A few months ago, photos and some shaky video of a one-off Ferrari, rumored to be owned and commissioned by Eric Clapton, hit the web. The car, a 512 BB inspired 458 Italia, was rumored to cost some $4.75 million.
Ferrari hasn't come clean on the final price, but they have revealed the car and confirmed its ownership. "The world-famous guitar player has been attached to one particular Ferrari model: the 512 BB, of which he has owned three over the years. So his desire was to drive a car inspired by this model, with influences from the multi-award winning 458 Italia," said Ferrari in a statement.
Pininfarina and the Centro Stile Ferrari designed the car.
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Categories: Ferrari,Tuners and Modifications
When we posted a video of a previous Ferrari 458 Italia crashing during a Ferrari Challenge race the general consensus was one of "Well, that sucks, but at least the celebrity driver was actually driving it!"
Ryan Ockey may not be a celebrity and thus this video is less likely to wind up on TMZ, but he did manage to flip a 458 at Laguna Seca. (I'm guessing 90% of you knew exactly what this corner was without reading a word of the post.) Thanks to racetrack/racecar safety procedures, everything went better than expected and nobody was injured in the spectacular crash. Brake failure is the rumored cause.
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Categories: Ferrari,Motorsports
When our man Alistair was in Italy driving the Ferrari 458 Spider, he had a bit of a run-in with the local Polizia. After some gesticulating and a few kind words from a Ferrari employee and everything is square. We're still not sure what went on on that hilltop, but Alistair's got a heavy right foot and the 458 is, as he puts it, "cartoonishly loud, it's no surprise that one would get pulled over.
But it's not cartoonish noises or goofy behavior that's causing Ferrari and Lamborghini drivers to be pulled over in Italy, it is, instead, for simple 1%-hating tax reasons.
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Categories: Ferrari,Lamborghini
In a Q1 financial report, Ferrari quietly announced that they will be launching "the new Enzo, a limited series model and our first ever hybrid car," by the end of this year.
First was the video detailing the V12 Hy-KERS powertrain that will power the upcoming Ferrari Enzo replacement and now we have Ferrari announcing a release date well ahead of schedule? This is not the Ferrari we're all familiar with.
Ferrari didn't give any other news into the new hypercar, but did provide some interesting insights into the business of Ferrari. Did you know that....
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Categories: Auto Industry,Ferrari,Future Vehicles
When racing, cars crash. Not always, but frequently enough that things like retaining walls, HANS devices, belts, helmets, cages and myriad other specialty equipment is mandated for competitive racing. Crashing is unfortunate, but largely unavoidable but, thanks to all of the safety regulations, human casualties are largely avoided.
Still, it's with a little pain that we present this video of a Ferrari 458 plowing straight into a tire wall at Infineon raceway. The video is courtesy of TMZ because the driver is one Robert Herjavec (I've never heard of him) who is worth $100 million and is the star/investor on a show called Shark Tank. (Also new to me.) Herjavec told TMZ "I was having an amazing lap very fast, just off the course record, and then just thought I could go a little faster (what race car driver doesn't?)." The only more frequent crash story is "I figured I'd just do one more lap and then..."
Luckily, someone let Herjavec borrow their car and he finished the weekend in 3rd.
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Categories: Ferrari,Sports Cars,Videos
Here's a one-and-a-half-minute safe-for-the-office diversion. If you've Liked Ferrari on Facebook, it's a little gift from the Italian automaker to you. There's only a touch of self-aggrandizement.
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Categories: Ferrari,Miscellaneous,Sports Cars
Ferrari, in a rare moment of openness, detailed their new V12 HY-KERS engine that has just been adapted to work in a mid-engined layout. This means in no uncertain terms that this is the engine the 900+ horsepower Enzo replacement will get. The engine is hooked up to a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox and has two electric motors -- one for powering the car, the other to deal with all of the parasitic stuff like steering and AC.
If anyone can pull off a hybrid hypercar it's Ferrari. Still, I wouldn't want to be the owner of one of the first few off the line....
