Next summer's Concourso Italiano held during the Pebble Beach weekend in August will feature a gathering of Ferrari F40s to celebrate 20 years in the U.S. There's actually a Ferrari F40 Reunion Group and it's aiming to attract as many as, wait for it, 40 F40s to the Laguna Seca Golf Ranch on August 13th.
Yes, a Ferrari theme park. What you thought those Italians would stop at Ferrari joysticks, Ferrari telescopes and a Challenge Stradale skateboard?
Due for completion next year, Ferrari World will be the largest indoor theme park in the world. It's also supposed to have the world's fastest roller coaster, but that hasn't been verified just yet. We'll have to wait until the official Ferrari radar gun comes out to check on that one.
You may have seen some of these before. Rich guys like to show off you know. Regardless, these ultimate garages still stir the soul in a way only serious car enthusiasts can truly appreciate. There's a 25 page string on Luxury4play.com if you want to see more.
This past Monday Top Gear's James May (That's the slow one with the funny hair.) wrote his column for the Telegraph.co.uk about it being the right time for him and everyone else to run out and buy a Ferrari 308.
"I've decided it's time to be a modernist; time to view motoring in a progressive light, which means, if my contentions of last week are correct, I should have a supercar," wrote May. "Clearly I can't put my name down for a new Ferrari 458 Italia or a Lamborghini Gallardo Balboni, so it will have to be something old with the spirit of a supercar, if not the actual trousers to live up to the name these days."
"And after quite a bit of thought I've settled on the GRP-bodied Ferrari 308."
And we agree with every word. Trouble is, Mr. May is more than a year late with this revelation. You see Inside Line bought a 308 during the summer of 2007 and we drove it, loved it and reported on it for 12 months. In fact, that's me in the photo enjoying our 1984 308 QV on the famed Mulholland Hwy.
So Mr. May, please get off of our bandwagon. Or at least give us a shout out.
A convertible version of the Ferrari 458 Italia is assured, and in an interview with Ferrari Chief Executive Amadeo Felisa, the editors at CAR learned that the 458 Italia Spider will show up in "early 2011." So we'd presume a debut at the 2010 Paris Auto Show, or perhaps Geneva in 2011.
Undoubtedly, you remember the movie Ferrari released last week -- the one with the two Ferrari 458 Italia on Mugello Circuit in Tuscany. We liked it a lot.
Today, Ferrari has released one of those increasingly popular behind-the-scenes-how-we-made-it-so-impossibly-gorgeous videos. It's not quite as good as the real thing.
Here's a better idea. Watch some actual gameplay footage (well, actually, the replay after a race) of the 458 Italia in Gran Turismo 5 after the jump. It comes courtesy of GT Planet from the 2009 Tokyo Game Show.
Continue reading Video: Ferrari's "Making of the 458 Italia Movie" Movie.
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Both Microsoft and Sony want a piece of the fine looking Ferrari 458 Italia in their long-awaited upcoming games, Forza 3 and Gran Turismo 5 respectively. So they've both made tribute videos to this newest Ferrari, and Ferrari posted them both today. So whose video is better?
We might vote for Forza 3's -- just because Microsoft's Turn 10 is willing to talk about an actual launch date (next month). Although, if Amazon is to be believed, GT5 will be out on Dec. 29.
At least in Forza's case, though, it appears the 458 Italia won't be on the car list at launch. You'll have to wait until December and download it as a holiday gift to yourself.
Watch the GT5 tribute to the 458 Italia after the jump.
2009 Frankfurt Auto Show: Ferrari 458 Italia
Continue reading Ferrari 458 Italia Tribute Videos: Forza 3 vs. Gran Turismo 5.
A heavily produced film from Ferrari of a pair of 458 Italia on the track. There's a real sense of speed in this video (not to mention a very nice soundtrack), though the speedometer (if it's to be believed) never shows anything quicker than 245 km/h... just over 150 mph. Given enough space, the 458 Italia is said to top out over 200 mph.
This was our first in-person look at the Ferrari 458 Italia. And it restores our faith in Ferrari design. After the California, we were a bit worried.
The lithe 458 Italia is, to our eyes, a master class in sports-car design. The basic shape and proportion is well-balanced and elegant. The gently curving body panels are laid over details, such as the headlight assemblies, that are just odd enough to be intriguing.
This 430 replacement is easily the best-looking sports car at this show of very strong sports car entries. It'll go on sale for somewhere around $200,000 early next year in Europe and the middle of next year in the U.S. It carries a 4.5-liter V8 that produces around 570 horsepower and is bolted to a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox.
