The rebirth of N.A.R.T. is a big undertaking, especially if you're going to create your own racer. Fortunately, big projects are Glick's forte. His post on FerrariChat below:

No Longer Red but a Flashing Green...
Things are starting to come together. It will take time but there is excitement and real interest.

Thanks to my Partners in this adventure!

This will be some trip and it has begun.

P 4/5 took on a life of her own.

May P 4/5 Competizione follow her example.

While the Michiel van den Brink renderings — both of them — were great, we've been told — by Glickenhaus himself over at FerrariChat — these renderings are closer to Jim's vision of a car that's very similar to his P4/5.

One question still remains — what Ferrari will he base this race-ready bad boy after? Top Gear seems to think it'll be the Ferrari 458 Italia. What do you think?

According to Glickenhaus in comments on the FerrariChat message board, the idea is to have it possibly race ready for 2010. Specifics, such as chassis/engine/gearbox, are "figured out" and will be announced soon. Although the above image, a rendering by Michiel Van Den Brink, based on the original, shows us what it may look like, Glickenhaus says it represents a "very rough" idea of what it'll look like when completed although "We're still working out the details and should have an image and specifications in a few weeks"

We're also waiting to hear what racing series it may be a part of, although in the spirit of the original N.A.R.T. they'll be looking at endurance racing and plan on hitting the 24 Hours Of Nürburgring.

"We're looking for one major sponsor. That race gets 250k spectators and a lot of TV. In addition we could do other races and when her racing days are over we'd keep her in that livery and she'd go to a lot of events. There'd be a lot exposure and it's not going to cost Crazy money," said Glickenhaus. It'll be interesting to see where Glickenhaus goes with this considering "Ferrari P 4/5 Competizione will not be sold." That'll limit the sponsorship opportunities. However, Glickenhaus claims he's willing to go it his own if necessary.

Glickenhaus also announced he won't be racing the vehicle stating "my driving in anger days are behind me. We have some interesting ideas for drivers."

All we know is we're excited as hell to see what he's got in mind and can't wait to see the first renderings when Glickenhaus releases them.

There wasn't much to report from the mansion at Meadow Brook, but there certainly were some automotive gems parked on the forecourt. This P3/4 caught our attention immediately. It may be dressed in race livery but it's road legal, with the requisite treaded tires, headlights, brake lights, turn signals and great heaping bags of cold filtered awesome. No small surprise considering this is James Glickenhaus' P3/4, the very same which inspired his modern Pininfarina-styled Ferrari 612 P4/5.

But first, the facts. And even before that, a clarification: Bongo is not from Congo. Delicious though the rhyme may be—as confirmed by Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs Thorbjørn Jagland who introduced President Bongo as such during a state visit in 2001—Omar Bongo was actually born in French Equatorial Africa, a colony which later became the African west coast state of Gabon. After a career in the Gabonese military, in 1967 young Bongo found himself president of an independent Gabon, an office he would hold on to until this Monday, when he succumbed to intestinal cancer in Barcelona.

He was a true gent by the standards of African dictators. Neither facts nor rumors exist of him dining on enemies, building a Concorde airstrip in the jungles of the Congo or nurturing a machete-armed militia to decimate his country’s populace. All he did was treat Gabon and its oil riches as his personal fiefdom, being truly unable to appreciate the distinction between state funds and his checking account. Nobody knows for sure the wealth he siphoned off the Gabonese economy, but it is rumored to run into the billions of dollars—making Bongo, amongst other things, the biggest owner of real estate in France.

Although a petite man at 4'11" from the Bateke tribe, Bongo—often called “the last of Africa’s big men”—liked to live large. And large he lived when he purchased a presidential limousine a decade into his rule: he got himself a Stutz Royale.

Although Gabon is a staunch pillar of Francophone Africa, the French automobile industry at this point was half a century beyond producing Royales—the Bugatti Royale, that is, of which only six were built.

