Now that Ferrari has launched the FF as the official replacement of the 612 Scaglietti, it’s time for the Italian automaker to wrap up development of the successor to the 599. The car’s replacement was undergoing development in a California shell. What you see here are the first photos that actually give a glimpse of the new car’s shape, dressed in loose-fitting camouflage.

The 599 successor – rumored to be dubbed F620 – will likely be powered by Ferrari’s 6.3-liter V12, churning out over 700 horsepower. Unlike the all-wheel-drive FF, the 599 replacement will continue to use rear-wheel drive, sending its power to the back wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission with an F1-style electronic differential. As previously reported, a hybrid drivetrain could also be in the works.

Our sources suggest that the F620 will be much lighter than the outgoing 599, due in part to a larger usage of aluminum in the body construction. As for design, it’s safe to assume that the coupe will take a large influence from the 458 Italia, with some cues from the FF thrown in for good measure. Then again, it’s a Ferrari, so we doubt the finished product will be anything but stunning.

Expect to see more of the F620 as it continues its development testing over the next few months. The car is expected to make its debut at next year’s Geneva International Motor Show in March and could go on sale by late 2012.

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Source: autoblog.com and wot.motortrend.com

Ferrari brought its successor to the 612 Scaglietti, the all-wheel-drive FF hatchback, to Chicago last week as part of a national roadshow. Of Ferrari’s 36 U.S. retailers, the city has two — Lake Forest Sportscars and Continental AutoSports — and each will receive maybe two FFs to deliver at the tail end of the year, Lake Forest general manager Dan Carver said. The Italian brand’s flagship, the 660-horsepower FF will find perhaps 200 U.S. owners in 2012. Ferrari’s best-selling California sales “easily triple that,” Carver said.

Not far from Cars.com headquarters, we checked out the four-seat FF. When it debuted last January, the hatchback’s profile irritated enthusiasts, but Ferrari defends its practicality. A nine-year project, the car resulted from Ferrari wanting something that could accommodate four adults and their luggage for a weekend trip while still lapping the automaker’s Fiorano circuit in respectable time. In fact, the FF is “as fast around Fiorano as the 599″ GTB, presenter Paul Gerrard said.

The car’s nose, whose headlights resemble the 458 Italia, gives way to a profile similar to BMW’s onetime Z4 coupe. The roofline hangs high until just ahead of the rear window, lending decent backseat headroom. Not that it’s spacious back there.

Well, maybe for contortionists: Adults in the second row will have to straddle the front seats with their legs, and the tightly bound front seatbacks make for a hard saddle. Worse confines exist, but as backseats go, the FF is no sedan substitute.

Not that anyone will care. Aside from an old-school Chrysler navigation unit — Fiat owns both brands — cabin materials impress. Less Spartan than the 599 and 458, the FF’s interior has carbon fiber and leather aplenty, and the seats feel more accommodating than the Ferrari norm. Inherent of a hatchback, the cargo area is spacious — enough for two sets of golf clubs or luggage for four, Gerrard said. Above them sits a tonneau cover; fittingly, it’s also wrapped in cowhide.

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Source: blogs.cars.com/kickingtires

Ever wonder how they make the V12 in this case, in the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti. Well this video shows you how they do it which produces the sweet sound of a Ferrari engine. They start from the beginning to the end of the fabrication of the engine block, pistons, camshaft, crankshaft, etc. and assembly and testing of the parts to create a work of art.

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Source: AutomotiveTV.net

Ferrari will limit annual production of its new four-wheel-drive FF to 800 units – and already the first year’s build has sold out, says the carmaker.

Customers who order the model now will receive their cars in the second half of next year.

The FF sells for €260,000 ($500,000) in Italy, where it goes on sale in May. Production is expected to reach its full speed of 70 units a month by June.

The 800 units sold in two months, after Ferrari began private previews with potential customers in mid-January. The FF, which stands for Ferrari Four, replaces the company’s 612 Scaglietti flagship. The FF is marginally bigger and roomier than the Scaglietti but weighs the same at 1790kg, despite adding four-wheel drive. At 4907mm it is fractionally longer than a Holden Commodore.

