Ferrari 458 Italia: review

The 458 is expected to cost as much as $600,000, or 10 per cent more than the 430.

Stuart Martin road tests and reviews the Ferrari 458 Italia, with a lap at the company’s track in Fiorano.

Ferrari has taken its two-seater V8 sports to new heights with the 458 Italia, but there's no manual in sight.

Sharing some of the California's drivetrain, albeit with upgrades to suit the harder-core performance aspect of the coupe, the 458 is only being offered only as a double-clutch automated seven-speed manual when Australian deliveries start mid-2010, so low was the demand for 430 manuals.

The company says the 458 - expected to cost as much as $600,000, or 10 per cent more than the 430 - completes the new generation Ferrari range, boasting better environmental credentials accompanied by more power and better performance.

The 458 is largely focussed on the driver, with the remainder of the cabin laid bare - the driver gets a steering wheel that has the bulk of the features now mounted on it, moving lights, indicators, windscreen washer/wiper function to the steering wheel, as well as the start/stop engine button, the independent damper switch and the all-important Manettino toggle.

That system controls the suspension, stability control and drivetrain via the one ECU, which Ferrari says allows the systems to work together for quicker response times.

The aluminium-spaceframe vehicle, which was developed with input from Michael Schumacher, sits on a double-wishbone front and multi-link rear suspension, with some similarity to the underpinnings of the California - but some of the suspension has been altered for 458 Italia duty, including the bushing.

The 458 is also stiffer than the outgoing 430 Scuderia, boasting only 30 extra kgs but with 50 more kiloWatts and 70 additional Newton metres of torque on hand, it's quicker than the outgoing sports model.

The alloy direct-injection engine is now 4.5-litres, with work done to reduce internal friction as well as using a dry sump and oil scavenger system, producing 425kW at a manic 9000rpm and 540Nm at 6000rpm, although 80 per cent of that is available from 3250 through until 9000rpm.

The sprint to 100km/h takes less than 3.4 seconds, it brakes from that point to standstill in 32.5 metres thanks to standard carbon-ceramic brake discs and a 1380kg kerb weight and the top speed is around 325km/h.

The car has also benefitted from considerable aerodynamic work, managing to cut drag - it's cD is 0.33 - but at the same time generating solid levels of downforce at speed - 360kg of downforce is being generated at the top speed of 325km/h.

Flexible front winglets, rear diffusers and subtle venting across the length of the body are all part of a complex aerodynamic package that aim to give the car ample track stability at speed.

Driving the car on its local Italian roads and the test track at Fiorano where much of the development work was done, the 458 feels well-sorted. The road drive revealed the latest incarnation of the magnetorheological controlled damping system deals well with ride quality, as well as tightening up appropriately when asked.

The engine sounds a little less inspiring at mundane speeds, but the drivetrain doesn't baulk at suburban dawdling.

But bury the right foot and the active exhaust brays with intent as the V8 spins with ferocious intent to 9000rpm - only race mode will stop the gearbox changing up at the limiter, but the pace at which the horizon closes in on the sharp nose of the 458 is astonishing.

On the Fiorano test track, the 458 is no less astonishing - the full throttle noise borders on a physical assault and the electronics are kept busy on a greasy track, but it feels cohesive and unlikely to bite, unless you switch all the electronics off - but we didn't.

There's little that occurs beneath the wheels that the driver is not aware of, but the talents of the car are best shown by the Ferrari test drivers, who demonstrate the 458 Italia's considerable potential.

First Drive: Ferrari 458 Italia

The new Ferrari 458 Italia has supermodel looks, but what’s it like to drive?

The Ferrari 458 Italia is the car tuned by seven-time Formula One champion Michael Schumacher.

The German, regarded by some as the greatest driver of all time, spent roughly 40 hours behind the wheel of the new Ferrari 458 Italia, feeding his unique insights to the engineers based on his considerable experience in car set-up.

That’s no guarantee of success for the latest supercar to wear the legendary Prancing Horse badge, but it’s not a bad start.

