4-liter version. Between 1966 and 1969, 3,670 Fiat Dino Coupes and 1,163 Spiders were produced with the 2.0-liter engine. Only 420 Spiders were built with the 2.4-liter engine, making this one of the most desirable Fiat-badged cars of all time. Though it never wore a Ferrari badge, the Fiat Dino remains one of the most fascinating collaborations between these two Italian giants.

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In the early 1970s, Lancia was searching for the perfect rally car to succeed the Fulvia, a V4-powered front-wheel-drive champion that had already made its mark in motorsport and become widely popular. Around the same time, Fiat — having recently acquired its stake in Ferrari — was producing the Dino V6 engine for Ferrari’s own Dino 206/246 GT. For Lancia, the opportunity to use this Ferrari V6 in a brand-new rally car was too good to pass up.

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The coachbuilder Bertone was also eager to collaborate with Lancia. To prove this, it built the radical Stratos Zero concept, a wedge-shaped prototype with a futuristic design. After it was driven straight under the security barrier at Lancia’s headquarters, the concept captured the interest of Lancia’s decision-makers. The result of this unconventional pitch was the Lancia Stratos HF. This was a mid-engined two-seater designed by Marcello Gandini, the same designer behind the Lamborghini Miura and Countach.

Initially, Ferrari was reluctant to supply engines to Lancia because it feared competition with its own Dino 246 GT. However, once the Dino’s production ended in 1973, the prancing horse agreed to provide Lancia with 500 units of its 2.4-liter V6. What followed was a period of rally dominance. The Lancia Stratos HF was the first car designed specifically for rally racing, and its lightweight build and powerful Ferrari engine made it a strong competitor. It claimed the World Rally Championship title in 1974, 1975, and 1976.

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On the surface, the ASA 1000 GT might not look like a Ferrari. But beneath its elegant Bertone-designed body was an engine with true prancing horse DNA. Originally conceived as the “Ferrarina” — or “Little Ferrari” — this car was born from an idea to create a more affordable version of the Ferrari-inspired Maserati Gran Turismo. The concept was developed in the late 1950s under the guidance of Giotto Bizzarrini, the same engineer responsible for the Ferrari 250 GTO. Ferrari itself built the engine. However, the project was later handed over to ASA (Autocostruzioni Societa per Azioni), a small Italian automaker backed by the wealthy de Nora family.

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The ASA 1000 GT was powered by a 1.0-liter inline-four derived from Ferrari’s legendary Colombo V12. Designated Tipo 141, this all-aluminum, single overhead cam engine was essentially a scaled-down version of Ferrari’s larger engines. It featured Weber carburetors for maximum performance. With its 1,032cc displacement, the engine produced 95 horsepower, which sounds modest when compared to the newer and most powerful inline-4s.

Although the ASA 1000 GT never achieved mainstream success, it’s still a fascinating piece of Ferrari’s history. Today, it is a rare collector’s item, cherished as a “what if” moment in Ferrari’s storied past.

Having proved it could dominate the rally scene with Ferrari power, Lancia decided to inject some of that prancing horse magic into an executive saloon. This was the birth of the Lancia Thema 8.32, an unassuming four-door luxury sedan that hid a Ferrari-derived 3.0-liter V8 under its hood. Unlike the screaming versions found in the Ferrari 308 GTB/GTS and Mondial Quattrovalve, the Thema’s V8 was reworked for a more refined driving experience.

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The Thema 8.32’s engine was cast in Maranello using Ferrari’s expertise, and final assembly took place at Ducati’s factory in Bologna. With 212 horsepower sent to the front wheels, the Thema could sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 6.7 seconds. But acceleration wasn’t its only trick. The 8.32 came with a hand-crafted interior with premium leather and wood trim and an adaptive damping system for improved ride quality. It even featured an electronically controlled rear spoiler like the one on the beloved Porsche Panamera. The spoiler could deploy from the trunk lid at high speeds.

Despite those performance numbers, the Thema 8.23 just never took off. Even today, it remains one of the more overlooked Ferrari-powered cars. It lacked the badge appeal of its Maranello-built cousin, and its front-wheel-drive layout only made it an outlier among performance sedans.

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The Maserati MC12 may seem like a Ferrari Enzo with a Maserati badge, but there’s much more to the story. While the two cars share a core foundation—including a 6.0-liter Ferrari V12— Maserati tuned the MC12 to be track-focused.

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Rather than building a whole new supercar from scratch, Maserati leveraged the Enzo car’s advanced chassis and aerodynamics. This allowed the team to focus on refining suspension dynamics and airflow. Racer Andrea Bertolini contribute to the MC12’s development, with additional input from Michael Schumacher. Maserati reworked the Enzo’s Tipo F140 V12, renaming it the Ferrari/Maserati M144A. While it retained its naturally aspirated 6.0-liter displacement, the rev limit was lowered from 8,200 RPM in the Enzo to 7,700 RPM. Despite this tweak, the MC12 still delivered a claimed top speed of 205 mph.

Beyond its powertrain, the MC12 sets itself apart with a significantly longer and wider body than the Enzo. The Maserati  also has a more track-optimized design. It features lightweight carbon fiber, a Nomex honeycomb monocoque, and a removable roof. With just 50 units produced, the MC12 is one of Maserati’s rarest and most-coveted supercars. Having used Ferrari engines in several models between 2002 and 2020, Maserati has now moved on to its own twin-turbo V6 Nettuno engine.

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