Under the bonnet is a 6.3-litre direct-injection V12 delivering a claimed 485kW at 8000rpm and 683Nm at 6000rpm.

Ferrari says the FF sprints from zero to 100km/h in 3.7sec and on to a top speed of 336km/h. The 612 Scaglietti managed the sprint in 4sec and hit 322km/h flat out.

Despite having more power than the 405kW 5.7-litre Scaglietti, Ferrai says the FF is more fuel efficient with CO2 emissions of 360g/km compared with the Scaglietti’s 470g/km.

Ferrari has been working for almost a decade on the lightweight four-wheel-drive system that debuts on the FF.

“Our four-wheel-drive system weighs about 45kg, half of traditional four-wheel-drive systems which, to transfer torque to the front wheels in four-wheel-drive mode, need a central and a front differential,” said Andrea Binotti, chief engineer for the FF.

Ferrari’s system, called 4RM, adds a second, smaller two-gear gearbox in front of the engine to transfer torque to the front wheels.

The main gearbox, a seven-speed dual-clutch unit, is mounted in a transaxle design in the rear to power the rear wheels.

The 4RM aids weight balance in the car, with 47 per cent of weight on the front axle and 53 per cent on the rear axle.

In gears from first to fourth, when needed, the FF electronically transfers up to 47 per cent of the 683Nm to the front wheels. In higher gears or on high-grip surfaces, all the torque goes to the rear wheels.

Ferrari product marketing director Marco Valentini said the FF “creates a segment of its own because no other competitors match the model for roominess and all-round versatility”.

The shooting brake-style body for the FF, which has a station wagon-shaped tailgate that gives access to the cargo area of 450 litres, rising to 800 litres with the rear seats folded down, was designed by Pininfarina. Italdesign-Giugiaro penned the FF interior and also performed some body engineering for the FF project.

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Source: nzherald.co.nz

Ferrari officially launched the Ferrari FF at the Geneva Motor Show this week and there is already a 18-month waiting list.

The Ferrari FF is Ferrari’s first ever four-seat four-wheel-drive model. Powered by a direct-injection 6.3-liter V12 engine with 651-hp and 504 ft lbs of torque, the FF can hit 62 mph in just 3.7 seconds. It’s also modestly efficient, getting roughly 15-mpg thanks to Ferrari’s HELE (High Emotion, Low Emissions) system that includes start-stop technology.

The 4RM system adds grip to the FF while still delivering a rear-wheel drive experience with power only being transmission to the front when required. Splitting torque individually to each of the four wheels, the FF takes AWD systems a step further and should prove incredibly capable.

Although the FF wasn’t officially launched until this week, Ferrari has been showing off the car at private events. Those private events are the reason that Ferrari has already received over 1,000 orders. That’s great news, but unfortunately Ferrari only has the capacity to build about 800 FFs a year.

The FF officially replaces the 612 Scaglietti and is already selling better than the old model, which only sold 3,000 units in seven years.

Ferrari hasn’t announced the pricing for the FF, but it’s expected to be around $360,000.

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Source: autoguide.com and thetorquereport.com

“Ferrari urges you to obey all traffic signs and laws” says the disclaimer at the end of this three-and-a-half-minute video used as part of the recent web unveiling for the Ferrari FF. For the internet coming-out of the FF, Ferrari showed off its capabilities with a video of the car being driven in a manner that no one in their right mind would ever attempt. We’ll get to see the FF in the metal ourselves when it makes its show-stand debut at the Geneva Motor Show next Tuesday.

Ferrari also shared some important numbers about the FF with the assembled crowd and internet viewers. The first number is 660, the horsepower developed by the direct-injected V12. Three point seven is the number of seconds that elapse between 0 and 62 miles per hour, and four carries a double meaning with the FF, denoting the number of seating positions and driven wheels. It’s not just a Rosso Corsa haze, either. Ferrari underscores its commitment to reducing fuel consumption by revealing the FF’s 360 g/km CO2 emissions figure, which is 25-percent lower than the previous V12 used in the automaker’s 612 Scaglietti.

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Source: autoblog.com

Beautiful. Fast. Expensive. There are any of a number of adjectives you could use to describe a Ferrari. Radical is one of them, too. But versatile? Hold on to your hats, because the FF is like no other Ferrari we’ve seen before.

