Filed under: Frankfurt Auto Show, Time Warp, Sports/GTs, Ferrari
Frankfurt 2007: Ferrari intros classic colour program
Ferrari made quite a splash in Frankfurt, bringing out Michael Schumacher and the other corporate bigwigs to show off its newest model. While we were entirely focused on the debut of the awesome new Ferrari F430 Scuderia, the Italian company had other news to share in Frankfurt. It was easy to miss with all the hoopla surrounding its new weekend warrior model, the Maranello carmaker also had a representative of every other model in the current lineup. And to make things even more interesting, a few of the cars were sporting some rather interesting color combinations on their swoopy sheetmetal.
As the press release on the next page will tell you, the company has introduced a few more standard colors into the official palette for 2008. There is a new series of heritage shades that the automaker is referring to as "Classic Colours." As you'll see in the gallery, there was an F430 Spider done up in a shade of ivory with a chocolate brown interior, a dark gray 599 GTB Fiorano, and a new dark red shown on an F430 with polished Challenge rims. While they wouldn't necessarily be our first choices for each of these models, it is nice to see these cars in colors other than Rosso Corsa for a change. Heck, they even debuted the Scuderia with that "baby blue" Azzurro California paintjob. Altogether there were 10 new historic colors added to the range of 16 current offerings. We still don't have the full list, but the ivory/brown looked like a rolling candy car and the gray looked a bit stale on the 599. That dark red, on the other hand, was simply stunning.
[Source: Ferrari]
PRESS RELEASE:
Frankfurt, September 11 2007 - In addition to showcasing its entire current range and its specialist client services, Ferrari is also unveiling a new model at the Frankfurt Motor Show this year. The Ferrari stand also perfectly brings together the two very different sides of the Prancing Horse's soul: GT cars and the track.
1) A new arrival - Once again the Frankfurt Show has been selected as the venue for the unveiling of a new Ferrari model. The 430 Scuderia is a special series model based on the F430 and developed specifically with the Prancing Horse's sportiest and most passionate clients in mind. The new extremely high performance two-seater berlinetta is brimming with Formula 1-derived technology and joins the F430 and F430 Spider to complete Ferrari's 8-cylinder model range.
The 430 Scuderia was officially unveiled by Michael Schumacher who contributed to its development at different stages, further strengthening the link between this new model and Ferrari's Formula 1 single-seaters.
2) The entire range and the Formula 1 single-seater - All of the other Ferraris currently in production are also on the stand alongside the new 430 Scuderia: the F430 and the F430 Spider, Ferrari's best-selling models which account for approximately 75% of sales, the 599 GTB Fiorano a year on from its launch, and the 612 Scaglietti, Ferrari's flagship GT featuring updated cabin trim and accessories, including magnificent Bose infotelematic system. The F2007 is also on show alongside the 430 Scuderia. The world of Formula 1 is also immortalised in "Boxenstopp", a stunning image of a Scuderia Ferrari pit-stop in full swing created by internationally renowned artist-photographer Andreas Gursky.
3) Classic colours debut - The Frankfurt Show has also been chosen as the launch pad for several classic Ferrari colours and heritage-inspired interior trims: the F430 Spider on display features an ivory livery with chocolate brown Frau leather cabin trim, while the 599 GTB Fiorano sports a dark grey paintwork popular in the 1960s combined with a leather interior trim. The entire range of 10 historic colours together with the 16 contemporary shades is available for all models.
4) Financial performance - 2007 is proving to be a particularly impressive year for Ferrari from a financial perspective. Revenues increased by 14% in the first half of the year, with a forecast that the operating result will reach 15% by the end of the year. Ferrari's output will also exceed the 6,000-car mark for the first time in 2007. North America, Germany, Italy and the UK continue to be the company's largest markets together with France, Switzerland and Japan. These fantastic results are a testament to the exceptionally high standard of craftsmanship at Maranello, a standard also recognised when Ferrari was named Best Place To Work in Europe 2007.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
seoultrain 2:56PM (9/14/2007)
I actually prefer brown interiors. Not enough carmakers make them. It's more practical than the lighter beige, and is more appealing than black or grey. Check out BMW's terra interior.
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Robert 3:03PM (9/14/2007)
White is a color? So I'm "colored" after all. Yes!
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Ferrari Forums 3:16PM (9/14/2007)
Lighter beige looks good, nothing beats black though!
Dedicated Ferrari Forums
http://www.ferrari-talk.com/
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John R 3:18PM (9/14/2007)
I want a targa. I dunno why a number of marks stop making them. I remember the days when the 355, Supra, 300ZX, NSX, 911 and the Corvette had them at the same time.
What happened? I think the Corvette is the only one left with that option. A car looked so much cooler with the targa top off.
Sunroofs are okay for sedans and coupes and I really don't care for convertibles. Targas are just right.
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Mike 3:50PM (9/14/2007)
That new red is amazing...
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TrueDis 4:07PM (9/14/2007)
That Azzurro California paintjob is where it's at...
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zach 6:12PM (9/14/2007)
isn't that shade of red just the original Ferrari racing color rather than the modified red that's used now because it looks good on tv?
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Preston M 6:44PM (9/14/2007)
oh man, ivory and chocolate. mmmm
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namegoeshere 7:27PM (9/14/2007)
That white F430 is to die for.
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iPhoneResidentObssesive 8:11PM (9/14/2007)
officialy superficial
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Nicole 9:08PM (9/14/2007)
I have often wondered why pretty much any Ferrari is red on tan.
Even though in this case it might be voluntarily, it feels to me lilke "communism" on a very high level: Same for everybody, regardless of personality, ability, or taste.
But then again, that could apply to many more things in life, including tract homes, speed limits, etc.
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James 12:08AM (9/15/2007)
Traditionally, red has been the national race-car color of Italy, this being when the racing teams actually represented their countries, not unlike the Olympics. It's also the reason why there's a color known as British Racing Green. McLaren, being partly-owned by Mercedes, returned to the German tradition of the Silver Arrows.