Dino fans rejoice, the rumormill is churning out plenty of grist about a V6 power unit in the offing for some future Ferraris. The California is already getting a V8, so Prancing Horse fans wishing for a "Dino II" will remain unfulfilled, but new approaches to high performance are key to keeping Ferrari at the zenith of autodom, lest it fall down the nostalgia hole that's seen Jaguar nearly suffocate on its own pillowy upholstery. The case for a V6 would be partly the banal issues of emissions and consumption, and a six might also offer weight and packaging advantages, though the rumors of a turbocharged mill add plumbing, weight, and complexity back into the mix. Additionally, anyone who's ever given the boot to a turbocharged engine can attest that forced induction's ability to make small engines flex big muscles, it can also lead to big-league fuel swilling, poking holes in the idea that a turbo V6 might save a lot of fuel over the direct-injected V8. Like any automaker, Ferrari is certainly looking at all sorts of "what if" ideas that will never reach production to find the right solution for the myriad technical challenges facing any automaker, let alone an exotic manufacturer. One thing's certain: a turbo V6 with Ferrari emblazoned along the cam covers would shriek with a proper Italian accent, and you have to respect any company that violently spits on the ground when the terms "SUV" or "Four-Door" are whispered.
It's been photographed for months and referred to alternately as Dino and F149, but for now at least, the newest stallion from Maranello goes by the generic moniker, Ferrari GT. Today, the automaker launched www.ferrarigtcountdown.com where the car will be gradually revealed during the runup to the Paris Motor Show this September. Ferrari promises to feed us technical details, sound files and photos of the car between now and Paris. Right now you can see a few teaser images and hear the engine sing its sweet, sweet song as it starts up, runs up and down through the gears, and screams by at full tilt. The countdown timer on the site currently shows 10 days and 22 hours until something else is revealed. Looks like we can put those Dino-branded rumors to rest for good; whatever this car is officially named, it is most definitely a Ferrari. See you in ten days, when the next puzzle piece hits the web.
Click above for a gallery of Ferrari's Project F149.
With the debut of the Ferrari 149 GT California (or something like that) just around the corner, new shots of the Ferrari mule have surfaced at Autogespot, revealing a few more details about the entry-level Fezza. Unlike some spy pics we've seen that obscure everything from the B-pillar back, these newest images show a steeply raked rear windscreen that terminates into an artificially elongated trunk, rumored to house a folding hard top. The front clip is sporting a large radiator intake and the hood stretches back in true Ferrari style. As reported before, Project F149 is rumored to be powered by a 4.7-liter V8 producing 480 to 500 hp. More details are expected soon. We're standing by.
Sound the alarm and turn up your speakers – Ferrari has a security breach. Someone managed to get a good vantage point with a video camera over the company's private Fiorano test track in Maranello and caught the oft-photographed test mule of the upcoming new Ferrari model lapping the track at full throttle.
Known internally as project F149 and alternatively referred to externally as the Dino or GT California, the new model is expected to feature four seats and a retractable hard top. Although rumor has it that Maserati may be delegated the assembly (including the 4.7-liter V8 it makes for the GranTurismo S and Alfa 8C), this beast sounds every bit like a purebred stallion. Follow the jump to see for yourself.
At last month's Geneva Motor Show, Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo surprised the industry by revealing that his company would be coming to the Paris Motor Show in October with a new model. Widely anticipated to be the oft-refuted new "entry-level" Ferrari, dubbed tentatively as the Dino or 430 GT California, the test mule has been spotted repeatedly making its way around any of the three circuits that the company owns in Italy.
These new spy shots reveal a nose as long as the 599 GTB Fiorano's or the 612 Scaglietti's, but while those models have to accommodate a long V12 under the hood, the new model is expected to carry a front-mounted V8 based on the architecture shared by the Ferrari F430, Maserati GranTurismo and Quattroporte and Alfa 8C Competizione. While the former is built by Ferrari at its factory in Maranello, the fact that the plant is already at capacity while demand continues to grow and the company continues to expand into new markets leads to speculation that the new model could be built alongside the others at Maserati's factory in nearby Modena. We're also interested to see whether the headlights reminiscent of the classic Daytona (like the one Ferrari also showed in Geneva) are just part of the camouflage, or if they will make it to production. One way or another, we'll see after the summer in the French capital.
Ferrari officials have supposedly confirmed that their new mini-model is coming to the Paris Motor Show this fall and in keeping with the company line, it won't be sporting a "Dino" badge when it's unveiled.
