Ferrari 599 GTO

Chris Harris at EVO had a chance to test Ferrari’s new supercar, the 599 GTO. The GTO is the bigger and badder brother of the 599 GTB Fiorano. The car is powered by a 6.0-liter V12 that comes from the same lineage as the Enzo. Amazingly, the 599 GTO is actually faster than the Enzo and the chassis is 430 pounds lighter than the base 599 GTB, allowing the car to hit 60 miles per hour in just 3.35 seconds with a top speed of 208 miles per hour. There is 661 horsepower and 457 pound-feet of torque.

Numbers are one thing, but the noise of that Ferrari V12 is just sensational. Harris was lucky enough to go for a drive in the new 599 GTO around the Italian countryside. Life doesn’t get much better than that. Thanks to Harris and EVO for allowing us to hear and see that beautiful new creation from Ferrari.

The cost of the 599 GTO will be around $430,000.

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Source: topspeed.com

At last, we get to know what Ferrari has in plans for its future. At a private press gathering in central London, CEO Luca di Montezemolo discussed Ferrari past, present and future as well as confirmed that an ‘open-top 599′ would debut at the Pebble Beach Concours in California this August.

These images above and below show how the 599 could look. It’s likely to be fitted with some roof mechanisms but it’s believed that the technology developed for the 575 Superamerica in 2005 fits the bill. The limited-run car features an electric roof section that flips back over the rear windscreen.

To handle the added weight, the car gets a 25bhp power increase. Montezemolo also revealed that the roadster will have a “very romantic name.” However, he said that the Superamerica badge won’t be used.

Some valued customers requested that the open-top 599 be produced as part of an extremely limited production run. With regards to Ferrari’s hybrid plans, di Montezezmolo said that the future for Ferrari will be built on the hybrid for the 12-cylinder and new [turbocharged] technology for the eight-cylinder.

Montezemolo also said that three or four years from now, the company will be ready with a V12 hybrid based on the HY-KERS concept. What this comes down to is that the replacement for the Enzo, as well as the next 599 GTB Fiorano and 612 Scaglietti, will feature smaller-capacity V12s coupled to electric motors to raise efficiency. Meanwhile, future Ferrari V8s will be focusing on conventional turbo power to follow the performance and CO2 emissions targets.

What do you think about an open-top Ferrari 599 roadster and Ferrari’s plans for V12 hybrids & turbocharged V8s for the future? 

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Source: 4wheelsnews.com

What did you think about the video?

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Source: youtube.com via hotdealsyo.com

What do you think about the Ferrari Enzo?

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Source: Top Gear

Ferrari 458 Italia Challenge

 The crew at the Axis of Oversteer have managed to get what could be the first images of the upcoming Ferrari 458 Italia Challenge months before the car is meant to be unveiled. Although it’s not 100% sure this is the Ferrari 458 Italia Challenge, the car caught on camera does have various signs that tell it’s story.

The standard coupe’s five-lug wheels have been changed in favor of a single lug units, with each nine-spoke, lightweight hoop framing massive carbon ceramic brakes. The Challenge appears slightly lower than stock and includes some revised aerodynamic tweaks in the form of longer, wider side skirts, a revised fascia and a bonnet sporting a set of hood pins.

Out back and inside, things appear to be slightly rough around the edges, so it’s safe to assume this is just a prototype for the time being. However, the roll cage, plexiglass window, tow hooks and deeply bolstered race seat are all sure to make the cut when the Challenge debuts later this year and which was spied at Italy’s Vallelunga race track.

Ferrari has offered no word on the track-ready version of its latest model, so for now it remains unclear whether the spied car is an official Ferrari project or a privateer racer.

One thing we do know: The launch of the 599 GTO is going on this week in Italy, so it’s likely that journalists are getting a sneak peek at the Challenge between making runs in Ferrari’s Enzo beating GT. That being the case, expect all the details to be revealed shortly.

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Source: Axis of Oversteer via autoblog.com, themotorreport.com and zercustoms.com

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.

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

Ferrari Enzo

People are eager to see Ferrari’s replacement for its famous Enzo supercar, and more details about the car are beginning to emerge as it moves along from concept towards production. The latest information comes from Ferrari CEO Amedeo Felisa, who indicated that the car will in fact use a direct-injected, twin-injected turbocharged V-8.

Ferrari verified it is working on a ”special series Enzo” set to debut in 2012 at Fiat’s five-year business plan. Other details include the use of lots of carbon fiber and no hybrid powertrain. Amedeo Felisa also hinted that the car is going to use a direct-injected, twin-turbocharged V-8, the opposite of earlier reports of the possibility of a twin-turbo V-6 or twin-turbo V-12. Reports indicate the engine will produce around 700 horsepower and use the vehicle’s lower weight for mind-bending performance.

“There are no plans for a six-cylinder engine today. Ferrari will not build a six-cylinder engine until customer attitudes towards smaller engines change,” Felisa told Autocar. “The perception today is that the number of cylinders equates to the possibilities of the car. That is why we are developing hybrid technology that can be applied to our V-8 and V-10 cars. Hybrid means we can protect the V-12.”

