Scott Marshall trades horsepower for back-seat legroom with his wild Ferrari stretch limo

This article on Scott’s Ferrari limo was originally published in the March 2018 issue of Street Machine

IF YOU had to guess what car Scott Marshall was going to build next, a stretched 2003 Ferrari 360 Modena limo probably isn’t what you’d come up with. Best known for his absolutely mental WB ute, MADNES (SM, Dec ’99), and more recently his wild, blown twin-plug Hemi pro street Willys coupe (cover car for SM Hot Rod #18), a Ferrari is a departure from his usual style, to put it mildly.

The gullwing doors were fabricated from fibreglass, and allow for much more graceful entry to the low-slung Italian sports car – especially if you’re wearing six metres of taffeta

This is no VW with a Ferrari bodykit on it, either. “She’s a genuine Ferrari 360 that we imported from England,” Scott says. “I drove it for a couple of weeks and then took it down to Dreamtech Conversions in Dandenong and cut the bastard in half. We stripped out the interior, which didn’t take long because there’s not much of it, then used an air hacksaw to cut it.”

Because these cars use an all-aluminium chassis and body, chopping it up was pretty easy, but it also meant all of the chassis extensions had to be done in ally as well, although the two side panels, roof and gullwing doors were made out of fibreglass to try and keep the weight out of it.

With an extra three metres added to the middle, seating for eight, two TVs, a killer stereo plus an extra air conditioning system, the car weighs around 1100kg heavier than a stock one. With around 400hp on tap, the 3.6L V8 doesn’t quite keep up with a blown Hemi, but it still manages to get along nicely. To make chauffeuring duties easier, Scott also swapped out the manual transmission for an auto out of a Subaru Liberty GT, of all things! I guess it makes more sense than a transbraked Powerglide.

The engine hasn’t been touched, but being all the way down the back, a fair bit of extra wiring had to be added

The car also copped airbags on all four corners to make sure it doesn’t get hung up on any speed bumps, and is pretty easy to drive, according to Scott: “It’s not too bad actually, probably like driving a car with a trailer. It goes through chicanes grouse, sounds like a Ferrari and goes like a Ferrari – but not as fast! “At the end of the day it wasn’t that hard to build, it just took time – around three years to do the stretch – and it has been on the road for about two years.”

To give the lounge-like interior a sporty touch, side bolsters from race seats were used on the ends. The black leather and white stitching matches the driver’s compartment – although he doesn’t get a fully stocked bar!

Although it would be the perfect car for the well-to-do Italian family with eight kids, Scott mainly uses it for formals and weddings, and you can make bookings at madnesslimousines.com.au.