A 26-year-old man was recently charged with forgery and breach of trademarks after it was discovered that his red Ferrari F430 was actually a modified Toyota MR Coupé.
Italy’s Guardia di Finanza made the unusual seizure during a routine check in the town of Asti, Italy. Although the red Ferrari featured all the iconic elements of the F430, from the prancing horse logo on the bonnet and steering wheel, to the rims, brake calipers and iconic headlights, something about the vehicle seemed wrong. It’s unclear whether the motorist had the necessary documents to prove that his car was a genuine Ferrari F430 or not, but the police officers called a team of experts just to be sure. They confirmed that the car was actually a modified Toyota MR Coupé.
Although this is certainly not the first time someone converts their cheap ride into their own exclusive supercar, what makes this case special is the high level of forgery. Instead of a simple carbon fiber frame over a regular chassis and some fake logos, whoever made this fake F430 did an outstanding job.
Both the exterior and the interior of the car were closely modeled after that of the F430 Ferrari built between 2004 and 2009 at Maranello. According to the experts who confirmed the forgery, the car even featured original Ferrari parts and accessories, making that much harder to notice that it was actually a Toyota.
Italian news media reported that the car was seized and the owner reported to the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Asti for using registered trademarks without authorization.