Ferrari FF News

The trend now is for silver and grey, with bright custom colours and a growing number of matt choices, even at Ferrari. The Italian company has customarily sprayed the vast majority of its cars in its signature "racing red", Rosso Corsa, but the percentage is falling fast. Ferrari has revealed the first pictures of

The biggest Ferrari show on earth will descend on Sydney from the 11-13 of April and will turn the entire town red. Sydney Motorsport Park at Eastern Creek, 24kms west of Sydney, will host Ferrari Racing Days, the largest gathering of road and track Ferraris to ever converge on a single location in Australia.The three day event will showcase the best that Ferrari has to offer while highlighting the most powerful brand in the world. Ferrari Racing Days will put on a show like no other manufacturer before it.You can expect to see close racing from the Ferrari 458 Asia Pacific Challenge series and watch on as the Ferrari Corse F1 and Clienti XX take to the track in their finely tuned track cars that leave nothing to the imagination in performance and sound.There will be plenty of action both on and off the track with streets of hospitality tents as guests indulge in the luxury and opulence that Ferrari clients and fans have come to expect. Ferrari Racing Days has a short but successful history traveling to Brazil, Italy, Malaysia, United Kingdom, United States and now, Australia.The event has created a logistics nightmare for the organisers as they bring together race cars and crew as they fly into Sydney from all parts of the globe. Set to arrive this week are sixty shipping containers full of equipment and cars including some 300 Ferrari race engineers to prepare the field of road and track Ferraris.“Ferrari Racing Days is an event never seen before in Australia, a focus on Ferrari’s road and race heritage converging in one place to give the fans, drivers and owners the opportunity to engage with each other and the brand like never before” said Herbert Appleroth, Ferrari Australasian President and CEO.Ferrari Racing Days highlights• Ferrari F1 race car and Pit Demonstration to highlight the inner workings of their F1 team.• The FXX and 599XX Ferrari Clienti program, which includes six cars of each technical program, driven by Ferrari’s most privileged and wealthiest clients.• An official round of the Ferrari 458 Asia Pacific Challenge series, 30 Ferrari Challenge EVO race cars battling it out for Australian line honours• Ferrari’s new hypercar, La Ferrari including the Ferrari Enzo, F50, F40 and the 288 GTO.• Ferrari Pre-Owned and Ferrari Approved Warranty Vehicle Display.• Ferrari showroom, Ferrari 458 Speciale, FF, F12 Berlinetta, 458 Taylor Made Spider including Ferrari’s customisation program, Atelier.A cavalcade of up to 200 Ferraris will converge on Sydney from several locations around Australia and together they will drive across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to the welcome party at the Sydney Opera House and then they will be on display at Ferrari Racing Days.First published at MyDrive: VIDEO |Ferrari Racing Days – The Biggest Ferrari show on Earth  

Kids aren’t usually a factor in Car of the Year judging.  But child friendliness rates highly with women buying cars – and with women judging cars.The countdown has been kicked off to decide the Women’s World Car of the Year, and the kid factor is one the judges pay a lot of attention to.“Statistics show that women drive children in cars significantly more often than men – and that means women need to take that into account, both when buying and as judges of cars,” WCOTY president Sandy Myhre said from New Zealand.“Any woman who has grappled constantly with child seats and belts and children considers those things when looking at buying a car.  Men might too but the fact is, women drive children in cars more than men.“Women would not consider that aspect in a Porsche 911 more than a bloke. The point is, it can be considered in these awards - and that is one of the points of difference in these awards.”Myhre points out that significant research into buying habits show that in addition to buying for themselves, women have a major influence in household purchase decisions for big ticket items.Ford Australia, for example, says their research shows that women are behind the majority of purchases of the Territory SUV – either as single women buying one, or in influencing the joint decision with their partner. “A report from Mattingly & Associates in Australia concluded, in part, that businesses that didn't understand this influence would be hard-pressed to stay in business.  That report was aptly called 'When I've Made Up Our Minds',” Myhre says.However, the kid factor is just one of the criteria by which the 2012 Women’s World Car of the Year will be judged.There are four categories in the Women's World Car of the Year – Family Car, Luxury Car, Sports Car and Economy Car. Points are allocated to each of ten criteria: driveability, engineering, comfort, child friendliness, style, interior, storage, dashboard efficiency, carbon footprint and colour range.The 20 judges from eleven countries have submitted their own personal short list and more than 300 cars were suggested. These individual choices were then whittled down to form a master list of 32 in terms of popularity. Judges will now allocate points for these cars from a criteria list.The announcement of the winning cars in each category and the supreme winner will be made before the end of March. The supreme award trophy and category certificates will be presented to the car companies concerned at the Mondial de l’Automobile 2012 – the Paris Motor Show – in September. The supreme trophy will this year be made in The Netherlands. Category-winner certificates will be designed at Peartree Studios in Colerne, UK.The first winner of the Women's World Car of the Year was the Jaguar XF in 2010 and the trophy made in South Africa was presented at the Jaguar boutique showroom in Knightsbridge, London. In 2011 there was a dead-heat between the Citroen DS3 and the BMW 5 Series. The two trophies made in India were presented at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 2011. 

