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All new Ferrari
mid-engined supercar |
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The Ferrari 458 Italia will replace the F430 as Ferraris mid-engined V8 offering. The 458 is an all-new, clean-sheet design from the engineers and designers (read: magicians) at Maranello. And it’s a massive leap into the future compared with the gradual progression that the Ferrari V8’s have seen over the years.
The 458 will only be officially launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show later this month, but here’s what you need to know in the meantime. It’s powered by a 4.5 liter, direct-injection V8 that revs to a manic 9000rpm, and produces a mammoth 562 horsepower (which amounts to an inconceivable 125 horsepower per liter) and 398lb/ft of torque. It’s mated to a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission – a la the Ferrari California. Thanks to a very low piston compression height, similar to racing engines, it has a compression ratio of 12.5:1. Of course, all of this means that the 0-100km/h sprint is expected to take less than 3.4 seconds.
It comes as no surprise also that the wind tunnel has had a lot to do with sculpting this new Ferrari – thankfully, the end result, while quite new-age, is still absolutely breathtaking. And, in case you were wondering, the 458 Italia generates 140kg of downforce at 200km/h. The new chassis is once again in aluminum, but the engineers have incorporated various types of advanced alloys along with aerospace industry-derived manufacturing and bonding techniques. |
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The interior design seems quite revolutionary as well, especially in terms of the driver interface – incorporating even more features from Ferraris racecars within the cockpit. Apparently, Michael Schumacher was involved in the project from the very start, and played an ‘invaluable’ part.
The Ferrari 458 Italia is named such because it has a 4.5 liter V8. The ‘Italia’ is added because Ferrari feel the new model is ‘a synthesis of style, creative flair, passion and cutting edge technology – all characteristics for which Italy as a nation is well-known.’
The only quibble – it seems that the days of manually moving the very evocative aluminum gear-lever through the traditional Ferrari gate are well and truly over. |
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A couple of phenomenal Porsches |
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If you’ve seen our Nurburgring features in the past, you’ll know that the most track-focused 911 of the lot, the 911 GT3 RS, is the staple diet at the Ring. Nevertheless, Porsche have just made their track-tool even better.
The GT3 RS now gets a 3.8 liter flat-six that produces 450 horsepower – that’s 35bhp more than the previous RS. More importantly, it equates to 118bhp per liter, which is an incredible figure for a naturally aspirated engine. And it’s clear that this particular model is a car for the purists – it doesn’t get Porsche’s new dual-clutch PDK transmission like the rest of the range. Instead, it comes only with a traditional short-throw six-speed manual transmission.
The new GT3 RS does have a few firsts however. It comes with Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), which, for the first time, has been purpose built for the track. It also features the Porsche Active Drivetrain mounts (PADM) that debuted in the GT3 a short time ago – these engine mounts change in their stiffness and damping effects to resist the movement of the drivetrain in the bodyshell. The GT3 RS also comes with the option of a lithium-ion battery in place of a conventional lead battery, as this reduces weight by more than 10 kilos. |
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Porsche’s also refreshed its more street-oriented, but insanely powerful, 911 turbo. The turbo also gets a new 3.8 liter heart. But, in this case, it produces a phenomenal 500 horsepower, courtesy of direct petrol injection and twin-turbos with variable turbine geometry – all of which enables it to accelerate to 100km/h in just 3.4 seconds.
The new 911 turbo is available with Porsche’s new PDK gearbox. But, thankfully, it gets two straightforward paddles behind the steering wheel – right to upshift and left to downshift – instead of the somewhat fiddly buttons of the spokes of the steering wheels of the PDK equipped cars thus far.
Both cars are serious drivers machines – it’s simply a question of which you prefer, and, of course, the size of your bank account. If you can’t afford it either, be content to just drool like the rest of us. |
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