Evidently Ferrari decided that it couldn't wait to to unveil a track-bred sports car like the F430 Scuderia on a static auto show stage in Frankfurt. Instead Ferrari President Luca di Montezemolo was accompanied by F1 drivers Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen as they pulled the tarp of the lighter, more powerful F430 in a private gathering (read: no press) at the company's Fiorano test track. Massa then slipped behind the wheel and pulled the car out the garage for some hot laps. This car's noise is the type of thing that makes grown men lose control of their bladders. A lucky attendee with a camera has posted the video, which is mostly in Italian with some English sprinkled in. But when you're talking Ferrari, who needs words? Just let the car do the talking!
The official media unveiling will indeed take place next week in Frankfurt. We'll be there.
Pete Townshend, famously cranky guitarist of The Who, has put his '99 Ferrari 550 Maranello up for sale. Known for smashing up his gear, our theory is that Pete only continues that anti-authoritarian gesture for show, and he doesn't break the good stuff. We've seen him break lots of Stratocasters, but precious few Les Pauls (though he does seem to have some animosity toward the SG, too). This Ferrari is definitely the good stuff, and it appears to be in great shape. The odometer has counted off 29,000 clicks, and the brown leather seats have likely taken on a nice patina. Today's exchange rate sets the price at $98,239.30. As used Maranello's go, that's on par with what the market seems to be bearing. Maybe as part of the purchase, you could have Pete show you how to windmill as you bash the shifter through its gated path.
RM Auctions and Sotheby's just concluded an historic auction at Ferrari headquarters that produced the greatest price ever paid for a Ferrari. Among the nearly $50 million worth of Ferraris sold, the record LeMans-winning 1962 Ferrari 330 TRI/LM Testa Rosa Spyder was won by anonymous telephone bidder for the price of €6,875,000. For those who always like an untrustworthy conversion on hand, that equates to something like $9,252,375 USD. The actual bid was €6,250,000, but there's apparently a 10% commission to be paid, as well.
While the '62 Tesa Rosa Spyder didn't go for enough to make it the most expensive car auction ever (that record's held by a 1931 Bugatti Type 41 Royal Sports Coupe that was sold by Christie's back in 1987 for $11 million), it's certainly near the top. It does, however, make the car the most expensive Ferrari every auctioned.
You can check the entire auction list and each car's winning bid by viewing RM Auctions' site for the event. You can also read a detailed account of the 1962 Testa Rosa Spyder's history by clicking here. As well as cars for auction, Winding Road reports that parts, memorobilia and other paraphanalia were fetching big bucks too, especially if they had the name "Michael Schumacher" on them. A set of the ex-Maranello F1 driver's underwear he wore while racing went for $742!
Click above to view the high-resolution image gallery
For those who like their meat rare and red, news has come of the most scrumptious slab of automotive prime rib. At its upcoming event in Maranello, RM Auctions will be putting up on the block one of the rarest and most valuable Ferraris in existence: the one-of-a-kind 1962 Ferrari 330 TRI/LM Testa Rossa.
The car that Phill Hill and Olivier Gendebien drove to victory at Le Mans in '62 has an estimated value between $8-10 million. Not only was it the last Testa Rossa ever built, but it was the only one to feature a 4-liter engine. As if the pedigree were not enough, Hill and Gendebien chalked up their third Le Mans win with this car .
Canada-based RM Auctions is collaborating with Sothebys and Ferrari to hold the "Leggenda e Passione" auction at the Ferrari headquarters in Maranello outside Modena, Italy, on May 20. In addition to the rare Testa Rossa, RM will also be auctioning off a number of other historic Ferraris, including a 1970 512 S, 1953 340 MM, 1966 Dino 206 SP, 1987 F40 Prototipo and an F310B monoposto that Schumacher drove in the 1997 F1 season, in addition to a wide variety of racing memorabilia from the Ferrari factory vaults. For collectors and observers alike, the sale of these historic items should itself be an historic event.
Check out the images of the rare Ferraris in the high-resolution gallery below, and all the juicy details in the press release after the jump.
All those wasted years sitting in ordinary classrooms, drawing pictures of cars in our notebooks. We should have gone to Ferrari school! The Prancing Horse marque has just inaugurated its new Training Center with a 1,200 square-meter facility near the factory in Maranello.
The new Ferrari Training Center replaces the previous classrooms used at the factory and includes new workshops, classrooms and offices where the company offers courses in mechanics, bodywork, electric systems, product information and post-sales. A total of 149 courses at basic and advanced levels in a variety of languages will be offered. The courses are aimed at the 1,500 technicians in the worldwide Ferrari network. Basic courses are required for all Ferrari technicians, and the advanced courses lead to certification as a reference expert in any of the brand's 52 markets worldwide.
The courses offered at the training center – as well as at satellite facilities in the US, Great Britain and China – are Ferrari's way of ensuring that its technicians and staff around the globe are providing the best service possible. Sure beats the basic auto mechanics course from the local community college.