The long-anticipated successor to the 612 Scaglietti takes the stage as Ferrari’s flagship grand tourer. It carries four seats like its predecessor, but elongates the roofline for a shooting brake/hatchback body-style that offers plenty of cabin space and – with those rear seats folded down – as much cargo capacity as a small wagon.

It may be the first shooting brake to roll out of Maranello since the legendary 250 Breadvan, but that’s not even the extent of the firsts pioneered in the new Ferrari Four. It also carries the company’s long-in-the-making part-time all-wheel drive system: the innovation is called 4RM, and while technical details haven’t been revealed, it is said to be only half as heavy as a conventional system, helping the front-engined shooting brake keep a 47:53 rearward weight bias. Coupled with a sub-4,000 pound curb weight (some 110 pounds less than the 612), the HELE stop-start system previewed in the California concept from the Paris show also helps keep emissions and fuel consumption down.

Of course nobody buys a Ferrari for its environmental credentials, so here’s the info you’ve been waiting for: 0-62 in 3.7 seconds (a third quicker than the 612) and a top speed of 208 mph (about nine mph faster than the 612). Credit that bit to the all-new, direct-injection, 6.3-liter V12 and its 651 horsepower and 504 lb-ft of torque, which you can read about – together with the other technical details – in the press release after the jump. Ferrari’s also launched a dedicated microsite for the new flagship.

The new Ferrari is about to arrive
The FF unveiled on www.ferrari.com

A revolutionary four-seater, four-wheel drive V12 Ferrari: exceptional performance and versatility

Maranello, 21st January 2011 – The official Prancing Horse web site, Ferrari.com, has revealed the first photographs of the new FF, the company’s most powerful, versatile four-seater ever, as well as its first ever four-wheel drive car.

The FF – an acronym for Ferrari Four (four seats and four-wheel drive) – ushers in an entirely new GT sports car concept. A decisive break with the past, the new car represents not so much an evolution as a true revolution.

This new V12 melds to an unprecedented level an extremely sporty, high-performance character with incredible versatility, superb comfort and sophisticated elegance, guaranteeing both driver and passengers an absolutely unique driving experience.

Designed by Pininfarina, the shape and proportions perfectly interpret the FF’s harmonious blend of sporting DNA and extraordinary usability.

The FF features the company’s first ever four-wheel drive system. Ferrari’s exclusive, patented 4RM (four-wheel drive) weighs 50 per cent less than a conventional four-wheel drive system, maintaining perfect weight distribution (53 per cent over the rear axle). Completely integrated with the car’s electronic dynamic control systems, the four-wheel drive technology delivers record levels of performance on all terrains and in all conditions via continuous and intelligent predictive torque distribution to all four wheels. The FF is also equipped with the latest magnetorheological damping system (SCM3), as well as the most recent development in carbon-ceramic brakes from Brembo.

Exceptional performance levels come courtesy of the new 6,262 cc direct injection engine which develops 660 CV at 8,000 rpm. In tandem with its transaxle dual-clutch F1 gearbox, stunning acceleration figures (0-100 km/h in 3.7 sec.) are guaranteed. The new model’s class-leading weight-to-power ratio of 2.7 kg/CV, along with its ideal weight distribution, ensures exceptionally responsive handling. The result is that owners will be able to enjoy the FF’s prowess over a wide range of uses: city driving, on low grip or snow-covered surfaces and on the track. Performance aside, Maranello’s latest model also offers standards of passenger space, comfort, in-car spec and equipment previously unheard of in such a high-performance car. It can comfortably accommodate four people and their luggage, thanks to the best cabin space and boot capacity (450 litres extendable to 800) figures in its category, including four-door cars.

A vast array of personalisation options and accessories has been developed for the FF. These include six model-specific exterior colours and sumptuous interior trim incorporating specially selected and treated aniline leather.