Neither is the first impression you get when you see the 458 in the flesh. It looks sensational – more stealth fighter than road car. It’s a cleaner design than the F430.

The big air intakes that dominated the flanks of the F430 have been replaced by more discreet vents on the car’s window sills and under the rear wings.

The vertical daytime running lights add another dash of theatre, while the cluster of three exhaust pipes at the rear looks like a jet’s afterburner.

Step inside and the Ferrari 458 Italia is equally impressive. Other manufacturers like to talk about a driver-oriented, cockpit-feel, but this car delivers. In fact, the passenger is almost cut out of the picture altogether.

There is no conventional centre stack. Instead, there are two screens either side of the giant tacho in the instrument panel. The one on the left has the read-out for the vehicle set-up and (too small) digital speedo, while the one on the right has the sat-nav and audio (there’s no CD player, instead you get a red Ferrari iPod and docking station).

The only buttons within easy reach of the passenger are the air-con controls and the three buttons on the centre console – the launch control, reverse gear selector and auto transmission setting.

In contrast, almost every system in the car is at the fingertips of the driver. There are no indicator stalks, the blinkers are activated by buttons on the steering wheel, as are the headlights and windscreen wipers. It seems a little odd at first, but works well. The driver can also select a softer suspension setting via another button on the wheel, while the trademark “Manettino” switch allows you to choose from five different set-ups.

The rest of the cabin is traditional leather-lined luxury, including supportive racing seats, with great side and thigh support.

Start the Ferrari 458 Italia up, blip the throttle and the intoxicating sound of a thoroughbred V8 fills the cabin.

The Italia’s 425kW V8 sounds surprisingly tame and refined when you’re driving sedately around town. But as with most sports cars these days, the Ferrari has an exhaust bypass flap that opens up as the revs rise. The harder you push the 458, the better it sounds, all the way to an ear-splitting 9000rpm.

But the noise is only a small part of the fun. The acceleration is mind-boggling. Ferrari says the 458 reaches 100km/h in 3.4secs and 200km/h in 10.4secs. After a day driving the car on the track and the open road, we found no reason to doubt those figures.

Some of the credit for the blistering acceleration goes to the Ferrari’s seven-speed dual clutch automatic transmission. The maker decided not to develop a manual transmission for the 458 because it says the dual-clutch delivers noticeably better performance while using less fuel.

The shifts in the Ferrari 458 Italia are razor-sharp and intuitive, with the car downshifting automatically each time you hit the awesome ceramic brakes. Each downshift is accompanied by a wonderful-sounding blip of the throttle, whether you change gears by the paddleshifts or let the 458 do it for you. The car also gargles and spits when you come off the throttle.

A flick of the Manettino really transforms the car from luxury grand tourer to race-car. The Manettino adjusts the car’s suspension, throttle sensitivity, gear shift patterns, brake feel and suspension settings. It also adjusts the sensitivity of the various driver aids, including the traction control, stability control and electronic diff, which distributes torque between the rear wheels to increase drive out of corners.

The suspension and steering are the final pieces in the jigsaw and neither disappoints. As always, we’ll reserve judgment on the ride until we get the car on local roads, but it was impressively well-controlled and comfortable on patchy road surfaces. The strangely named “bumpy road” setting also works well. It’s only available on the sportier settings and it’s designed to improve the tyres contact with the road on rough surfaces.

The setting softens the dampers so the car is less prone to skip about over corrugations.

The Ferrari 458 Italia’s grip was phenomenal, even when driven enthusiastically on wet roads, while body roll was hardly noticeable through corners. The car’s exceptional handling encourages you to push harder at each corner, while the steering is incredibly sharp and direct, adding to the overall feeling of supreme surefootedness.

It may be hideously expensive and unashamedly politically incorrect, but the Ferrari 458 Italia is one truly impressive machine.