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Categories: Ferrari,Future Vehicles,Hybrids,Sports Cars
At first blush, these spy photos of a camoed-out Ferrari could be virtually anything from a one-off customer car to a shooting-brake version of the 458 Italia to Ferrari's rumored V6-powered "budget" car.
The longer we spend looking at this test mule, however, the more we're convinced that it is in fact a very early testbed for the upcoming F70 SuperHyperMega Car set to replace the Enzo. Check out the flat nose, the huge unique wheels and the fortress of shielding over the mid-mounted engine. Also, take note of the width; this is not 458 wide, this thing has stance.
Rumors of the F70 are flying fast and furious these days but the one that makes the most sense is that Ferrari's new halo will pack a version of the 6.3-liter V12 found in the FF and F12 Berlinetta but with more power. In the FF the 6.3 makes 651 horsepower at 8,000 rpm, in the F12 it makes 730. Without some additional engine helpers, it's unlikely we can see this engine crank out much more power while still retaining the already questionable level of Ferrari reliability. Ferrari's not big on turbos, but they are playing with hybrids these days. Don't be surprised to see this one pack a battery that pushes it to over 900 HP. Extensive use of carbon fiber will keep the weight reasonable.
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Categories: Coupes,Ferrari,Future Vehicles,Sports Cars,Spy Photos
We hear a lot about Formula One engines, tires aero and electronics, but for some reason the brakes are usually glossed over in a sentence or two. That's doing a disservice to one of the most critical parts of a race car. It wouldn't be any fun getting up to those phenomenal speeds if your only way down was to crash into a wall.
So, to focus a little bit of attention onto these hidden gems Brembo has produced this video walking you through the pieces and "highlighting the behavior and the critical role of a braking system during the race." China released this video in conjunction with the Shanghai GP to help promote their growing business in China as well as their new production center in Nanjing.
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Categories: Ferrari,Motorsports,Videos
Take a look at the 10 cars with the highest proportion of male buyers and you'll find that many have certain things in common. We're talking phallic, fast and pricey -- these are the models that fuel the fantasies of car-obsessed 14-year old boys, and ease the mid-life crises of affluent 50-year-old men.
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Categories: Audi,BMW,Chevrolet,Ferrari,Ford,GMC,Mercedes-Benz,Porsche
Custom Ferraris are nothing new. Jim Glickenhaus's P4/5, the Sultan of Brunei's FX, 456 Wagon and Gianni Agnelli's Testarosa Spyder are some of the most famous works of motoring art that the Prancing Horse (alongside Pininfarina) has produced, but they're not the only ones and as long as the 1% still has it, they're not even close to the last.
The most recent of these one-off toys is this red devil that's been roaming the internet over the past few days. The car belongs to none other than Eric Clapton and is either called the 458BB or the SP12 (SP for Special Projects) or the SP12 EPC (Eric Patrick Clapton). Either way, it doesn't appear to be, nor does it sound like, a 12-cylinder. Likely it just has a tuned version of the 458's 4.5-liter V8.
It's a sharp looking project which is the least you should say about a personalized $4.75 million Ferrari.
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Categories: Ferrari,Sports Cars,Tuners and Modifications
It's been over a week, so the internet has already tired of the new fastest Ferrari of all time, the F12 Berlietta, and our attention is now focused on the replacement for the Enzo. Predictably, Ferrari has said that this new hypercar will be the fastest, most powerful Ferrari ever, eclipsing the 740 horsepower bar set by the F12.
"We want to surprise people not just in terms of price but also with the car itself," Ferrari Chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo told Automotive new Europe. Luca also took that opportunity to say that they would be showing the car to a select group of potential buyers before the end of the year.
What Luca didn't mention, however, was that Ferrari is already taking deposits of the new car.
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Categories: Ferrari,Future Vehicles,Sports Cars
It took some time, but I've finally found an angle on the new Ferrari F12 Berlinetta I don't hate. Front three-quarters, slight top view, powersliding.
