The California slots in at the bottom of the Ferrari portfolio just below the Scaglietti 612, it is powered by new 460 hp 4.3-Liter V8 Engine placed in the mid-front position of the car and features direct fuel injection and a “flat” crankshaft. It is mated to a brand new seven-speed dual-clutch transmission system which enables the California to launch from 0-60mph in less than 4 seconds.
Reigning Formula One champion Kimi Raikkonen says that he will consider a rally career once his F1 days are over. Raikkonen, 28, has not decided whether he will renew his Ferrari contract beyond 2009.
“When I stop driving in Formula One, I will still have fun,” Raikkonen said. “At some point I will try rallying. That interests me: asphalt, gravel and ice; it must be fun.”
Nonetheless, the Ferrari driver is reluctant to commit to a career at the World Rally Championship level.
“It’s difficult to say, because I have never done a rally seriously,” said Raikkonen. “On asphalt I would probably be OK, but on gravel I have no experience. And having a co-driver would be a difficult thing for me to get used to.”
If Raikkonen does decide to try his hand at rallying–either before or after his Ferrari contract expires next year–one strong possibility would be for him to drive an Abarth, a brand owned by Fiat, Ferrari’s parent company. Abarth reportedly will join the WRC in 2010, when the regulations will be based on Super 2000 cars. Abarth was one of the pioneers of the Super 2000 formula, having brought out the Grande Punto S2000 in 2006.
“It’s not an idea that I’ve heard talked about, but of course we’d love to run Kimi–who wouldn’t? I’m sure if he wanted to make it happen he could,” said an Abarth source.
Raikkonen has a family connection to rallying: his older brother, Rami, used to be a regular competitor in Finland, having won his class in Rally Finland with a Honda several years ago.
Kimi Raikkonen also is a fan of four-wheel-drive–his personal car collection includes a heavily modified Mitsubishi Lancer Evo road car.
Wind tunnel testing has been a key element in the development of the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport Powered by Ferrari car for season four. The car that had its first public running at the Mugello circuit was the product of many hours spent by the A1GP technical team in wind tunnels at the University of Southampton’s School of Engineering Sciences.
John Travis, A1GP Technical Director: “To ensure we continue the A1GP tradition of strong racing, coupled with lots of overtaking, the effort of the design team has been to provide a chassis that has a good level of down force, but without the normal penalties. This will make for much closer racing particularly in the corners as cars will be able to run together. We have spent in excess of 300 hours in the wind tunnel and have tried hundreds of different aerodynamic variations to ensure the close, exciting racing the series is famous for not only continues but gets better.”
The University of Southampton’s School of Engineering Sciences has a variety of wind tunnels which have been used extensively by Formula One, Indy Racing League and CART racing teams over the years. A 40 per cent scale model of the A1GP Powered by Ferrari car was tested at the facility and performed just as expected giving the development team a good set of aerodynamic data to work with as they continue the on track testing programme in Europe.
The testing has been continuing in France with Andrea Bertolini in the car for three days at Paul Ricard near Marseille with 400-kilometres covered on one day alone. Testing then moved to Magny-Cours, with Patrick Friesacher at the wheel last week increasing the total distance covered by the new A1GP car to 5,667 kilometres.
The A1GP World Cup of Motorsport 2008-09 season will officially get underway later this year with A1GP Mugello, Italy, 19 – 21 September 2008.
Source: A1GP
The mysterious Ferrari we reported about late Friday has been spotted once again lapping Ferrari’s Fiorano test track in Maranello. The completely undisguised nature of the new model suggests that this is just a special one-off model designed for a private individual – similar to the Enzo-based P4/5 built for James Glickenhaus back in 2006.
This latest model is rumored to be the work of Italian design house Fioravanti, a company now celebrating its 20th anniversary. Tell-tale features suggesting this is a Fioravanti are the sleek and dynamic sweeping lines that extend nearly the complete length of the car, as well as the rounded rear end.
Other differences made to the F430, on which this new custom work is based, include the addition of the 599 GTB’s single circular lighting units.
Check out this great video here!
The V8 4.7 engine at 460hp and the twin-clutch system are still waiting for judgement, but according to Automobilismo, the California can reach 100km/hr in about four seconds, with maximum speed at 310 km/hr, despite its 1625kg weight. On a combined circuit, emissions come off at an honourable 7.5 km/litre.
In addition to the One to One scaglietti personalisation program whereby customers can choose finishes, colours and accessories, planned for the entire Ferrari range in the future, there will also be the possibility of having your own custom series. Armed with at least two million euros, according to the source, the customer will choose a model currently in production and from this basis, his own car will emerge.
Chassis, engine and airbag will have to remain the same, while the rest can be exclusively designed and created, and all the materials will be delivered to the customer. No SUVs, station wagons or sedans are the only requests from the company, so putting paid to the rumours of recent months.
The Race of Champions is scheduled to return to its new home at London’s Wembley Stadium on December 14th. For those unfamiliar, the annual event pits a host of the best racing drivers in the world against each other on carefully-calibrated equal terms. The event is split between the solo competition and the nations’ cup, the latter in which countries send their two best drivers to claim the honors for their homeland.
Last year’s event saw DTM champion Mattias Ekstrom defeat Schumacher in the final rounds, after the two (pictured at right) made minced meat out of the rest of the field in a variety of vehicles including the Aston Martin V8 Vantage N24, Ford Focus RS WRC, Fiat Grande Punto S2000 Abarth, an Opel/Vauxhall-based Solution F touring car and a purpose-built sprint car. This year retired seven-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher is set to return, teaming up with rookie driver Sebastian Vettel again for Team Germany. So far only Schumacher and Vettel have confirmed their participation for 2008 – last year Travis Pastrana valiantly held down the fort for Team USA on his own – but more are sure to join as the date approaches. Stay tuned.
Ferrari has announced the publication of a English language only print magazine that will feature a variety of cars, racing culture, fashion and design seen from the point of view of the Ferrari world.
An interview in the first issue, puts Ferrari President and Fiat Group Chairman Luca di Montezemolo being interviewed by Michael Schumacher. Known for his outbursts when a GP doesn’t go well, Schumacher asks Montezemolo, “President, how many TVs have you smashed on my account after watching F1?” to which Montezemolo replies “I’d say four” with Schumacher joking “It’s a good thing you didn’t send me the bill then…”
It will be published quarterly with each edition focusing on a particular theme such as language, colours and design. The fourth issue each year, published in December, will be extended to 280 pages and will replace the traditional Ferrari Yearbook for its friends and partners. The yearbook portion will look back on the past year: Formula 1 season, new models and, in the 2008 edition, Ferrari’s Magic India Discovery tour.
To be published quarterly, the first 30,000 copies will be sent to Ferrari owners around the world, however, Ferrari has decided to make an additional batch of subscriptions available to enthusiasts for the price of 250 Euros per year. See press release below for contact info.