Peugeot Best Car Wallpaper

Peugeot Best Car Wallpaper

Peugeot 308 Car Wallpaper

Peugeot 308 Car Wallpaper

Peugeot 308 Series

Peugeot 308 Series

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Peugeot 4007 Wallpaper

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Peugeot 206 Car Picture

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Peugeot 207 Epure Wallpaper

Peugeot Large and sexy girl

Peugeot Large and sexy girl

Modified Toyota Aygo Crazy

Modified Toyota Aygo Crazy

The Modified Toyota Aygo Crazy however is something else entirely. It is, in fact, almost exactly the opposite of the standard car. This special is heavily modified (aside from what you can see). Rather than rear seats, the engine has been positioned into the mid-point of the vehicle, giving you a rather odd (but useful) shelf. More importantly, putting the engine there really allows you to feel and hear everything that’s going on. This is good. What’s better is the engine itself.

The Modified Toyota Aygo Crazy is powered by a 1.8 litre VVT-i turbocharged engine, meaning that it should be very happy to freely rev up and provide you with that power quite quickly. This is the same unit that powers the Celica and MR2, along with various Lotus vehicles. What about performance though when this unit is uprated to 200BHP?

modified peugeot 107

modified peugeot 107

Granted, this car is not for me. I don’t like it. However, I’d bet a few quid that plenty of people out there do. It is in a way a ‘real’ hot hatch. Something to make your girlfriend scream in – quite literally as it does three wheels around a corner. As a one off though, odd. You might even modified peugeot 107

modified peugeot 107 korea

modified peugeot 107 korea
Allons enfants de la Patrie,
Le jour de gloire est arrive !
Contre nous de la tyrannie,
L'etendard sanglant est leve

Ferrari Enzo

Ferrari is working hard to meet the requirements set up by the European government for the new CO2 laws that will begin in 2012 by downsizing the carbon footprints by almost 40%.Ferrari is even looking to downsize the new Enzo.

Awhile back there were rumors that Ferrari was looking into a twin-turbo V8 to replace the Enzo’s 6.0L V12 powerplant. Now the Ferrari technical director Robert Fedeli told AutoWeek in an interview that Ferrari is developing both a V8 and a V12 to cover its exotic options.

The Italian automaker states that it is not interested in advancing the power wars, and that driving dynamics will take precedence over brute force. IfFerrari manages to keep the weight to 2,200 lbs. using technology hinted at with the FXX Mille Chile concept, then even the vaunted Veyron could have more competition than it can handle. They just need to make sure that drivers know exactly how to drive the new lightweight cars. If not than 2012 will be the year of crashes more so than this year.

Ferrari F430 Challenge

One of the highlights at the Ferrari stand at the 61st Frankfurt Motor Show will be the world preview of the F430 Challenge, the 8-cylinder berlinetta-derived competition car that will be taking part in the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli from the 2006 season.

Ferrari has reaffirmed the strong link between its GT and sporting divisions with the new F430 Challenge which is specifically designed to meet the expectations of its sportier clients. The F430 Challenge retains the same general look and 490 hp engine as the road-going version. However, it also incorporates a large number of significant track-oriented modifications and a host of new features not seen in the car currently used in the series, the 360 Challenge, which it joins on the track next season and completely replaces in 2007.

An intensive series of development tests held at Fiorano and other prestigious circuits have honed the F430 Challenge's talents too. In fact, it offers a stunning series of features sure to meet with the approval of its drivers. As ever, the transfer from Formula 1 is significant, particularly with regard to the braking system which uses carbon-ceramic material (CCM) - a first for a Ferrari sports competition car.

The electronic gearbox is also F1-derived and works in exactly the same way as the one used aboard the Grand Prix car. Thanks to a sinterised two-plate clutch and specific software, it also offers the same gear-changing times as the road-going F430 (150 ms) in the much more extreme track conditions. Fifth and sixth gear ratios have also been modified with respect to the road-going version as has the final drive ration order to make the very most of the engine on all the circuits where the F430 Challenge will race.

Ferrari California

The first official photographs have been published of the Ferrari California, the latest addition to the new generation of Ferraris launched in 2004 with the 612 Scaglietti and added to more recently with the 430 Scuderia.