Enter a resurgent Stutz Motor Car of America—of Bearcat fame—resurrected after three decades in 1968, just as Bongo ascended to the presidency. The car they built him would prove to be even rarer than the Bugatti they’d named it after: only two were made, the other going to King Fahd of Saudi Arabia.

The Royale was a stretched version of the Diplomatica, itself based on a Cadillac DeVille. It was penned by Paolo Martin, designer of James Glickenhaus’s Dino 206 Competizione and the awesome Pininfarina Modulo show car. The massive limousine was delivered to Gabon in 1977—to be promptly sent back. Why? Because according to Gabonese law, Bongo’s royal behind could not come in contact with leather. So Stutz redid the interior. Hence the velvet presidential throne:

In the equatorial heat of Gabon, the Royale would soldier on for the rest of Bongo’s three decades in power. During his August 2007 visit, French President Nicholas Sarkozy rode with Bongo in his plush limo.

Bongo’s body made it back home on Thursday to a Gabon ruled by Interim President Rose Francine Rogombé. He will be given a state funeral next Tuesday. The fate of his Royale is unknown. Perhaps it will keep carrying leather-averse royal Gabonese ass for years to come, a relic of full throttle American luxury.

And while Bongo may be gone, he lives on in cyberspace: you can still friend him on Facebook.

Photo Credit: The Internet Guide to Stutz Cars, DANIEL JANIN/AFP/Getty Images. Special thanks to Erik D’Amato.

Big Daddy Glick gives us a tour of his bespoke Pininfarina Ferrari P4/5, parked beside the classic P3/4 that inspired him to disfigure an Enzo to such a degree. It's filmed in the backyard of Jalopnik's New York compound, in Westchester County (motto: Come watch our bond traders procreate!). He also describes the process of backing up a Brinks truck full of cash at the Pininfarina headquarters in exchange for their coachworks efforts, and Ferrari's reaction to his plan. All that and how his wife got to pick the seat cover fabrics. Haters step off, this is the feel-good hit of the year. – Mike Spinelli

[via Carscoop]

Related:
Big Daddy Glickenhaus On The Ford/Ferrari War; Glickenhaus on Living With the P4/5 [internal]

Ah, Jim Glickenhaus. Ah, to be Jim Glickenhaus, the only man ever to produce a Basket Case movie and have Pininfarina scan his body for a perfect fit in a custom Enzo-based car. We met him briefly in Paris last fall and he turned out to be a very nice, personable dude, always willing and ready to drop some science. Here he tells the story of the battle of wills contested between two titans of the automotive world: Hank The Deuce and Enzo Ferrari. Part I above, click the link for part II. We can practically guarantee you'll learn something you didn't know. [Thanks to Haller for the tip] – Davey G. Johnson

The Ford/Ferrari Wars, Part II [Cirkitvision]

Related:
Foyt On Indy [Internal]

Ed Jim "Big Daddy" Glickenhaus has had a few months to toy with his Pininfarina-built, Enzo-based Ferrari P4/5, and the auto types over at Forbes commissioned Ted West (who did the Car and Driver P4/5 profile released just before the car's debut at Pebble Beach last summer) to speak with tha Glick about what the car's like to live with. He was careful not to dis the underlying Enzo, pointing out that the P4/5 is both an evolution and a result of technology that's four years newer. He then went on to point out that his machine is faster, louder and less likely to scrape on curbs than Ferrari's own basket-case-mad supercar. – Davey G. Johnson

Q&A: What It's Like to Own and Drive a $4 Million Ferrari [ForbesAutos]

Related:
You Are There: James Glickenhaus Drives His Custom Ferrari [Internal]

Lewis Black, always looking to cover things that've slipped through the cracks, decided to take on James Glickenhaus. Glickenhaus is the Ferrari collector who went and commissioned Pininfarina to build him a $3 million bespoke update of the Ferrari P4 over an Enzo chassis, the 612 P4/5. It'd appear that every time this car gets mentioned in the newspaper, it gets an upgrade of about half a million in the price tag. By Detroit, we're thinking they'll be pegging the price at about $9 million. As for Mr. Back In Black, wait for the always funny money shot at the end — we guarantee the punchline'll be worth it. – Ray Wert

