The son of a racing driver, Fernando Solís has cars in his blood. For his latest Ferrari he turned to Tailor Made’s myriad personalisation options to give his 812 Competizione special colour – and meaning
For Fernando Solís, a 34-year-old working in his family’s industrial business in Santiago, Chile, Ferrari has always been a big part of his life. “My father was a racing driver, so cars and motorsport were always present. When I was a kid, I remember my whole family watching Formula One in the era when Michael Schumacher was in his prime at Ferrari. So, for me, Ferrari has always been a dream.”
Above: Fernando Solís has been a lifelong fan of Ferrari
Fernando’s first opportunity to own a Ferrari came with a 458 Italia in Rosso Corsa, but that’s the only red Ferrari he’s ever owned. “I came to realise that a Ferrari doesn’t have to be red. I’ve had many more since then in different colours, including a 488 Pista in Giallo Modena and an 812 GTS in Nero DS.
“I had this idea of making a small collection of Ferrari cars in different colours to suit their distinct personality. The pivotal moment came when I visited the Ferrari factory and saw how the Tailor Made department offers colours that are a step beyond the normal choices. I made my decision then and there to create a Tailor Made car.”
Ordering an 812 Competizione via his local Ferrari dealer in Santiago, he had the perfect platform on which to do this: after all, what better model to configure at Tailor Made than one that’s already so special?
Above, from left: the steering wheel’s silver-red-blue striping echoes the exterior; the driver and passenger seats in Rosso FX Alcantara® and Black Alcantara®; the engine bay in blue carbon fibre throughout; the blue rear emblem
Perhaps the greatest challenge facing any Tailor Made client is how to proceed when the only frontiers are those in your imagination. How do you choose the right specification when the choice of colours, materials and personalisation is almost without limit?
Fernando made a wise decision: he relied on his family and together they decided on silver as the main body colour, but not just any shade. Via the Tailor Made programme, he opted for a very special silver, a multi-layer paint with a strong mica effect. “It’s an amazing finish,” he says. “It really pops and shines in the Chilean sun, becoming like a whole new colour.”
Heightening the sense of drama is the Tailor Made asymmetrical livery. Fernando says: “While I avoided red for the main body colour, I think having red for the livery, brake callipers and tyre walls perfectly enhances the track-orientated focus of the 812 Competizione.”
Above: Fernando Solís with his Tailor Made 812 Competizione in the hills above Santiago
The red he chose looks very striking in sunlight. It’s joined by a thin, parallel, metallic blue stripe. This is the perfect complement for the Tailor Made blue carbon-fibre exterior package that Fernando selected, including the bonnet ‘boomerang’, front air intakes, side skirts and rear diffuser. Open the bonnet and another piece of pure drama greets you: blue carbon fibre throughout the engine bay.
As for the experience of working with the Tailor Made department, Fernando is effusive in his praise. “The team is amazing. They are true experts, not only listening intently to what you want but also able to make suggestions and inspire ideas that you might not have considered before. As soon as I saw my configuration on screen, I knew it was the one for me.”
If the exterior is expressive without being extreme, the interior has an altogether different feel, as Fernando explains. “When you climb aboard the car, I want you to feel like you’re entering a whole new environment, to sense that this experience is going to be serious.”
Above: the 812 Competizione’s rear view is made all the more dramatic by the choice of asymmetrical red and blue longitudinal stripes
The first thing to strike you is the contrast between the driver’s and passenger’s seats: the former in Rosso FX Alcantara®, the latter in Black Alcantara®. That contrast is echoed in the door pulls – red for the driver, black for the passenger – whilst the red theme continues with gearshift paddles finished in red too.
“I love to drive my car up into the mountains above Santiago,” says Fernando. “You can really feel the track focus of the car through the curves there; it’s firm but smooth. One day, I hope to take it on track, too, as that’s its natural environment.”
Beautifully striking in its own right, Fernando’s 812 Competizione is dramatically enhanced by Maranello’s Tailor Made department, as he concludes: “It not only makes the car unique but also gives it a special meaning. To have a Special Series Ferrari, and a Tailor Made one, represents the peak. It’s priceless. I will for sure come back to the Tailor Made department in the future for another car.”
THIS STORY WAS TAKEN FROM ISSUE 64 OF THE OFFICIAL FERRARI MAGAZINE