Ferrari F430 2009 Review

The fastest open-top Ferrari was unveiled this week in Sydney. The car has anextremely limited production run that will see a mere dozen coming to Australia. Needlesss to say, it’s a stunner. But the numbers add up too.

Starting with the name, or nomenclature in true Ferrari terminology;

• 16M – represents the number of times Ferrari has won the World Constructors Championship. Luca di Montezemolo is personally responsible for the 16M as he requested a car to celebrate last years constuctors title.
• 499 – the number of 16M to be built, of which 12 have been purchased by Australian cognesenti and 3 will make New Zealand their home.
• 375 – as in kilowates, the output of the 4.3 litre engine.
• 470 – the nM of torque established at 5250 rpm
• 60 – the speed in milleseconds it takes for a gear change when the driver flips the paddle.
• 80 – the kilograms saved over the standard Spider from the introduction of additional carbon fibre and special light weight wheels as well as the deletion of carpet (not optional) and noise reduction material.
• 3.7 – the number of seconds it takes to reach 100km/h
• 315 – the manufacturer quoted maximum velocity in km/h
• 675,000 – the price in Australian dollars

Also of note is that all of the 12 coming to Australia are going to existing Ferrari owners who are purchasing their 16M as an additional car to join their collection.  The Ferrari market is not suffering under the global recession as the production numbers are still limited enough for the clientele to be somewhat immune from the full impact of the crisis. The same cannot be said for the higher production exotics such as Porsche, who have just seen a 29% drop in sales for March in the American market.

Also of note is that with the introduction of the new California, Alan Hind -- Ferrari Sales Manager for Italia Motori in Sydney -- says that the market reach is being extended to non-traditional Ferrari buyers who may have been considering a Mercedes SL or higher spec SLK, but for whom the addition of the occasional rear seat in the California is seen as an extra bonus. Another niche grow areas for Ferrari is the female market with three recent buyers of standard F430 Spider and three orders for the new California.

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