Related:
Glickenhaus Unveils His New Ferrari 612 P4/5; Glickenhaus Ferrari in the Parisphere; You Are There: James Glickenhaus Drives His Custom Ferrari [internal]

Rich guy and Ferrari buff James Glickenhaus showed off his Pininfarina-designed Ferrari 612 P4/5 for the international media yesterday at the Paris show. This morning we caught the customized Enzo as it rode the turntable with obligatory Sultry Italian Model(TM), showing off its various bits. Glickenhaus also told us he was among the first to order one of Alfa Romeo's sexy new 8C Competizione models — which will sport a 4.7-liter 460-hp V8 — after Alfa opened its book on the model yesterday (no word on price). Between the Ferrari, Alfa and "Basket Case II," Big G is our new Captain Kangaroo. [Gallery]

Related:
Glickenhaus Unveils His New Ferrari 612 P4/5; You Are There: James Glickenhaus Drives His Custom Ferrari [internal]

As debutante balls go, this one was a doozy, featuring all manner of exotica and just plain expensica. While our favorite car in the building was Spyker honcho Victor Muller's three-place vintage Rolls with a wooden deck and a side-mounted gun-rack built for some maharajah or other, all eyes were on the stage for the unveiling of James Glickenhaus' Pininfarina designed-and-built P4/5. We've written about it ad nauseum, and pix from Pebble have already appeared on the site, so this post is essentially an addendum to illustrate the sheer madness as the great washed (you think they let the unwashed through the gates at Pebble Beach, son?) swarmed the magnificent vision in carbon fiber. Still, Jim, we've gotta give you shit on the horrid Jock Jams you cranked during the reveal. Next time you drop four mil on a custom car, call us. We'll set you straight on the tunes. H sker D 's "New Day Rising" seems like it would've been the natural choice for such an occasion.

Related:
Coming Out: James Glickenhaus Unveils His Pininfarina-Built Ferrari P4/5; More from Pebble Beach [Internal]

James Glickenhaus may have produced such B-movie cult classics as "Frankenhooker" and "Maniac Cop," but the unveiling of his coachbuilt Ferrari P4/5 at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance this past weekend went directly to video. We're talking about streaming video, of course, and the venue is YouTube, not Blockbuster, and no one is maimed, wronged, or smokes "supercrack" (not that we can tell, at least). Check out a long-form vid of JG's speech, and a special, secret bonus trailer after the jump.

Related:
More on the James Glickenhaus Ferrari P4/5 [internal]

We've never videotaped a new-car test drive before — 20 minutes of bullshit talk from a guy in a bad suit, and us trying to decide when to "test the brakes," isn't exactly cinemographic gold in the making. But again, we didn't spend $3 million to get our own, custom Ferrari, designed by Pininfarina. Luckily, buyer James Glickenhaus recorded his first time behind the wheel of his Ferrari P4/5 for posterity. It's not long, but at least there's no one yammering on about trunk space. [Thanks to Anthony for the tip.]

Related:
You Are There: James Glickenhaus Drives His Custom Ferrari [internal]

Our techie brothers at Gizmodo took a look at James Glickenhaus's Pininfarina-designed, rebodied Ferrari Enzo, the P4/5. They turned an electric eye toward the bespoke model's gadgeted-up interior, which has a few more e-trinkets than does the donor Enzo, including vid-mo and iPod Nano. Anyone want to guess what Big Daddy has on his 'Pod? We're going with Wagner's "The Ride Of The Valkeries" or Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf Op. 67." Either that or early Chemical Brothers.

Ferrari P4/5: Gizmolicious and One of Kind [Gizmodo]

Related:
More on the James Glickenhaus Ferrari P4/5; Pininfarina Releases Press Kit [internal]

Pininfarina's released a press kit on the Ferrari P4/5 it created for James "Big Daddy" Glickenhaus, ahead of the car's debut at the Pebble Beach Concours D'Elegance next month. They've including imagery of initial sketches, wind-tunnel testing, first-drive day and a candid shot of Glickenhaus talking his accountant down from a ledge. Check out the specs after the jump.