The Ferrari California joins the Prancing Horse's 8-cylinder family which has always been defined by power and performance. It also flanks the flagship 612 Scaglietti in the prestige sporty Grand Tourer segment.

The new Ferrari California will satisfy even the most demanding of owners in term of its superb vehicle dynamics and driving pleasure. The new model will be available exclusively as a convertible with a folding hard top. Both chassis and bodywork are aluminium, in line with the rest of the current range. The California will be powered by a new V8 engine mounted for the first time in the marque's history in the mid-front position.

In line with Ferrari tradition, the new model also features several innovations. Apart from its folding hard top, these include the original 2+ concept which guarantees exceptional versatility of use in the rear of the car. The California's 4,300 cc V8 engine features direct fuel injection and a "flat" crankshaft. It generates 460 CV at 7,500 rpm with a torque curve that enhances vehicle dynamics and provides maximum driving pleasure which is typical for Ferrari.

As per the traditional Ferrari transaxle layout, the engine, which allows the Ferrari California to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 4.0 seconds, will be coupled to a 7-speed dual clutch transmission that boosts the car's performance while enhancing the driving pleasure, improves ride comfort and reduces fuel consumption and emissions (c.310 g/km CO2). The comfort is further enhanced by a new multilink rear suspension system. The Ferrari California is also equipped with the exclusive F1-Trac traction control system which made its debut on the 599 GTB Fiorano and has been further honed to suit the typical driving conditions expected for this new GT. Brembo brakes featuring carbon-ceramic material disks as standard guarantee superbly efficient braking.

In addition to sporting the marque's classic styling cues, the cabin has also been beautifully trimmed using quality materials by Ferrari's own skilled artisans. New accessories and equipment, such as the seats, steering wheel, instrument panel and infotainment system, together with optimised aerodynamics ensure that this is a highly ergonomic and enjoyable car to drive regardless of whether the top is up or down.

Ferrari FXX Cars

The FXX is the most advanced GT ever created at Maranello and its mission is to involve Ferrari's most valued Clients as genuine Prancing Horse Test Drivers in their own right. The wealth of data and experience gathered in the course of this very special programme will be exceptionally important.

In fact, the feedback from these highly skilled, non-professional Client Test Drivers will be compared and supplemented with suggestions from Michael Schumacher, Rubens Barrichello and Ferrari's professional in-house Test Drivers.

Every Client who signs up for the FXX project by purchasing one of the estimated 20 or so cars being built, will actually be joining Team Ferrari, and will have his driving experiences at the wheel of this new car monitored directly by the Prancing Horse's technicians and specialists.

The FXX has not been homologated for road use and thus will not be a competition model. It will be used exclusively on the track as part of a specific ongoing research and development programme featuring this first ever group of Client Test Drivers.

The FXX is powered by an imposing 6,262 cc V12 engine that can punch out over 800 bhp at 8,500 rpm. Its gearbox is the result of the transfer of F1 strategies, delivering gear change times of under 100 ms. This is almost as fast as the F1 single-seaters, themselves the absolute pinnacle of current technological achievement.

After a careful client order selection process, the first FXXs will be delivered by the end of this year. The initial testing of the definitive car is currently taking place at Fiorano. The FXX and the relative package cost a total of 1,500,000 euro (excluding taxes) (approx. $1,790,000) and applications to join the programme are being evaluated by a special in-house committee.

Ferrari

Enzo Ferrari was born in Modena Italy on February 18 1898. He came from a well to do family that owned a metal foundry making railroad parts, they were the first in his town to own a car.

When WWI came Enzo's father and brother (Dino) were drafted into the Italian army, whom both died from influenza in 1916. Enzo was forced to leave school to run the foundry, when the business collapsed he started work as a metalworker at the Modena Fire Brigade workshop as a turning instructor in order to support his widowed mother.

