Latest addition to Ferrari collection

by Chamari Senanayake

The Ferrari factory in Italy makes the world's fastest cars. These days Ferrari engineers test drive their latest addition behind closed gates in a small town in Maranello in the same tracks where Enzo Ferrari won his first road race in an Alfa Romeo many decades ago when he was only known as a race car driver.

The latest addition to the Ferrari collection is an absolute power machine, and was featured in March at the 'Melbourne Motor Show', also in Europe and some other selected countries.

One of the fastest cars in the world, the 599 GTB Fiorano with its 12 cylinder engine, can reach the maximum speed of over 330 Km per hour. It can reach 100 Km in 3.7 seconds. The Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano is valued at over 730,000 Australian Dollars.

Its six-speed sequential manual transmissions and rear-wheel drive, provides one of the smoothest drives. There is a large brake pedal, but no clutch, and the Fiorano comes only with a Formula One sequential paddle shift gearbox. It has also been developed beyond the point of its former jerkiness at light throttle openings and the big jolt it used to punch through the car whenever you change from first to reverse or back.

The engine does not sound like a traditional V12, and will take you to 100 Km in 3.7 seconds and the next 100Km takes only seven seconds. Ferrari has planted 85 percent of the car's 1690Kg kerb weight between the axles, with 53 per cent of that pressing on the rear tyres. This moves the weight over the rear axle to give the Ferrari a great drive out of corners.

It is also helped by using a magnetic suspension control.