V12-powered Ferrari 458 "Frankenstein" prototypes are collectors' items with prices hard to estimate

In the world of Italian supercars, some Ferrari reach new heights of price and prestige. But there's an even rarer category: prototypes. And among them, the strange V12-powered Ferrari 458s, nicknamed "458 Frankenstein", occupy a special place. Built in Maranello in the early 2010s to develop the future LaFerrari, they have now become collector's items as fascinating as they are unpredictable in terms of price.

A 458 Italia... like no other

At first glance, it looks like a simple 458 Italia. But a closer look reveals that something is not quite right. The proportions seem slightly altered, riveted flaps appear on the sides, the rear is sometimes crudely cut to allow air or exhaust ducts to pass through. These cars, though official, have been transformed by Ferrari itself into veritable rolling laboratories.

Beneath their aluminum bodywork, they conceal the 6.3-liter F140 V12, the same one that will later power the LaFerrari and its 963 combined horsepower (thermal and electric). These prototypes were used to test the brakes, suspension, energy recovery system and ESP of the future hypercar.

Called Muletto M4 or M6 depending on their stage of development, these vehicles circulated almost daily around the Fiorano circuit between 2011 and 2013. Some were even spotted on the open road, heavily camouflaged, well before the official presentation of the LaFerrari in 2013.

Name	Year	Phase	Technical basis	Main objective
M4	2011-2012	1st phase (Muletto)	458 Italia	V12 testing + hybridization
M6	2012-2013	1st phase (Muletto)	458 Italia	Brakes, suspension, ESP
MP1	2012	2nd phase	Aluminum-carbon hybrid chassis	Complete HY-KERS integration
PS1	2013-2014	3rd phase (Pre-Series)	LaFerrari carbon chassis	Final validation
PS2/PS3	2014	3rd phase	The complete LaFerrari	Final customer tests

Test cars become collectors' items

Once their mission was accomplished, most of these prototypes were destroyed. But a few survived, offered or sold to select customers, on condition that they were never registered or used on a public circuit. These unusual Ferraris are therefore unique witnesses to Maranello's know-how, but also mechanical relics with no real function other than contemplation.

In 2022, RM Sotheby's offered one of these examples in Monaco, estimated at between 1.4 and 1.8 million euros. Despite its Ferrari Classiche certificate and famous "Yellow Book", the prototype failed to find a buyer. Three years later, in October 2025, the same model reappeared, this time in an online auction organized by RM Sotheby's from Maranello. And this time, it found a buyer, at a price still kept secret, but probably close to the million-dollar mark.

Unstable odds

Recent sales results show just how variable the value of these prototypes can be. In August 2022, another LaFerrari mule sold for just $715,000, while another example fetched $1.6 million the same year. By 2025, the M4 prototypeunder the hammer at Pebble Beach, went for $1.215 million. Another example: a PS1 prototype sold for 2.5 million $ in 2022, then failed to find a buyer for 1.9 million $ in 2023...

In other words, these 458 V12 "Frankensteins" defy market logic. Their value depends more on their individual history, their precise role in development, their condition, their certificates, than on an established quotation. Their status as official prototypes, sometimes functional but never homologated, makes them exceptional objects that are difficult to value, but irresistible to discerning collectors.

Pieces of history destined to appreciate in value?

The recently sold M6 model, maintained by Carrozzeria Zanasi in Maranello, has been fully documented by Ferrari, right down to the test notes and removable panels used during development. This level of traceability makes it a unique piece of history, comparable to a Formula 1 factory prototype.

Difficult to value, impossible to homologate, but fascinating to contemplate, these V12-powered Ferrari 458 prototypes may not be the most beautiful, and remain a risky short-term investment. But they could increase in value over the long term, as they tell the story of the birth of a legend better than any other car: that of the Ferrari LaFerrari.