Ferrari 458 2012 News

The second member of the new 458 family follows the family droptop pattern, as the second model in the new mid-engined range, with a go- faster Scuderia expected out of the blocks in the second half of 2012. The Ferrari 458 Spider is confirmed for production next year with the first Australian deliveries before the end of 2012. No-one is betting yet on the bottom line, but it's likely to be somewhere significantly beyond the $526,950 of the 458 coupe. The big difference in the new fresh-air speed machine is the roof - it's been switched from a canvas soft top to a folding clamshell similar to the one already fitted to the Ferrari California. It comes with the promise of more security and reduced noise levels, although the top speed is still pegged at 320km/h with a 0-100km/h sprint in 3.4 seconds. The top is made from aluminium, achieving a 25 kilogram weight reduction over the previous system, and Ferrari says it can be raised or lowered in 14 seconds. The design was integrated into the 458 program from the beginning, which Ferrari says has not compromised the car's aerodynamics or the ability to carry luggage on the small bench behind the car's twin bucket seats. The Spider will be officially unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show next month but the car is already close to a sellout in Australia - at least for deliveries in the first 12 months. "At this point we're sitting on well into the double figures of expressions of interest. It's not a case of how many cars we can sell, but how many are allocated for sale," says Edward Rowe, spokesman for Ferrari in Australia.

The first of Ferrari's latest mid-engined supercars is ready for the road in Australia, complete with a pricetag of $526,950 and a waiting list which already stretches for 15 months. The pioneer car is not heading for a customer's garage - not yet, anyway - but is doing demonstration work for Ferrari as the brand gears up for a total change in its local portfolio. The V8-powered California coupe-convertible is already going well and winning a record number of women to the brand, but Ferrari says the 458 sets the pace for the brand in everything from its design and engine development - including a sump which operates within a vacuum - to a steering wheel which houses switches for the turn signals, lights and wipers. It has active aerodynamic devices, diamond-like coating on the cylinder bores and fully-integrated electronics to make the car easier and safer to drive despite a 300-plus top speed and 0-100km/h sprint time better than four seconds. "It's a window on the future of technology that will be available across a much wider range of vehicles in the future," says Ferrari's local spokesman, Edward Rowe. All the early 458 deliveries in Australia will be made to long-term Ferrari fans, most adding an extra car to their garage after paying a deposit as much as three years ago. All but a handful are going to men and all have a manu-matic seven-speed gearbox, after demand on the outgoing 430 dropped to almost zero in Australia. "Around 90 per cent are existing Ferrari owners. For about 40 per cent of those people the car will be an addition, not a replacement for an existing car," Rowe says. Ferrari is reluctant to talk about exact pricing for the 458, because of differences in optional equipment and government charges, but Brisbane dealer boss Greg Willims (correct) says most will hit the road at between $580,000 and $590,000. Enamel badges on the front mudguards alone cost $3000. The bottom line is a significant jump from the $460,000 range for the 430, but Ferrari justifies the increase with everything from the car's new technology to improved quality. Around 60 458s will be delivered in the car's first year in Australia as Ferrari aims for just over 100 sales, based on allocations from Italy and not local demand. "Whatever the factory can build, that's what we sell. If a customer was to place an order today the delivery would be later next year," Rowe says. "We don't know what the final allocations for 2011 will be. We prefer to err on the conservative side, because it's better for a customer to get their car earlier than expected." The 458 demonstrator is a classic Ferrari, with red bodywork and tan leather trim, but picks up painted yellow calipers on its carbon brakes, side shields, larger alloy wheels, electric seats and upgraded headlamps.