Enjoy a huge photo gallery of the car after the jump.
Continue reading 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show: Ferrari 458 Italia.
Bill Visnic analyzes the confirmed list of Frankfurt Auto Show debuts over on Auto Observer today and makes the suggestion that the sort of old-school luxury associated with big engines, rich interiors and large profit margins might end up being a casualty of our current economic times. In its place is a more rational, environmentally minded view of the top end of the market.
"How else to interpret the rash of hybrid-electric and pure-electric unveilings from the German automakers -- on their Frankfurt home field, no less -- the ones who long pooh-poohed any kind of vehicle electrification in favor of advanced diesel engines?" Visnic asks.
He points to the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics diesel-electric, plug-in hybrid concept, which balances its 356 horsepower with a claimed 63 mpg on the European test cycle, and the Mercedes-Benz Vision S500 Plug-In Hybrid that will supposedly haul to 60 mph in the low 5s while returning 74 mpg (Euro test cycle). And of course there's the Lexus LF-Ch, which is both a hybrid and a compact hatchback.
Then again, more traditional high-end cars like the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, Ferrari 458 Italia and Lamborghini Reventon Roadster will be on the floor, too. Are they still relevant?
Auto Observer: Frankfurt Motor Show: Enviro Plays, Luxury the Big Question
See the full list of introductions at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show
Ferrari now has the top two drivers from Sunday's Belgian Grand Prix on its F1 team. Today, Scuderia Ferrari announced that Giancarlo Fishichella will leave Force India and drive car number 3 in the Italian GP at Monza on September 13. Fisichella finished a triumphant 2nd at Spa. He replaces Luca Badoer, who had been filling in for the injured Felipe Massa.
"I chose Fisichella for several reasons, starting with the fact he deserves it, that he's on great form and that he is an expert driver," said Ferrari President, Luca di Montezemolo. "On top of that, we all wanted to have an Italian driver in our car for Monza and lastly, because it takes the long term view, as he will be our third driver."
A checkup in Miami yielded positive results for F1's Felipe Massa in neurological and vision tests. After some minor plastic surgery later this week, the injured Ferrari driver hopes to begin working out.
"I'm very happy about the results," Massa said in a statement. "After the small surgery in the next days I can finally start to go to the gym to get back into shape and drive some tests in karts. On the track with a Formula 1 single-seater? Let's take it step by step: at the moment I'm concentrating on taking up physical activities, which is a great step forward."
Ferrari expresses hope on its website that Massa will be ready for the start of the 2010 F1 season, which will be the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 14. The BBC notes that Massa will eventually have to undergo a rigorous medical and eye exam at the hands of FIA physicians before he'll be cleared to race again.
In the meantime, Ferrari is expected to seek a replacement for fill-in driver Luca Badoer before Monza. Badoer finished 14th in Sunday's Belgian GP. Teammate Kimi Raikkonen won that race.
Check out Subaru's new Legacy Super GT program in HD. The vehicle races in the 300 horsepower class of the Japanese Super GT series, and has a DTM-like aero kit with wider fenders, an extremely low profile, air vents and a monstrous wing. Watch it tear up the Fuji Speedway below.
On the other side of the world, YouTube user marchettino caught a few Ferrari 458 Italias out for a quick test drive in the Italian automaker's home city of Maranello. Two of them are in camo livery on the streets, while the other two are safely covered and being transported on a truck bed.
This long list of events is your chance to throw away your inhibitions and lay down some rubber. Some of the track days make you bring your own vehicle, while others provide you with a machine to pilot. Either way, find the right event and brush up on your driving skills by booking some track time at the links below.
Continue reading Hit Up the Track With These Events.
Ferrari has released new images and details of the 458's interior to hold us over until it rolls onto its elaborate exhibit at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show in a couple weeks.
The "driver-oriented cockpit" is race-car inspired and designed by Pininfarina. The most notable feature is the lack of control stalks mounted to the steering column; the company instead opted to place headlight, turn-signal and wiper control functions on the steering wheel in button form. Secondary functions are located behind the wheel.
The Italian car design firm also made the gearbox paddles longer, making shifting easy regardless of what angle the steering wheel is positioned. A satellite pod on the right side of the dash controls the infotainment system, Bluetooth, navi, digital speedometer and rear parking camera, while the left-hand satellite pod is where the controls for cruise control, the trip computer and Vehicle Dynamic Assistance (VDA) reside.
Those further interested in the prancing horse automaker's F430 successor can view all this as well as exclusive interviews with Paolo Pininfarina and Michael Schumacher on Ferrari's enthusiast-geared Web site.
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