Category: Ferrari

It used to be that the ultimate Ferrari was pretty much the ultimate car. Full stop. Think of the legendary F40, it was the fastest, most desirable and most extreme machine of its day. The Enzo, too, raised the bar. It was as close to Michael Schumacher’s F1 car as (filthy rich) mere mortals could get. Now, almost 10 years after its initial launch, the Enzo has been long overtaken.

Indeed, Ferrai themsleves have admitted as much, with one insider stating, “The world is a very different place to how it was when the Enzo was launched. It has moved on completely. And we are Ferrari – we do not take part to make up the numbers.”

So, perhaps it is no surprise to learn Ferrari’s next hero model has been influenced by the Bugatti Veyron. A car that has not only re-wrote the hypercar rule book, it tore the old one to shreds.

The Enzo replacement is expected in the next couple of years and current thinking suggests a high-tech twin tubro V8 will provide the power. “Active aerodynamics” will lead the way for a new generation of technology for Ferrari and its clever use of airflows will likely come straight from the F1 track.

[Source: Autocar]

In a couple of days there’ll be a steady stream of pics, info and reviews about the new Ferrari FF. The Maranello manufacturer is about to launch it’s first four-wheel drive car to the world’s media (well, except Chris Harris). And, of course, they’re choosing to do that 2350m above sea level in the stunning scenery provided by the Italian alps.

Trouble is, you can only get to the chosen location by ski-lift. Unfortunately for Ferrari, the ski-lift operators couldn’t manage to squeeze the FFs on board. As a result Ferrari has been forced to take the extraordinary step of chartering a few helicopters to do what those pesky ski-lifts couldn’t.

There’s more for you after the break.

Ferrari has released this short video to explain the technology found inside the “4RM” all-wheel drive system fitted to the new four-seater FF “family car”. Apparently, it’s the only car you need if you want make a fast getaway on slippery inclines. This fact is probably helped by the system’s ability to send the power from the 458kW V12 to each wheel individually.

[via My Car Portal]

Earlier this week the launch of the Ferrari FF promised much. It took place in the wee hours of Thursday morning (AEDT) and we expected to awake to a new raft of images from the Ferrari press machine. Alas, we got to see Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa in a suit and a few FF models on a stage.

There was a brief statement from Ferrari declaring the event a “great success” but not much else. I guess they’re saving the best for Geneva.

If you’ve got an hour to spare you can watch a replay of the launch over at the Ferrari website. It’s worth a look, but a word of warning, the audio of the live English translation might drive you barmy. In fact, save yourself the bother and make do with a few minutes of YouTube goodness after the break. Who knew the FF would be this season’s must have accessory in the alps!

Ferrari will be giving its new four-seater FF another online premiere tomorrow morning when it reveals full details of the car. The official time for the release is 6pm 23 February. Sadly, that’s Italian time, which means it will be 4am in the halls of AUSmotive HQ. We’ll update a bit later tomorrow morning, of that’s okay.

However, if you do want to see the live reveal for yourself, make sure you park your butt in front of a computer in tomorrow morn’s wee hours and load the Ferrari website.