The surprise isn't the acceleration - though 3.7 seconds to 100km/h is pretty good - rather the fact that 485kW/683Nm has been instructed to put all these numbers through the wheels and the result is barely any wheelspin.  This is where the Ferrari FF - the company's first all-wheel drive - excels. Born from customer demand for a car that can transverse slippery snow and sand tracks, it has been a difficult development that started in 2004.  The FF uses an all-wheel drive system that is breathtaking in its simplicity - a direct drive from the front of the crankshaft to a small box with three cogs, one multi-disc clutch box and two shafts to either front wheel. The rear wheels are driven conventionally, in this case through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission - another first for Ferrari - that's mounted with the electronically-controlled diff at the rear. There is no mechanical connection between the drive to the front wheels and the drive to the rear wheels.  There are numerous benefits of this system, Firstly, it's very light (Ferrari claims 40kg that is half that of a traditional all-wheel drive system) and small (the power transfer unit is only 170mm long). The clutches are monitored and controlled by computers to allocate torque where needed. For example, in situations where grip is lost, it is reallocated to the other wheel. This is constantly monitored so maximum grip is available to either of the front wheels when needed. The same use of electronics applies to the rear diff. Because there is a speed difference between front wheels and rear wheels, Ferrari has incorporated two gears in the PTU that alter the ratios from the engine to the wheels.  To pick up any smaller differences, the clutch pack is allowed to slip. Ferrari says the two-cog gearbox in the PTU is good for up to 200km/h at which point the system will disengage drive to the front wheels.  It is possible that in extreme situations that 20 per cent of maximum torque will temporarily go to the front wheels - such as when the rear wheels are on ice - to provide maximum traction. Ferrari says the system is not transferable to other engines and that it has had no requests from other car makers for a license.

Showing off the capabilities of its first ever four-wheel drive car, Ferrari takes the FF through the snow and the desert, to finish at Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi.

The FF (Ferrari Four) all-wheel driver is a gran turismo four-seater with a "shooting brake" rear end which is basically a big hatchback.  Initial thoughts when viewed side-on is that it looks like the 1970s Jenson Interceptor or even the Porsche 928. While there's no harm in borrowing styles from yesteryear - especially ones that are so iconic - and developing them, for a modern world, the FF also imitates some of its contemporaries.  Most interestingly, its side profile bears a stunning resemblance to the BMW M Coupe, albeit the earlier bulbous models. Who would have thought the Italians would look to Germany for styling cues?  Of course, the biggest problem with a shooting brake design is trying to make that big rear end look sleek - like J Lo, rather than Oprah.

Famed for its two-seater, rear-wheel-drive supercars, the Italian manufacturer has revealed its first four-wheel drive, the four-seater Ferrari FF.  The latest addition to the Maranello prancing horse fleet is also a hatchback or "shooting brake", but unlike any normal hatchback. Its 6262cc direct-injection V12 engine delivers 485kW of power that slings the red missile from standstill to 100km/h in just 3.7 seconds and a maximum speed of 335km/h. But the main point of difference in the "Ferrari Four" is the addition of four-wheel drive for the first time which places it in even closer competition with all-wheel-drive Lamborghinis.  Ferrari's patented 4RM four-wheel drive system is claimed to weigh half as much as other systems to provide a balanced weight distribution of 53 per cent over the rear axle. While no details of how the drive system works have been released, it is believed Ferrari favours a part-time system.  This could be a system that is activated by driver selection, when slip is detected in the rear wheels or engaged at lower speeds then kicks into rear-wheel-drive for better fuel economy and performance. It is integrated with the car's electronic dynamic control systems and has the latest version of Ferrari's magnetic suspension damping system and Brembo carbon-ceramic brakes. Carsguide has published spy photos from Carparazzi of the car heavily disguised but looking frumpy in the rear end.  However, with the covers removed it appears Italian design house Pininfarina has produced a sleek supercar that looks like an aerodynamic version of the 1970s Jensen Interceptor. It has generous space for four passengers and even 450 litres of luggage. With the rear seats down, luggage space increases to 800 litres.The new four-seater gran turismo style puts it in direct competition with the emergence over the past few years of other four-steer GTs such as the Porsche Panamera and Aston Rapide. The FF will make its official debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March and will arrive in Australia early next year.  Australian importer Ateco says it will replace the 612 Scaglietti in its four-car line-up. The current Scaglietti sells here for $698,000, but the FF's drive system is expected to boost that price.  It would join Ferrari's current Australian line-up of California Convertible ($459,650), 458 Italia ($526,950) and 599 Fiorano ($677,250). The Italian manufacturer is currently enjoying record sales in the US and China and in Australia, Ferrari sold 126 cars last year, up 21.2 per cent which is double the market trend. Ateco spokesman Edward Rowe says the FF will appeal to "people who want a Ferrari that is able to used across a broad range of uses.  What's been happening over the past 10-15 years is Ferrari owners' average mileage they drive has been increasing significantly every year and Ferrari owners want to be able to use their cars in a much wider range of uses," he says. "The idea of this car is it's fully capable of going to a high-speed performance day and then take you and your family and skis in the car down to the snow for a ski weekend.  This illustrates the enormous breadth and ability of this car." Rowe says the FF is "still a true supercar" in performance and handling.  "It remains a true mid-engined Ferrari but at the same time it's like no other Ferrari that's gone before it." Rowe says they already have "double figures" of customers "putting their hand up" for the FF. Ferrari FF Price: TBAEngine: 65-degree 6262cc direct-injection V12Power: 485kW @ 8000 rpmTorque: 683Nm @ 6000 rpmDimensions (mm): 4907 (l), 1953 (w), 1379  (h) Dry weight: 1790kg Weight distribution: 47% front, 53% rear Top speed: 335 km/h0-100km/h: 3.7 secEconomy: 15.4L/100kmCO2: 360g/kmFerrari FF