Ferrari Logo Prancing Horse

Ferrari could put a hybrid car on the market by 2015, according to the automaker’s CEO and General Manager Amedeo Felisa. In an interview with Autocar, Felisa says that either European Union or Italian environmental regulations could force the company to put a hybrid up for sale.

Speaking to Autocar at the last Beijing Motor Show, Felisa had some rather interesting remarks on the future of his company, notably regarding the powerplants needed to meet future emissions and fuel mileage requirements. Says Felisa: “Our customers are looking for the essence of Ferrari-the emotion, the performance, the technology and so on. The way in which we fix emissions is not their problem but ours. If we are not able to fix it, only then will it become a problem for them.”

That’s rational, we’d say. But here’s the point where Felisa’s comment’s seem sure to raise some eyebrows amongst the environmental crowd: “[Hybrid will come in] 2015, if we are forced to by the [government] regulations. The issue of emissions for Ferrari is more a political one than real one. Lowering emissions of every Ferrari will not save the planet, but it will cost us a lot of money…In the next five to 10 years, hybrid technology will develop and maybe something else will come up. Maybe it’ll be hydrogen, but for our cars only hybrid is ready.”

According to Autocar’s quote from Felisa, “Hybrid means we can protect the V12,” suggesting Ferrari believes its unassisted 12-cylinder will live on. Autocar’s theory is that the next Enzo could see its V12 paired with an electric motor to keep the government watchdogs happy. Of course, this contradicts Autocar’s Ferrari piece from about ten days ago when, after speaking with Felisa, it wrote, “Felisa also hinted that the new Ferrari Enzo will be powered by a direct-injected twin-turbo V8 when it is launched in 2012.”

From this perspective you could say that hybrid drivetrains are doing something unimaginable, they are saving the possibility of having a massive V12 engine in the supercar of your dreams.

Felisa said that the only reason behind the company developing hybrids is not to compete with Porsche’s KERS or any other mainstream application but simply to find a loophole in fuel economy that would save their way of thinking up Ferraris of the future.

Currently, Ferrari is only exploring hybrid powertrains to reduce emissions within the next ten years. The company has not ruled out the eventual use of hydrogen.

What do you think about a hybrid Enzo?

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Check me out on Twitter: http://twitter.com/FerrariDreams and Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/rick.resch

Source: autoblog.com, automotorblog.com and worldcarfans.com

2010 Ferrari 612 Scaglietti

Ferrari won’t be pressured into producing a four-door sports saloon, unlike its rivals Aston Martin and Porsche. “As Enzo Ferrari would say, we will never do four doors,” Amedeo Felisa, Ferrari’s vice general manager, recently told Autocar. “We will keep this tradition.”

Although his company has broken into some new (and unusual) territory with the likes of the 599 HY-KERS hybrid and is using fuel-saving stop-start technology on its cars-which it previously has said that it won’t ever do, Felisa points out the European Union regulates emissions and fuel economy–not the number of doors a vehicle must incorporate.

“We stand 60 years and never needed four doors,” he said. “Frankly speaking, no one is asking for a four-door Ferrari. If you want a four-door Ferrari, we have a Maserati.” He said that one of Ferrari’s strong points has been that its products are kept “in the right way.” He said further that while he can’t categorically state that four doors isn’t right for its image, it’s just not part of its heritage.

On that note, look for a few new four-doors in Maserati’s future. During Fiat’s five-year product plan rollout, it was revealed that a new Quattroporte is in the works, as is a smaller sedan, designed to compete with the BMW M5. No time frame was given for either model offering.

What do you think about if Ferrari built a four-door sedan?

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Check me out on Twitter: http://twitter.com/FerrariDreams and Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/rick.resch

Source: rumors.automobilemag.com and 4wheelsnews.com