Ask any red-blooded Ferrari tifosi and they'll recognize the significance of the year 1947. That was the year the magic started. It was the year that il commendatore, Enzo Ferrari, started selling the first cars that bore his name. Many world championships, street car accolades, and happy customers later, and the company is still going strong. And now that the calendar is showing 2007, it's time for Ferrari's 60th birthday celebration.
And apparently the Panamerican 20,000 run for the launch of the 599 went better than hoped for and has spawned a sequel. To commemorate this special occasion a road rally will be held, beginning in Abu Dhabi on January 28th and covering 6 different continents along the way. The participants should reach the finish line in Maranello at the end of June. Abu Dhabi is significant as a starting point because it is the site of the future Ferrari theme park and a pretty big market for the Italian firm's vehicles. After crossing 50 different countries, the racers will reach Maranello around June 24th.
As publicity stunts go, this is a doozy. Parading a bunch of Ferraris around the world sounds like our idea of a good time, but it will be educational too. After all, something has to go on those batons. So Ferrari will be showing off 60 of its most important automotive innovations. Things like aluminum pliers for disc brakes, the electric differential, and the F1 gearbox. And it's obvious these innovations have kept Ferrari ahead of the game all these years.
In fact, as they explained in the briefing that accompanied the relay race announcement, business is thriving. Running at almost full capacity, riding a new wave of popularity since the 599 GTB Fiorano was launched, the company again took the opportunity to deny rumors of a new entry-level model, despite continued reports to the contrary. We hope they have a passenger seat open when they hit the States.
Is it just us, or is Ferrari slowly taking its place as the Disney of the automotive world? With an ever-expanding merchandise empire, a theme park, and even placement in an animated film, the Wonderful World of Enzo just keeps on growing. Now Ferrari personnel, for their part, will never have to leave the Ferrari magic, even when they go home, as the Prancing Horse unveils Maranello Village, a new residential compound exclusively for Ferrari staff.
The complex is situated in the town of Maranello (near Modena, Italy) only four kilometers from the factory; the two connected, as odd as it may seem for a supercar manufacturer, by a bicycle path. Naturally the buildings feature Ferrari-red livery, surrounded by billboards portraying historic such Ferrari victories as Le Mans '66, Daytona '67, Monza '75 and Suzuka '04. As befits the legendary name, the buildings are, of course, built to the highest standards. Each apartment (including 22 studios, 42 two-bedroom and 58 three-bedroom flats) come fully furnished. The compound also features a fitness center outfitted with the best equipment, restaurant and bar, outdoor lounging areas and of course plenty of indoor and outdoor parking.
All in all, Maranello Village gives Ferrari personnel a harmonious living space to compliment (and never let them forget) their prestigious and pristine working environment.
Aluminum giant Alcoa has opened a new facility in Modena specifically to provide aluminum space frames and components to Ferrari.
The two companies began collaborating in 1994, when Ferrari determined that the lightweight metal was the way to go to reduce weight and improve the dynamics of its road cars, and began producing the space frames for the 360 Modena in 1998. Today Alcoa is Ferrari's development and construction partner, with the aluminum conglomerate providing the frames for the F430, 612 Scaglietti and the new 599 GTB Fiorano.
Until now, Alcoa produced the components at their own plants in Hungary, Germany and the Netherlands and sent them to the Ferrari factory in Italy where Alcoa personnel assembled them into full space frames at Scaglietti Works, Ferrari's body panel facility. With the new state-of-the-art 5,000-square-meter, million-euro facility, Alcoa will produce the space frames on site. The factory includes two high-speed robotic machining centers, two robotic joining centers and 12 space-frame assembly cells.
Alcoa's overall investment in Italy totals nearly $300 million, having taken over Alumix in 1996 and incorporating six facilities: three extrusion plants, two smelters and one rolling mill, employing 1,900 workers directly and 4,000 indirectly. While we're not likely to see any direct results from the new facility, it should help Ferrari produce its cars more efficiently, which is good all around.
What we wouldn't give to have a somewhat more affordable new Ferrari available in dealerships today. Something at maybe half the current price of an F430. Something that can get by with only 300 hp. Something that is lighter and more nimble but still has the style and visceral appeal of the legendary marque from Maranello. Something like a modern day Ferrari Dino. Mid-engine, smaller high-revving V-8, sexy bodywork. We've speculated a bit about it in the past and have offered up reasons why Ferrari should build it, even suggested platforms and design parameters, but so far no response from Luca.
(additional info and an alternative design concept after the jump)
Ferrari's Classiche Division exists solely to ensure that older Ferraris survive the test of time and contribute to the brand's mythic image of building the best sports cars in the world. The Classiche Division recently carved out its own headquarters at the Maranello factory where older Ferraris will come to apply for a Certificate of Authenticity. Any road-going Ferrari 20 years or older and any competition Ferrari race car can apply to be certified, which involves a careful inspection by the Classiche Division to determine that each car is 100-percent Prancing Horse. For those cars that have been restored or repaired with parts not from the Maranello catalogue, Ferrari will be happy to offer official spares that conform to original specs. Not only will a Certificate of Authenticity boost the value of an older Ferrari, it also permits the car to take part in official Ferrari events like the Shell Historic Challenge.
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