Enzo Ferrari 1919

Enzo himself was later drafted into the Italian army where he worked shoeing mules for the mountain artillery, after a few months he becomming seriously ill and was released from the military. Not interested in going back to shcool and against his mothers will, he found work as a test driver in Turin in late 1918. Enzo then moved to Milan to work at CMN (Costruzioni Maccaniche Nazionali) as a racing car driver. His first real race came in the 1919, the Parma-Berceto, he then entered the Targa Florio that same year. Enzo then founded Scuderia Ferrari, (literally means Ferrari Stable) who were mainly sponsors and trainers for Alfa Romeo.

THE PRANCING HORSE EMBLEM

The famous symbol of Ferrari is a black prancing horse on yellow background, usually with the letters S F for Scuderia Ferrari.

The horse was originally the symbol of Count Francesco Baracca, a legendary "asso" (ace) of the Italian air force during World War I, who painted it on the fuselage of his planes. Baracca died very young on June 19, 1918, shot down on Mount Montello after 34 victorious duels and many team victories. He was the Italian ace of aces and he soon became a national hero.

Baracca had wanted the prancing horse on his planes because his squad, the "Battaglione Aviatori", was enrolled in a Cavalry regiment (air forces were at their first years of life and had no separate administration), and also because he himself was reputed to be the best cavaliere of his team.

Ferrari Fiorano

The GTB as in Gran Turismo Berlinetta was named after the most famous Ferrari berlinettas ever built; and 599 to reflect the displacement of its V12 engine divided by 10. The stunning new all-aluminium two-seater that Ferrari is unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show is summed up rather succinctly by its own name and delivers everything that this promises. The Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, in fact, sets a new benchmark of excellence in the sports car world.

This new model was designed with several specific objectives in mind: to surpass the intense driving pleasure of such renowned models as the F40, to guarantee stunning performance courtesy of its highly innovative content and technology transfers from the F1 single-seaters, and to deliver superior standards of roominess, comfort, ergonomics and safety. The result is the absolute pinnacle of achievement in terms of thoroughbred Ferrari sportiness and technology.

The new Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in an astonishing 3.7 seconds and boasts a top speed in excess of 330 km/h. However, it is still the new model’s uniquely innovative content that guarantees superior driving pleasure, handling and sportiness. The technical specification of the engine speaks for itself: 5999 cm3 displacement, a specific power output of 103 hp/litre.

Twin overhead camshafts per cylinder bank boast continuously variable timing on both inlet and exhaust cams to optimise torque delivery and drivability at both low and high revs. A twin-plate, low inertia clutch in unit with the engine also helps lower the centre of gravity.

Chain driven distribution reduces noise and is maintenance-free. The Fiorano’s engine delivers a maximum torque of 608 Nm at 5,600 rpm and means that the car pulls well at all engine speeds.

Ferrari 599 GTB

Ferrari is on a trend when it comes to producing convertibles. First we caught a glimpse of the F430 Spider dazzled the world with its beauty and despite the new convertible look it has become Ferrari’s most popular model. Next we saw the Ferrari California. The jury is still out on this one.

Next in line is a new roadster version of the 430 Scuderia – which will make its official debut at Mugello sometime in November. But that isn’t all. New spy shots have recently surfaced and it looks like a convertible version of the 599 GTB Fiorano.

In the spy shot the Ferrari testing mule has a roof – but according to reports the roof is not fit on perfectly to the top of the car and the color does not match the body of the car. Many believe that Ferrari has plans for a successor to the Superamerica version of Fiorano’s 575 predecessor and the 550 Barchetta.

The former Ferrari was equipped with an unusual Fioravanti designed glass roof mechanism. This leads us to believe that this new model will use the same mechanism and will use a similar folding hard top. The convertible will most likely use Ferrari’s new quick-shifting SuperFast3 dual-clutch transmission to help shift the extra weight. We hope to have more details and pictured straight from Ferrari.

Fiorano after the circuit Ferrari uses to hone the performance of its track and road cars; GTB as in Gran Turismo Berlinetta after the most famous Ferrari berlinettas ever built; and 599 to reflect the displacement of its V12 engine divided by 10. The stunning new all-aluminium two-seater that Ferrari is unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show is summed up rather succinctly by its own name and delivers everything that this promises. The Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, in fact, sets a new benchmark of excellence in the sports car world.