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Ferrari 458 Italia Delivered!
Not only did this week see the first Ferrari 458 Italia delivered but Ferrari also announced the 458 Italia had been presented with yet another award ‘Best Supercar of the Year’ by GQ magazine. Amongst the motives for the award were the 458’s style, considered "the most beautiful Ferrari in many years", the engine considered a masterpiece, just like the car’s dynamics. The overall impression behind the wheel was exceptional, while the magazine states, that the "458 is on top of the car world… and took innovation to a new level.”
Another award to go to the Italian sports car was from Top Gear who awarded the Ferrari 458 Italia "Car of the Year" the Top Gear team stated “it's our winner because the scope of its abilities is absolutely breathtaking….Its chassis electronics are so clever they're almost supernatural. It has amazing active aerodynamics. And while it's probably the best-handling Ferrari road car ever, it's also the smoothest riding and most refined.”
The newest "Prancing Horse" from Ferrari is certainly set to be the most beautiful and performance oriented Ferrari yet.
The Ferrari 458 Italia is set to make an indisputable break with the past in terms of Maranello’s previous high-performance sports cars. An 8-cylinder two-seater Berlinetta with mid-rear mounted engine, the 458 is designed to fulfil the expectations and ambitions of Ferrari’s most passionate clients. The latest Ferrari offering utilises track-derived technological innovations whilst continuing the Ferrari tradition of putting the thrill into driving. With Michael Schumacher’s contribution a strong emphasis was put on creating an almost symbiotic relationship between driver and car.
With the new 4,499 cc V8 engine, the F1 dual-clutch gearbox and a 1,380 kg dry weight, the 458 Italia boasts an extraordinary weight power ratio of 2.42 kg. Meaning it gallops from 0 to 100 km/h in under 3.4 seconds and hits a maximum speed of over 325 km/h.
The Ferrari 458 Italia delivers superb vehicle dynamics with an ideal weight balance for a mid rear engined sports car. Evolved electronic control systems help guarantee maximum performance in all driving conditions. The 458’s new suspension set-up, featuring twin wishbones with L arms at the front and a multilink set-up the rear, is tuned for ultimate road-holding and exceptional handling. This, together with a more direct steering ratio, ensures the car is extremely responsive whilst maintaining superior ride comfort.
The engineers have taken a leaf out of Scuderia’s Formula 1 single-seaters and focused their efforts on obtaining maximum efficiency across the board with the 458 Italia. The result is that the Ferrari 458 Italia produces only 307 g/km of CO2 and has a fuel consumption of just 13.3 l/100 km, a new benchmark for the entire segment.
The 458 Italia is an amalgamation of technological innovation, creative finesse, style and passion, a combination of characteristics for which
Ferrari as a brand has always been known to have an uncompromising design approach integrating styling and aerodynamic requirements. The Pininfarina design features compact, aerodynamic lines, underscoring the concepts of performance-oriented efficiency that inspired the project. The nose features a single opening for the front grille and side air intakes, with aerodynamic sections and profiles designed to direct air to the coolant radiators and the new flat underbody. The oil radiators for the F1 gearbox and the dual-clutch are situated in the tail and air is fed from two intakes on the top of the rear wings, an aerodynamic function developed by Ferrari for the FXX.
The introduction of the 7-speed F1 dual-clutch gearbox brings an important freshness to the 458 Italia which guarantees faster and smoother changes. Derived from a technology based on the independent management of even and odd gears which are pre-selected using two separate input shafts. The gear shifting time is zero and thus there is no interruption of engine torque to the driven wheels. The E-Diff 3 electronic differential has also been integrated into the gearbox, resulting in a more compact and lighter unit.
The design of the engine components has been influenced by the carry-over of racing technology – F1 in particular – for maximum fluid-dynamic efficiency in order to achieve both performance and fuel consumption objectives, and meet the most stringent international emissions restrictions.
The modular chassis is an all-new design. New alloys join the traditional aluminium, along with high-resistance aluminium extrusions, developed by the aviation industry and innovative manufacturing processes. The aim was to keep weight down to the benefit of performance and handling, the result is a chassis with improved structural rigidity.
The 458 Italia also features the latest, second-generation Magnetorheological Suspension Control shock absorber system. Compared to the system first introduced on the 599 GTB Fiorano, SCM2 boasts an evolved ECU and a damper force generation time of 8 ms compared to the 599’s 15 ms.
Brembo carbon-ceramic brakes with 6-pot aluminium callipers allow the 458 Italia to boast outstanding braking distances thanks to the development and optimisation of the Bosch control logic and the evolution of Ferrari’s Pre-Fill logic, which reduces response times by activating the pistons in the callipers, thus minimising the gap between the brake pad and the disc as soon as the driver lifts off the accelerator.
The Ferrari Styling Centre set out to re-interpret Ferrari’s traditional sports car interior themes in an innovative and functional way. The interior reflects the design rigour of the exterior of the car, with clean, uncluttered forms that highlight the new driver-oriented cockpit inspired by the racing world. Radically new and intuitive ergonomics see the driver set in the centre of a simple, streamlined lay-out.
In a radical move that emphasises the vicinity of Ferrari’s road cars to its F1 cars, the steering-column mounted stalks have been eliminated and all the major commands are now on the steering wheel for maximum vehicle control at all times.
The Ferrari 458 Italia truly is an innovation in itself, an exciting car to look forward to and an even more exciting car to drive.
