The world is full of intelligent people. There are great artists who achieve the impossible with ease. While some put this talent to good use, there are some who take the wrong path. Spanish Police has recently busted a gang of replica car manufacturers who were selling Fake Ferraris and Aston Martins. This gang consisted of 8 men who have been credited by the Spanish Police as “extremely capable.” The images which have been released of the replicas are astonishing. It is hard to say that these are actually fake imitations. There are many replicas out there currently which are so genuine with their appeal that they can fool even an automobile expert.
It all started with the Ferrari complaining about violation of industrial property rights. There were websites selling Ferrari models for a mere $53,000. One of the websites was renowned e-Bay. Working on this, the Spanish police reached a small factory in Sicily where they arrested 8 men who were probably the engineers involved. They seized 17 Ferrari cars which included 458 Italia and F430 and 2 fake Aston Martins. They also seized tools, machinery and cash worth a total of as £350,000. The Spanish police also targeted workshops in Rome, Puglia and Milan and secured 14 more fake cars which were already sold.
It has been reported that these men bought used cars and then as per the order used to customize them. For this they used mere images of the required model as guide. The workers were using fiber glass to carve out car bodies. The images released by the Spanish Police show a Toyota engine. We think it can be a Toyota MR2 engine which is very widely used by the replica manufacturers as a base for their model. Police has said that the workers were so skilled that they even crafted fake Ferrari calipers as well fake wheels for F430.
The cars were sold online and also in many second hand car dealerships in Italy in the price range of £15,000 to £35,000. Spanish police has estimated that they have been selling dozens of these replicas monthly.
The Spanish police said that “The supposed deluxe cars were advertised on two websites for about 40,000 euros ($53,000), compared to the more than 200,000 euros that an authentic model would cost on the legal market.” They also said that the culprits “themselves made the fiber glass pieces to transform the cars” and created fake company logos to give it an authentic appeal. They even said that “The final appearance of the supposed deluxe vehicles in their external and internal design and even in the details of the engine simulated to perfection the look of the original models,” Seems like the Spanish Police too is startled with the level of perfection achieved by these “engineers”.
Although the car looked very similar to the original, they had a narrower chassis as compared to the original Ferrari. Also the tyres used for the replicas were thinner when compared with the ones on the authentic Ferrari models. The police could even distinguish the fake on the basis of their engine sound. Police said that the engineers used Pontaic Fiero which is a 1980’s American Sports car, as base for their fakes. An official that “The sound of the Pontiac’s V4 engine is nothing like the Ferrari 348GTS’s V8 which it would be turned into.” The engineers have either used a Toyota MR2 or Pontiac engine along with several other original Ferrari spare parts.
Police has shared that most of the customers for this replicas are business men who rent out cars for special events like weddings, parties etc to people. It is advisable to purchase replicas from authorized manufacturers as they have purchased certain car rights. Check the source of the car before getting into any deal.
Courtesy – Carscoop
