What kind of car do Ferris and his friends drive in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off"?

The answer is: Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder

The star of "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" wasn't Matthew Broderick - it was a car that had grown men in the audience whimpering. The 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder isn't your average mass-produced four-wheeler, less than 60 were ever built, each one now worth over $11 million.

Director John Hughes knew exactly what he was doing when he chose this car. He needed something so beautiful, so rare, and so expensive that audiences would feel physical pain watching teenagers joy-ride in it. The 250 GT California Spyder was perfect - a car so gorgeous it makes stealing it almost feel justified. Almost.

Of course, Hollywood wasn't about to risk a real one. Instead, three replicas were built by Modena Design & Development for filming. These copies were good enough to spark a lawsuit from Ferrari, who apparently didn't appreciate someone making knockoff versions of their masterpiece. But Modena had the last laugh because even the replicas auction for over six figures these days.

The replicas are so good because they had to be. The car appears in some of the most memorable scenes of the film. Who will ever forget the first time they heard the "Star Wars" theme song while one of the cars catches some air time?

But it's the finale that really makes car enthusiasts grab their chests. The filmmakers actually destroyed one of the replicas for that famous scene where the car crashes through the garage glass and plunges into the ravine. They shot it multiple times too, sending $25,000 worth of craftsmanship into the abyss again and again until they got it right.

Real or replica, that car represents the ultimate teenage dream: borrowing dad's car, breaking all the rules, and somehow getting away with it. But I wouldn't mind a real one.