Engine Type: V12
Displacement cu in (cc): 365(5988)
Power bhp (kW) at RPM: 660(485) / 7800
Torque lb-ft (Nm) at RPM: 484(657) / 5500
Redline at RPM: 8200 Brakes & Tires
Brakes F/R: ABS, vented disc/vented disc
Tires F-R: 255/35 ZR 20 - 335/30 ZR 20
Driveline: Rear Wheel Drive
Exterior Dimensions & Weight
Length Width Height in: 182.3 x 80.4 x 44.3
Length Width Height mm: 4630 x 2042 x 1126
Wheelbase in(mm): 104.3(2650)
Track F-R in(mm): 66.6(1691) - 67.2(1707)
Overhang F-R in(mm) 33.7(857) - 44.2(1123)
Weight lb (kg): 2645 (1200)

Performance
Acceleration 0-62 mph s: 3.55
Top Speed mph (km/h): 225 (362)
Aerodynamics Cx 0,340 Czf -0,123 Czr -0,025
Frontal Area (m2) 1,906

Read the press release here.

Related:
Glickenhaus Unveils His New Ferrari 612 P4/5 [internal]

Ferrari 612 P4/5 [Italia Motor]

Related:
You Are There: James Glickenhaus Drives His Custom Ferrari [internal]

Our new best friend James Glickenhaus [our birthday's in April, J. — ed] took his custom Ferrari for a spin in Italy, ahead of its unveiling at the Pebble Beach Concours D'Elegance next month. If you'll recall, Glickenhaus is the Ferrari collector who's commissioning Pininfarina to build him a $3 million bespoke update of the Ferrari P4 over an Enzo chassis, the 612 P4/5. Check out his account of driving the car for the first time, after the jump. Dear diary...

She was sitting in the sun when we pulled up. Seeing her outside with a PROVA Plate attached to her tail took all of this to a new level. We walked around her slowly admiring her lines and the interior that was starting to come together. We slipped in, strapped down, and set off. The first thing I noticed was that the reduction in front overhang made a huge difference compared to the Enzo. The next thing was the panoramic vision through her fighter cockpit greenhouse. Her newly sculpted interior seemed very roomy as we pulled out of the driveway without any problem and turned onto the road. You've heard the expression "Traffic Stopping"? This time it really did. Even The Sport bike stopped and let us enter the road. The Babe on the Back looked over and down as we pulled by. She smiled and slowly raised her thumb straight up.

We were running without ABS or traction control because the computer hadn't yet been programed for the new sized wheels and tires. We were also running in low downforce mode because one of the actuator motors hadn't awoken properly from its three-year sleep. The amount of engineering to get to this point boggles the mind and The Pininfarina Special Project Team continues to amaze me with their ability to meet all of these challenges. I'm also very happy to report that Ferrari is very pleased and is giving full technical support as well.

We continued on to the secondary road and set off. Pininfarina had already put on a few hundred test miles and reported all was well so when it came time to pass I rolled on the throttle and felt the hand of God push me back into the seat. You immediately feel just how light she is. The brakes are SUPER and the wider tires really grip. The suspension feels great as it works and the motor sings. When you get to 3000rpm the exhaust shunts to the new system and it sounds like that the horn that blows before the Four Horsemen ride into view.

We headed to the Autostrada and put her though a few gears as we left the toll gate. The Video Jesse shot from the chase vehicle is unlike any I've seen. P 4/5 pulls away and vanishes into the distance like an F 16 launching from a carrier deck. As she vanished the only thing than seemed strange is that she was still on the earth not standing on her tail in afterburner mode shooting towards the heavens...

"Ground Control to Major Tom..."

Related:
That's Not My Car!: Collector Answers AutoWeek's P4/5 Speculation [internal]