click above image to view more pics of Ferrari’s record-breaking parade of cars
Last Saturday, Ferrari finally got its wish and set the Guinness World Record for the Largest Parade of Ferrari Cars. It wasn’t easy, requiring 385 cars to drive a distance of at least two miles with each car being no farther than two car lengths apart. The process for Guinness World Record certification also dictated that a representative be on hand to verify the attempt, as well as count the total number of cars at the beginning and end of the parade lap. Ferrari estimates that over £60 million worth of Italian automotive exotica was on the Silverstone Circuit at once, including everything from a 250 California Spyder to a 250GTO to F40s, F50s, Enzos and ultra-rare FXX. The record attempt honors Ferrari’s 60th Anniversary, as well as the 40th Anniversary of the Ferrari Owners Club of Great Britain, the latter of which provided most of the cars for the record-breaking lap of Silverstone.
The event was also one of the final stops on the Ferrari 60 Relay, which will end on June 23rd when the convoy rolls into Maranello after schlepping the 60th Anniversary Relay Baton all the way around the world.
Some great pics were released of the record attempt that can be viewed in the gallery below.
[Source: Ferrari]
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Honda is calling him”Million Mile Joe.” And even though we know calling attention to his achievement is a huge plug for Honda, AOL Autos is always happy to spotlight those careful, conscientious souls who stiff to put at least a million miles on a vehicle that most people would trade in after 150,000 at the most.
Joe LoCicero, from the cold climes of Norway, Maine, a place where summer pretty much happens on a Wednesday in July before turning to Autumn, is approaching one million miles this month on his 1990 Honda Accord.
How did he do it? What kind of oil does he use? How anal retentive is he about keeping maintenance records for his light blue Accord? How lucky is he? The Federal Reserve seems to be telling us that the economic malaise gripping the U.S. could take several more years to put behind us. That means Americans are going to have to put more money aside to make up for lack of growth in investments and housing values. Check out the gallery, and learn how you could save money over the next 21 years by driving the same vehicle
LoCicero only ever used Honda parts such as air, oil and fuel filters. There are other brands that are cheaper, but the fact is that automakers optimize the parts they make and sell for their vehicles and their engines. Amazingly, he bought the car used in 1996, with about 34,000 miles on it, so this car has not been in his doting hands for its entire life.
Just because LoCicero has almost one million miles, don’t get the idea that nothing has ever worn out. He has replaced the fuel pump, both cooling fans, and the radiator has been replaced twice. The engine, though, remarkably, is the original. It’s worth mentioning that Honda is known for being one of the most innovative engine makers in the world. In fact, it started out life as a maker of engines and small motors, and then it got into the business of building stuff that the engines could go into. That’s why Honda today makes lawn mowers, snowblowers, weed trimmers, generators, as well as scooters and motorcycles. It is the most vertically integrated engine maker in the world.
LoCicero is a careful, fastidious driver. In 15 years he has only gotten one speeding ticket. He also babies his use of the brakes. Living in rural Maine means there isn’t a lot of stop-and-go traffic, of course. He drives an average of 62,500 miles per year visiting car dealerships across Maine.
Joe is like that Dad at least one of your friends has when it comes to cars. He began keeping detailed maintenance records when the car hit 300,000 on the odometer, and has a stack of notebooks with impossibly detailed information. LoCicero is the sort of guy the Car Guys, Click and Clack, worship, yet make fun of on their show. Once he realized he was chasing one million miles, he began taking snaps of his odometer. He has over 600 photos of his mileage. LoCicero is a certified mileage geek.
So how much of this one million mile feat is Joe and how much is Honda? At AOL Autos, we believe such feats are a collaboration between owner and car. There are clearly lemons in the world. And Germans have often talked about”Monday Cars,” the cars that are built on Monday morning after workers have had beer-laden weekends. But no matter where a car or brand may fall on, say, the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study ranking, we believe following Joe’s example gives the owner of any car today a decent shot at hitting one million miles.