The FF, which will make its official debut in occasion of the upcoming Geneva Motor Show, is presented today with the first three photos from a dedicated shoot by Giovanni Gastel.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Engine
Type 65-degree V12
Overall displacement 6,262 cc
Maximum power 660 CV @ 8,000 rpm
Maximum torque 683 Nm @ 6,000 rpm
Dimensions and weight
Length 4907 mm
Width 1953 mm
Height 1379 mm
Dry weight* 1790 kg
Weight distribution 47% front, 53% rear
Weight/power ratio 2.7 kg/CV

Performance
Maximum speed 335 km/h
0-100 km/h 3.7 sec
Fuel consumption and emissions (ECE+EUDC)
Fuel consumption** 15,4 l/100 km
Emissions** 360 g/km

* European market version
** With HELE system

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Source: autoblog.com

It was less than a week ago when the latest shots were taken of the Ferrari 612 successor to hit the Internet. It was dismissed the hunchbacked shape the last time around, but these more revealing set of photos proves that the 612 does, in fact, take on the more traditional shooting brake design rather than that of a swoopy coupe. 

There were spies that managed to get a quick glance inside the 612 replacement, and in addition to confirming that there’s an honest-to-goodness luggage compartment out back, we now have a relatively clear idea of what the cockpit looks like. In addition to heaps of the finest leather, we can see what appears to be a set of nicely bolstered seats and a Ferrari-spec steering wheel complete with the bright red “engine start” button and drive mode selector switch.

This latest Ferrari will undoubtedly be an eye-catching piece of machinery when the camouflage cladding is removed. Gorgeousness aside, we’re salivating at the rumors of a 670-horsepower 6.3-liter V12 being found underhood, meaning 0-60 should be ripped off in just 3.7 seconds and the car’s top speed should be well north of 200 miles per hour.

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Source: autoblog.com

Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano China Limited Edition

MARANELLO, Italy — Italian luxury-car maker Ferrari sold nearly 300 sports cars in China in 2010, a 50-percent increase over 2009 sales and a record since it entered the Chinese market six years ago.

That makes China, a Communist country where 40 percent of the population works in agriculture, according to the CIA’s World Factbook, one of the top five international markets for Ferrari, when the sales figures for Hong Kong and Taiwan are added.

China’s passion for the Prancing Horse will take center stage January 14 in Shanghai when Ferrari introduces its 999th client at a special celebration marking its banner year. The number nine is significant in China, as it is considered lucky and represents longevity.

Rather than luck, Ferrari credits the sales increase to several key investments it has made in recent years. It culminated in 2010 with the introduction of special initiatives and such crowd-pleasing events as the display of the HY-KERS laboratory vehicle at the Shanghai World Expo and the launch of the 599 GTO at the 2010 Beijing Auto Show, Ferrari’s first-ever world premiere in China. In 2006, Ferrari hosted a driving tour in China that racked up 15,000 miles on two Ferrari 612 Scagliettis.

To further demonstrate its commitment to this strategic market, the automaker announced that it will increase the number of dealerships in China from the current 10 in the next few months, as well as start the first Asian championship in the Ferrari Challenge single-make racing series in 2011.

Chinese artist Lu Hao presented a one-off Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano China Limited Edition. The bodywork was painted in special effect “Ge Kin”, a technique used on the antique porcelain from the Song Dynasty. This collectors item sold at an auction in Beijing for €1.2 million.

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 Source: insideline.com, rumors.automobilemag.com, drivingdutchman.net

We told you about the new top-of-the-line Ferrari expected to be unveiled in March; now a Ferrari enthusiast has snapped these photos of a heavily disguised model out testing near Maranello. Don’t worry-it’s not really a hatchback.

The photographer posted the shots to the FerrariChat forum, saying the hunchback rear-end raised and lowered at speed in an attempt to keep the car’s actual silhouette a mystery. The red is actually tape; the real body is apparently blue. And as for it’s engine, the only report is: “The sound of the car is unbelieveable, especially when downshifting.”

As we’ve said, the 612 replacement is expected to offer all-wheel-drive and a new 6.3-liter V12 good for 670 hp, turning a 7-speed gearbox.

The following link to the thread of more pictures of the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti mule is here: FerrariChat . Just to let you know is that you will have to log in to view the photos. Thank you to laatste man for the information on the release of the next Ferrari to debut at the Geneva International Motor Show.

If you would like to email me of recent Ferrari news that you think would appeal to the community on FerrariDreams, then send it to rickresch@att.net .

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Source: jalopnik.com