Ferrari's made a rally inspired 488, and it's brilliant

You might need to give us a moment. Ferrari has unveiled a rally-inspired 488 GTB, and it’s really quite lovely.

If you’re struggling to correlate Ferrari with the mucky world of rallying, then it’s time for a quick history lesson. Back in the 1980s, a Ferrari 308 GR4 campaigned in the Tour de France Auto event, which by that point had been incorporated into the European Rally Championship.

The bold French Racing Blue car of Jean-Claude Andruet won it two years running - in 1981 and ’82 - earning itself cult status.

Which goes someway to explain why Ferrari’s Paris dealer has delved into the company’s Tailor Made programme to produce this bang-up-to-date homage, a Ferrari 488 GTB wrapped in the same branding.

So it rocks the same blue and white two-tone colour scheme, its sponsor logos have their modern-day equivalents and, best of all, there’s a set of lovely gold alloy wheels. Wearing significantly smaller profile tyres than the 308's, though, we wouldn’t fancy their chances of making it across rough terrain without a few pricey dings and scuffs.

There’s even a matching pair of red sports seats, while modern niceties like CarPlay and parking sensors remain, taking the pain out of the drives between stages. Our only qualm? No massive light bar. But otherwise, we fully support the rally-isation of a 205mph, 661bhp twin-turbo V8 supercar. Top Gear’s Supercar of the Year, no less.

Now where’s the forest stage?