How much money could a person save by driving the same car one million miles? Consider that while Joe has driven his car, others have bought perhaps 8-10 cars. Joe bought his car used. The average transaction price of a new passenger car today is around $30,000. Now, few people put as many annual miles on a car as Joe does. Most put between 12,000 and 20,000 miles a year on their vehicles. A person who is 30 years old today, and who puts 20,000 miles a year on their car, could reach one million miles in…hmmm…fifty years. We aren’t sure too many people want to buy their last new car at age 30. But if they did, they would save perhaps $150,000 in principle based on today’s average car price before fifty years of compound interest started mounting up.
In other words, following Joe’s example could create several hundred thousand dollars in extra retirement assets. With the stock market whipsawing IRA balances, it might be comforting for some to know that extra care for their car could help make the difference between a affording a nice retirement condo in a warm weather place and finishing up in a house trailer in the snow-belt.
You can follow Joe’s progress toward one million miles this month atHonda’s Facebook page.
Some commenters have suggested that Honda should give Joe a new Accord when he passes one million miles. Why? The car seems just fine. What do you think?
PRESS RELEASE:
FERRARI SETS NEW GUINNESS WORLD RECORD WITH 385 FERRARI
CARS WORTH £60 MILLION TO CELEBRATE FERRARI’S 60TH ANNIVERSARY
Ferrari and the Ferrari Owners Club GB joined forces at Silverstone on Saturday 9 June, 2007, to set an incredible new Guinness World Record for the ‘Largest Parade of Ferrari Cars’, with an astonishing parade of 385 Ferrari cars, more than triple the previous record. With road and race cars from every decade of the Prancing Horse’s proud and unique heritage, Ferrari owners from the UK and all over the world joined together to create an amazing spectacle to celebrate Ferrari’s 60th Anniversary and the Ferrari Owners Club GB’s 40th Anniversary.
With several rare and extremely valuable cars in the Guinness World Record parade, ranging from a 250 California Spider and a 275 GTB/C through to the ultra-desirable 250GTO and the ultra-exclusive FXX, as well as several examples of Ferrari’s iconic supercars, the F40, F50 and Enzo, a conservative estimate of the value of the cars in the parade on Saturday would be in excess of £60 million – a perfect number to mark the company’s anniversary year.
Massimo Fedeli, Managing Director of Ferrari GB Ltd, said: “What an amazing sight… We are proud to have the support of so many Ferrari owners today in setting a new Guinness World Record. We would like to express our sincere thanks to the Owners Club, our Sponsors and everyone who has been working behind the scenes for months to achieve this fantastic record.”
Peter Everingham, Secretary of the Ferrari Owners Club GB, was equally effusive: “I’m so proud to have been asked by Ferrari to help set a new Guinness World Record. What our members achieved here today on the Club’s 40th Anniversary is quite remarkable – with over 1000 Ferrari cars from every era here this weekend. We have so many enthusiastic owners, and I want to thank them for their support as we couldn’t have achieved this without them. I’m sure this one will take some beating.”
In order to comply with the Guinness World Record’s rules for such an attempt, the cars must all travel over a minimum 2 mile distance, no more than two car lengths apart, and must be counted at
the beginning and the end of the parade. With a starting grid of Ferrari cars stretching from Becketts all the way to Copse on the Silverstone Circuit, the cars completed one full lap and covered a distance of 3 miles, driving two abreast around the entire circuit.
At the head of the parade was a 599 GTB Fiorano driven by Bruno Senna, nephew of three-time World Champion Ayrton Senna, driving in the Ferrari Challenge as a guest driver this weekend, and a specially-liveried 612 Scaglietti which was driven by PC Paul Atkin who recently joined the Ferrari 60 Relay as it toured around the UK. Behind the lead cars were a fleet of Fiorano Ferrari F430 cars driven by Ferrari GB’s VIP guests and sponsors who all had the unique opportunity to participate in setting a new Guinness World Record. Then came the extensive stable of Prancing Horses from the Ferrari Owners Club GB which made up the bulk of the 385 cars on track on Saturday.
After double-checking her count, both at the start and the end of the parade, Nadine Causey, Adjudicator for the Guinness World Record, presented Massimo Fedeli and Peter Everingham with a Certificate to mark the occasion.
Ferrari’s 60th Anniversary worldwide celebrations culminate on 23 June when the Ferrari 60 Relay baton, which has been carried around the world by enthusiastic Ferrari owners from every country, arrives in Maranello, Italy, the historical and present home of the Prancing Horse.