But don't get too excited, because it's leaving again on the weekend.  A single left-hand drive 458, in signature Ferrari red, was airfreighted Down Under this week to tickle interest in Australia and celebrate the opening of a new Ferrari-Maserati headquarters in Sydney. "It's a customer car. It's only here for four days," says Neville Crichton, head of Ateco – the importer for Ferrari and Maserati.  The 458 is accompanied by the global head of Ferrari, Amedeo Felisa, who talks enthusiastically about the car. "The 458 helps you understand how we want to position the cars. We have the complete picture of what we see for our lineup of cars," Felisa says before ripping the covers off the car at Ferrari HQ in Sydney. But the most important thing of all –  the price –  is still a secret.  It's likely to be in the $580,000 range and there is already an 18-month waiting list in Australia, but Felisa is deliberately vague to keep people guessing.  "The car will be in sales in Australia a few months from now," he says. The facts and figures for the 458 are well known - 420kW, 540Nm, 0-100 in 3.4 seconds - but he is keen to explain the specific output of the new-generation V8 motor. "The other numbers are not important. It is 27 horsepower/litre, the best on the market. And 120 Newton-metres per litre. You never find engines that, in the same moment, have the same specific power and torque." He says the design of the 458 is totally new, with a simple brief.  "Nothing has to recall the old car. And the style comes down to the technology." The first 85 458s were delivered to customers in Europe before Christmas and one of those is Fernando Alonso, who has bought - two Ferraris for his garage - with his own money (although Felisa will not reveal the price he got).  "The first time he came we sold a California. Then we sold a 458," he laughs.

The manual gearbox - once seen to be the only gearbox for anything with sporting prowess - has become something more suited to old-school Ferrari cars as order sheets for traditional manuals have remained almost blank. Ferrari's new 458 is now a two-pedal-only proposition, with the famous marque opting out of a traditional manual gearbox because of minimal demand. Vittorio Dini, the engineer in charge of GT car engine development, says demand was miniscule for the manual gearbox in the 430 and the California, which prompted the 458 to be a double-clutch automated manual gearbox only. "There was no manual considered, it was always going to be a DCT gearbox, the manual comparison is just a simulation," he says. Dini says the speed of the gearshift in the 458 is almost instant, with the double-clutch drivetrain offering un-interrupted acceleration. "The engine is synchronised to the gearbox, this brings the engine down quickly, you use the kinetic energy of the engine to give a little extra acceleration, so instead of reducing acceleration you maintain it," he says. Dini says the manual gearbox requests didn't warrant the development and he is not saddened by the passing of the traditional manual transmission, although he understands why some people are. "It is, yes, we think so - but the requests for manual is very low, on the 430 was less than five per cent, California is worse because we developed a manual but we have almost no orders. "The performance difference is big - I understand the tradition of having the gate. "Me personally, I am not sad, because I am technically driven because I am an engineer, maybe some people in Ferrari who are more driven by history maybe, yes," he says. Ferrari Australia spokesman Edward Rowe says the Australian uptake of manual transmissions has been similarly low on 430 and California models. "We're not offering manual on California yet anyway, but order rates on manual transmissions has effectively slowed down to nothing. "The vast majority of 430s are the F1 automated manuals, not since the 360 has there been a statistically-significant number of manuals sold," he says.  

The Ferrari F458 is a sellout success before the first car is even built.  It's typical of the following for the Italian sports car brand, which typically runs two-year waiting lists on its popular models in Australia despite prices that currently start at $459,650 for the droptop California. Ferrari fans will have to pay a lot more for the upcoming replacement for the 612 Scaglietti, which has been scooped by Carparazzi.  The European computer illustrations give the best idea yet of how the V12-powered grand tourer will look when it is ready for showrooms in late 2010 or early 2011. The link to the current 612 is clear, but the next generation will be more elegant and tightly-drawn in the bodywork than today's Scaglietti.  It is expected to retain the same mechanical layout, with a front- mounted engine turning the rear wheels, which will make it a direct rival to the Mercedes-Benz SLS Gullwing just unveiled in the USA ahead of Australian deliveries next June. No-one at Ferrari is commenting on the Carparazzi picture of the new Scaglietti, which could also get a new name as Ferrari switches to Italian place names for its cars.But the company has plenty to concentrate on as it readies the 458i Italia for showrooms, starting with the first press drives this week at its Maranello headquarters in Italy. Carsguide will have a first driving impression of the 458 next week.