How amazing is this shot of a Ferrari 599XX in maximum attack mode! There’s no special story with this pic, and we don’t even have a decent wallpaper sized version. But what an image; Thomas Quintin, sir, you have excelled yourself.
[Source: Flickr]
So, Ferrari say their 599XX was the first “production-derived” sportscar to break the 7 minute barrier around the 20.832km Nürburgring Nordschleife. But, what does that term “production-derived” actually mean?
Who cares if the car is based off the 599 GTB Fiorano, the 599XX cannot be driven on public roads and it comes delivered with racing slicks. It’s a racing car, who is Ferrari kidding? Hang on a sec, don’t Ferrari say the 599XX cannot be entered in any sanctioned race events. So, what is it then?
Well, semantics aside, it’s pretty clear the 599XX holds a closer relationship to a racing car than it does a road car, despite it’s road-car origins. So, then, for no other reason than to watch three superb pieces of in-car Nürburgring footage lets compare the 599XX to two other racing cars. The first, new and production-derived, the BMW Z4 GT3, and the other, an all time motor racing legend from the early 1980s, the Porsche 956.
Sure the 956 never had any pretensions to road use—Vern Schuppan’s 962CR side-project aside—but we’re talking the peak of sportscar racing more than 25 years ago. Surely the Ferrari can hold off the great Derek Bell with its latest electronic and mechanical masterpiece.
After the jump are three clips to help us find out. Now, I must stress this is not a very scientific comparison, all three clips start from a different part of the track. In fact, the Derek Bell lap was filmed in 1983, the year before the current Nürburgring GP track was built. He starts his lap from the old pit area, which is now the T13 complex.
The lap with the BMW does include the GP track and, oddly, the footage starts at the Pflantzgarten jump and finishes just before. That means we need to take out around 2 minutes for the GP track, then add a few seconds for the T13 section and again at the end to reach the original starting point. As I said, it’s not terribly scientific or deadly accurate.
Just take this comparo for what it is, an appreciation of three cracking cars getting thrashed around one of the world’s most demanding pieces of tarmac.
The Ferrari 599XX made its public debut at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show. For some reason, back then, it missed the AUSmotive rounds. Although the car was featured here a few weeks ago thanks to Steve Sutcliffe and Autocar. Sutcliffe was the first non-Ferrari person to drive the car and he described the experience as “absolutely chuffing mervellous”.
Now, of course, the 599XX is back in the media spotlight thanks to its sub-7 minute lap time at the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Ferrari are claiming that as some sort of record, with various caveats attached. But how do you categorise a car of which less than 30 will be made, can only be driven on the track, and will never be raced? Anyway, more on that later.
For now, just feast your eyes on the pics after the jump and think what you would do with a specially engineered 6.0 litre V12 producing 540kW if it came up to you in that chassis and asked “how you doin'”.
Ferrari have broken the 7 minute barrier around the Nordschleife with their limited 599XX hyper car. The time set was 6 minutes 58.16 seconds. At the wheel was long time Ferrari factory test driver Raffele De Simone.
Ferrari claim this is a new lap record for production-derived sports cars. That’s a wink and a nod to the Radical SR8LM, which set a lap time of 6 minutes 48 seconds in August last year.
The 599XX features a specially developed 6.0 litre V12 engine, producing around 540kW of power, and is a track-only car based on the 599 GTB Fiorano. The 599XX also inspired the recently launched 599 GTO.
Let’s leave the semantics over rights to be claiming records to one side for a moment and simply revel in what is a truly stunning lap. Doesn’t matter who makes them, what their daily capabilities are, anything that can lap the Ring in under 7 minutes is a very special car.
Video of the lap can be seen after the jump, along with extra pics, all accessible as wallpaper-friendly 2000px super images.