Archive for category Ferrari
Ferrari 599 GTO: Vehicle Dynamics and Features
The characteristics the 599 GTO has inherited from the 599 XX further enhance the new GTO’s sporty personality. Compared to the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, the steering wheel angle has been reduced by 15 percent and the response by 20 percent for a sharper turn-in. The chassis set up (springs, shock absorbers, anti-roll bar, and tires) and the vehicle control systems were designed and developed in parallel with the 599 XX from the very earliest project phase, allowing the 599 GTO to benefit from the same innovative methodology used for the 599 XX and F1 cars. The 599 GTO features the newest version of the Ferrari F1 gearbox with 60 millisecond shift times, making gear changes extra alert and the car even more thrilling to drive. The 599 GTO features 285/30 Michelin front tires on a 9.5″ channel and 315/35 Michelin rear tires. The tires set up guarantees greater lateral acceleration, more stability in cornering and thus faster cornering all around. Rigidity-roll distribution is biased towards the rear to minimize under-steer. Read the rest of this entry »
Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano
We’ve been waiting for so long that we almost started to think the new Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano was only the foolish dream of a daily commuter half-asleep in the morning traffic. We’ve been on the lookout for its cameo appearances in selected auto shows all last year, catching a glimpse of its silhouette in Brazil and hunting down the footage of its first duel with a F-40 Supercar near Las Vegas. Since November 2006, the 599 GTB is not just a dream anymore, but a new thoroughbred designed to represent the Prancing Horse at the pinnacle of what the Italians call Gran Turismo. Succeeding the legendary 575M Maranello was not an easy task, but the 599 GTB Fiorano cuts to the chase and is simply the most powerful coupe ever produced by Ferrari.
In the early ’90s, the Italian car maker had drastically improved its image and the reliability of its gorgeous machines with the arrival of Luca di Montezemolo at the helm of the company, along with Frenchman Jean Todt and Englishmen Rory Byrne and Ross Brawn in the racing department. Since its beginnings in the late ’40s, Ferrari’s fate has always been closely related to motorsports. When its flagship Formula 1 team, led by German ace Michael Schumacher, started its rise back to the top and subsequently won the Formula 1 World Championship five years in a row, everyone knew the time was up for Ferrari to reclaim its title as the maker of the most exciting cars on the planet. A new generation of models quickly followed, first with the 456, then with the famous 360 Modena, the 550 and the 575M Maranello. Read the rest of this entry »