The most interesting aspect of Felisa’s statement is the mention of V-10-powered cars–an engine not found in Ferrari’s current lineup, not even in racing. This demostrates Ferrari is planning a V-10 engine for use in a car in the near future. Given Ferrari’s current lineup and the unveiling of the 599 HY-KERS, the future V-10 engine, if used at all, is likely to power Ferrari’s next large grand tourer, the 612 Scaglietti replacement.

Additionally, Felisa confirmed that Ferrari will use carbon fiber to lower the weight of the Enzo successor. “We will only use carbon fiber on very special cars which have a very low rate of production and which are not for everyday use, such as the new Enzo,” he said.

Besides validating that Ferrari will continue to use copious amounts of carbon fiber in its supercars as it did on the Enzo and F50, this shows Ferrari won’t follow rival McLaren’s example of using carbon fiber in its “everyday” cars. McLaren uses a carbon fiber monocoque in its latest MP4-12C roadgoing car. Both BMW and Mercedes-Benz have committed to using carbon fiber extensively in the future as well.

“The fact is that nobody today has a real understanding of what happens if you damage a carbon fiber structure. After 20 or 30 years of use, who knows what state a carbon fiber structure will be in?” Felisa gave as his reason behind limiting the use of carbon fiber to Ferrari’s exotic supercars.

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Source: autocar.co.uk via rumors.automobilemag.com

Porsche 911s and Nissan GT-Rs and Corvette ZR1s are very nice cars and quite quick around the Nurburgring Nordschleife. But the exclusive Ferrari 599XX, presented last year at the Frankfurt Motor Show, managed to travel the approximately12.4 miles (20.832 kilometer) Nordschleife (North Loop) circuit in just 6 minutes, 58.16 seconds, breaking the 7-minute barrier and making it the fastest derived car from a production model, traveling the “Green Hell.” That’s almost half-a-minute faster than the mighty Ferrari Enzo.

The 700 hp supercar, and almost $1.9 million has been conducted successfully by the one of the most experienced Ferrari test driver, Raffaele de Simone. To achieve this performance, the 599XX received a new traction control system and Actiflow System technology, which increases the aerodynamic down-force at high speeds.

However, the 599XX failed to rank in front of the Radical SR8, which drew 6 minutes and 48 seconds in 2009, but is built on the chassis of a racing model.

Check out the in-car video above from the lap. Enjoy.

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Source: wired.com and mibz.com

In the middle of a grand restructuring, reports have been announced by Fiat and Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne at a investor meeting in Turin, Italy last Wednesday. First up was perhaps the most exciting, dealing with product development plans for Fiat’s most prized asset: Ferrari.

According to reports, Maranello currently has a total of six new models or model variants in the pipeline for debut over the next couple of years. The first new variant up for release is the 458 Spider, the convertible version of the 458 Italia that replaces the outgoing F430 Spider. But if that’s not enough to whet your appetite, plans are also underway on project F151, the replacement for the lackluster 612 Scaglietti, a four-seat grand tourer that is destined to feature the first road-going implementation of the company’s KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) hybrid drivetrain.

In 2012 we’ll get to see the most anticipated Ferrari, the next supercar that will build on the Enzo’s fame . Produced between 2002 and 2004 in just 399 units, the Enzo was powered by a V12 engine. No further details have been released about the Enzo successor. The company announced that it will not build more than four standard production models, so that the range will look like today, with the 458, the 599, the 612 and the California. The “new special series Enzo” is considered a distinct model and it is not part of the standard range. In the same year we’re expecting to see a completely new model to replace the 599 GTB Fiorano, code-named F152.

Finally in 2013, Ferrari is anticipated to overhaul the California with a comprehensive update tentatively called the California M, suggesting the difference between the current version and the new one will be similar in scope to the change from the 456 GT to the 456 M and from the 550 Maranello to the 575 MM. Also set for introduction in 2013 will be a hardcore , track-focused version of the 458 to follow in the footsteps of the 360 Challenge Stradale and the outgoing 430 Scuderia which most likely to be named the 458 Scuderia.

Look for both Ferrari and Maserati to make each of their models rather distinct, practically creating sub-brands within the two companies. Sister automaker Maserati is also expected to release two new models, slotted below the GranTurismo, before 2015.

What do you think about the new Ferraris coming out?

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Source: autoblog.com, autoevolution.com, worldcarfans.com and wot.motortrend.com

Concept image of the 2012 Ferrari F70-Enzo successor

According to Road & Track, there are some ambitious plans for a heir to the Enzo. The Italian supercar maker is working on a program for a mid-engine supercar with only one goal, outperforming the Enzo in combination with being considerably more efficient to comply with emissions standards. So that means less weight, smaller engine and a more compact setup.

They do expect extensive use of carbon fiber on the vehicle achieving the ultimate performance. The target weight for the rumored F70 is around 1000kg.

Regarding the engine the latest word is that the F70 will go possibly with a twin-turbo V8. Only the F70′s direct-injected engine will use the very latest technologies to eliminate turbo lag, achieve 670-700 bhp yet return excellent (for a Ferrari) fuel mileage and low emissions. A hybrid powertrain seems to be unlikely for the F70. The F70 should reach 60 mph in less than 3 seconds. The target top speed of over 230 mph is reached using a number of drag-reducing active aerodynamic features.

This information follows after rumors have been spread around for some months now. We have to wait and see until more information is being released, however the setup seems to be promising.

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Source: gtspirit.com