This images comes courtesy of a new video posted by Ferrari hyping up the new fastest Ferrari ever. Not that it really needed much hyping, it's got 730 horsepower, laps Ferrari's test track faster than the 599 GTO (which lapped it faster than the Enzo) and has already been on sale to well-connected Ferrari owners for a couple of weeks. Which is to say it's likely sold out for at least a few months after release.
Still, we're not going to argue with footage of this thing tearing up the track. Turn the volume on this one up.
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Categories: Coupes,Ferrari,Sports Cars,Videos
The Ferrari F12 Berlinetta is splitting Ferrari fans down the middle. Some love it, some hate it, some can look past the awkward skin because of the 730-horsepower V12. Other people don't care either way and have already bought it just to complete their collections.
Here's Alistair Weaver to walk you through this one on the show floor.
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Categories: Coupes,Ferrari,Geneva Motor Show,Sports Cars,Videos
Ferrari boss Luca di Montezemolo didn't say much at the company's Geneva Motor Show press conference, and he didn't need to. Today saw the debut of the most powerful road car in Ferrari's history -- the F12 Berlinetta.
It's bonkers.
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Categories: Ferrari,Geneva Motor Show,Sports Cars
The Ferrari F12 Berlinetta broke cover this week to near universal disappointment. Sure, the 730 horsepower V12 is pretty awesome, but visually...no thanks. Now Ferrari has unleashed the configurator on the world and we've got to say that some of the darker colors really help. Except for thsi historic green color which just makes it look like a Lotus knock-off.
The configurator is preceded by a long-winded movie. Go straight to the meat of the builder here or, if you want to see the entire presentation, check it out here.
Of course there are no prices listed. Ferrari makes up for this by having audio clips of the F12 available. Fair trade, I'd say.
Categories: Ferrari,Sports Cars
The Ferrari F12 Berlinetta, released today, has some, well, let's call them complex shapes going on. The photos released this morning gave some perspective on the new supercar, but without being able to walk around a car, it's hard to take in the way all of the lines flow into one another -- if they do at all.
Until we see the car in Geneva, though, this rendered video 360 will have to suffice.
Oh, and if you're more on the "It's a Ferrari, let's see it move!" side of things, after the jump you'll see Alonso and Massa wringing out a still camoed F12.
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Categories: Ferrari,Geneva Motor Show,Sports Cars,Videos
So we were wrong about the name. The new Ferrari GT coupe will not be called the F620 GT, but rather F12 Berlinetta. The rumors, however, were correct about the power: The F12 Berlinetta makes 740 730 (sorry miscalculated the CV -> HP conversion) (@8,500 rpm) from its 6.3-liter V12. This is an increase of nearly 90 horsepower over the 6.3-liter V12 in the FF. Torque, however, is about the same. The FF makes 504 pound-feet and the F12 makes 509.
The F12 not only has more power than the car it's replacing, but it's lighter, too. We're looking at a 740 horsepower GT coupe that weighs 3,362 pounds. With that power routed through Ferrari's dual-clutch transaxle, the F12 sprints to 60 in 3.1 seconds and has a top speed of 211 mph. Around Ferrari's famed Fiorano circuit, the F12 ran a 1:23 -- faster than any other road-going Ferrari.
The Ferrari F12 Berlinetta will be on display at the Geneva Motor Show and we'll have more on it next week.
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Categories: Coupes,Ferrari,Future Vehicles,Geneva Motor Show,Sports Cars
I don't want to be a jerk here, but, guys, we've already seen the car. Enough with the teasing. Still, those are some of the nicest modeling tools I've ever seen. Takahashi is probably booking a flight to Italy to try and steal them as we speak.
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Categories: Ferrari,Geneva Motor Show,Sports Cars
Any serious list that intends to chronicle objects of beauty is bound to mention the Italians. From art, to food, architecture and, of course, automobiles, Italy has no doubt influenced how we see the world. The curators at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles recognize this and have once again chosen to spotlight Italian design in a year-long exhibition.
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Categories: Alfa Romeo,Cadillac,Ferrari,Maserati,Miscellaneous
