If you’ve ever been to an urban car show—one of those where you feel like you’ve stepped into a scene from the first Fast & Furious movies—you’ll know that it usually smells of gasoline and burnt rubber. That’s why more than a few people felt out of place during the last Monterey Car Week, when an unusual Ferrari 308 appeared that wasn’t surprising for its loud Italian V8 engine, but for its delicious smell of specialty coffee.
The world’s most expensive coffee maker is a Ferrari
It started as a joke, but quickly became the center of attention during Monterey Car Week. Walter Haas, heir to the family that owns Levi’s, acquired Graffeo Coffee, San Francisco’s oldest coffee roaster, in late 2024. While looking around the office, he discovered something quite interesting: the previous owner, Luciano Graffeo, was a petrolhead. Beneath the appearance of an 81-year-old gentleman, gasoline ran through Luciano’s veins, in addition to coffee. He had spent his entire life driving Ferraris and Alfa Romeos. In other words, he was a Lionfield-certified Italian.
After the discovery, Haas told his partners that cars, although they didn’t know it at the time, were part of the company’s DNA. So they discussed what they could do to merge the two worlds. Among the brainstorming, one idea seemed absurd: “What if we served coffee from the trunk of a Ferrari?”
We assume that in most companies in this world, the idea would have been laughed off and little else. But Haas found it so amusing that he felt compelled to make it a reality. And the fact is that, for someone with sufficient financial resources like him, converting a classic Ferrari into a coffee machine on wheels is, as crazy as it may seem, the most sensible idea.
3.0 Naturally aspirated V8 & 9 BAR Espresso
Creating this unique Ferrari with a built-in coffee machine was no easy task. Haas chose an iconic model: the 1984 Ferrari 308. Obviously, in Rosso Corsa color. For the modification, instead of choosing a workshop specializing in the Prancing Horse, they decided to hand it over to the Church of the Air Cooled team. This is a workshop that usually only works with Porsche vehicles. But in this case, the challenge was so outrageous that they decided to make an exception.
The work was not easy. They had to install a commercial-grade espresso system in the rear trunk. To avoid upsetting the Ferrari’s weight balance (and turning it into an unmanageable beast), they had to put the water tank in the front. And although the result is elegant, inside, this Ferrari 308 Quattrovalvole is full of pipes and electrical connections.
Overshadowing modern sports cars
As we mentioned at the beginning of this article, this coffee maker bearing the Ferrari logo left no one indifferent. It was unveiled at the Concorso Italiano during the latest Monterey Car Week. Normally, at this event, people flock around the latest hypercar or some futuristic prototype with an electric motor.
However, on this occasion, the crowd was drawn to an irresistible combination: the throaty sound of the Italian V8, coupled with the aroma of freshly ground coffee. No Lamborghini or Pagani in this world can match that combination. So much so that celebrities such as Richard Petty and players from the San Francisco 49ers came to see the Ferrari.
The result has been a successful marketing move. The Ferrari has become a museum piece. Graffeo Coffee has turned its promotional car into a multisensory experience. So much so that it has become a regular feature in NASCAR VIP areas and at private events.
Of course, Walter Haas plans to continue with his project. He says that, given the success he has had with the Maranello sports car, his next idea is to create something original with a Vespa. Probably turning it into the most elegant coffee grinder in history.