We've seen more camo-clad spy shots of the new model undergoing testing in recent months and it's assumed that the small Ferrari will be built atop the Maserati GranTurismo's platform, powered by a 4.7-liter V8. The new model's name is still open to speculation, but The Car Connection is reporting that a "GT" moniker will likely be used, something along the lines of GT420 or GT470. Pricing is expected to be set so that the Ferrari will slot in between the Maserati Gran Turismo and the Ferrari F430.
Before you read this, go to the kitchen and get the biggest grain of kosher salt you can find. Dig around until you've got a big one. Ready? Okay: rumors are circulating that Hot Wheels has spilled the proverbial beans on the arrival of a new Ferrari Dino. Sounds a little ridiculous, but not entirely outside the realm of possibility. Mattel's Hot Wheels brand has the exclusive rights to make scale model Ferraris, and as such may be privy to advanced information on what Maranello's developing in order to get scale models to market efficiently. The word comes from the Diecast Legends website, an online model retailer that is now taking pre-orders on the claim that Mattel announced a 1/18 scale replica of the new Dino for the Hot Wheels Elite line. It's worth noting, though, that the penchant for jumping the gun on the part of diecast retailers is notorious among collectors, and this may very well be just another case.
With all the spy shots we've shown, however, it seems more than likely that Ferrari is indeed working on a new entry-level model. (Naysayers will insist the test mule spied is actually an upcoming Maserati.) But after years of denying such a car was in the pipeline, Ferrari chiefs Luca di Montezemolo and Jean Todt reportedly announced that a new (though unspecified) Ferrari would be unveiled at the Paris Motor Show this coming fall. Guess we'll just have to wait and see.
It is official, at least from the pages of Car magazine: Ferrari's we-aren't-building-a-Dino Dino will appear at the Geneva Auto Show in March of '08. It arose from a stillborn Maserati that was to be a companion to the Granturismo. Maserati couldn't afford to make it, so the project became the Dino.
Internally known as the F149, the Dino will be a comfy, front-engined GT with a retractable hardtop. Car doesn't know what the Dino will look like, and oddly, they wonder if the Freitas exercise is an actual styling buck (don't they read Autoblog?). We just hope it doesn't look like Car's rendering, which is the 'shroomed-out offspring of a 612 and 599 wearing cheesy aftermarket rims. Production is slated for next summer.
The next F430 will be all new, not a continuing evolution of the current body style that began with the 360. It will be smaller, faster, lighter, harder, and come as a hardtop only. Instead of more bore, it will get the small displacement, direct injection, turbocharged V8 that's been rumored. Add to that some active aero, brake energy capture, pushrod suspension, and a ballistic valvetrain. It will bow in 2009 or 2010, for a hefty premium over the F430.
Following yesterday's reveal of this new Ferrari prototype, more information about the car has surfaced. The guys at Winding Road are claiming it'll be available as a either a 2+2 or a strict two-seater and its chassis will be constructed with aluminum by Alcoa. Apparently you'll be able to option the car with two seats in the back or a storage shelf, which could also potentially reduce weight.
The car won't feature the latest in Ferrari go-fast gear, but it'll still get a V8 powerplant with around 400hp on offer. Though many have suggested the new model will be called the Dino, one of Winding Road's sources has revealed the car won't in fact be named after the son of Enzo Ferrari.
The test-mule seen here may look like a regular 599 GTB with some camo gear but from certain angles the panels seem to be out of shape, suggesting the car's internals are different in size to the current Ferrari flagship. We can also gather that the car's engine will likely sit up front and its wheelbase will be significantly shorter than the 599's.
click above image for high-res gallery of Ferrari Dino spy shots
It appears that spy photographers from Brenda Priddy & Co. may have snagged shots of Ferrari's upcoming and oft denied entry-level Dino model. The car is wearing 599 bodywork, but from certain angles it looks like a kid wearing its dad suit, possibly suggesting a smaller platform underneath. Priddy says the real tell tale sign that this is the Dino was its engine sound, or lack of it. Apparently the motor did not possess the sharp rasp of, say, an F430 or any other Ferrari model currently on the market.
Though Ferrari continues to deny plans of producing the Dino, no one believes them. It is thought Pininfarina will do the design work for the car, and it will be built at the Maserati factory in Modena, the city of Enzo Ferrari's birth. Production of the Dino could amount to 4,000 units annually, which would instantly double Ferrari's yearly production according to Priddy, as well as open up the brand to a new set of customers. Pricing should start around 100,000 to 110,000 Euro, which converts to $134,000 to $148,000 USD.
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