The penultimate feature in just-auto.com’s current series on Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ passenger car brands looks at Ferrari’s current and future models. The big news is the brand’s first crossover-SUV but there is also much to report on petrol-electric and BEV powertrains for the next generation of supercars. A look at Jeep comes next, and this follows recent analysis pieces on Fiat and Abarth; Chrysler, Dodge and Ram; Alfa Romeo; and Maserati.
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Ferrari N.V. was officially created in January 2016 and partially floated on the stock market. FCA retains its majority holding so there is no chance that a rival OEM could make a takeover bid for the sports car maker.
Engine development and manufacturing expertise is a particular strongpoint of Ferrari. The company now supplies a biturbo petrol 3.0-litre V6 to Maserati for the Levante SUV and also produces a far more powerful 387kW (510PS) 2.9-litre version for the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio and Stelvio Quadrifoglio.
FCA next plans to tap Ferrari for high performance petrol-electric hybrid R&D. This will be used to develop such powertrains for the three premium Italian brands in the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles group.
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By GlobalDataFerrari’s management is said to be planning to increase annual production past the 10,000 vehicles a year mark in the 2020s, compared to roughly 7,000 in 2016 (numbers for 2017 are not yet available). The company also wants to double pre-tax profit to more than two billion euro per annum by 2021, reports say. The addition of a so-called ‘utility’ model should help with such a goal.
Sergio Marchionne stated in October 2017 that Ferrari was looking into an ‘FUV’.
Even though what he announces publicly often soon changes, Sergio Marchionne stated in October 2017 that Ferrari was looking into an ‘FUV’. Why FCA is so many years behind its rivals in developing an SUV for Ferrari was not explained.
The Ferrari Utility Vehicle is said to be as far off as 2022. It could be based on the successor to the GTC4Lusso and have two rather than four doors. The Lamborghini Urus and a series production replacement for the Range Rover SV Coupé will be amongst its competitors.
Supercars & hypercars
FCA has watched Porsche expand again and again in the last decade, to the point where the German firm now builds a quarter of a million vehicles per annum and delivers skyscraper-high profits.
Having once ruled out an SUV, then changed its mind, Ferrari is also instead heading in another direction, which appears to make less economic sense. Adding a cheaper supercar below its current models should, however, make the brand more accessible in the richest markets of today and tomorrow.
The so-called ‘Dino‘ is to be an additional model which may be on sale by late 2019. It will likely share much with the Maserati Alfieri, including Ferrari’s own, more powerful version of the biturbo V6 which it is developing for that car. Expect pricing to start at around the EUR150,000 mark (US$185,000), which would be some 50,000 euro less than today’s cheapest model.
The Portofino will help lift annual sales to 9,000 cars by 2019 and above 10,000 in the early 2020s.
The successor for what started life in 2008 as the F149 California before changing names to California T in 2014 was named in August 2017, a few weeks ahead of its public debut at the Frankfurt IAA. The Portofino is a 2+2 coupé-convertible, powered by a 441kW (600cv) turbocharged V8. Priced from 196,000 euro, this is the cheapest Ferrari and the company hopes it will play a major role in lifting annual brand sales to 9,000 cars by 2019 and above 10,000 in the early 2020s.
According to Ferrari, the Cali T’s 3,855cc engine was updated with new pistons, con-rods, and intake system. A one-piece-cast exhaust header is said to reduce losses while the Variable Boost Management, which adjusts torque delivery to suit the gear selected, enables the Portofino to offer even higher levels of acceleration in all gears and lower fuel consumption compared to the old model. The power rise was a stated 40cv, torque is 760Nm and the CO2 average is 245g/km.
The Portofino is 4,586mm long, sits on what is said to be a new, lighter platform, has a top speed of 320km/h and will reach 100km/h in a claimed 3.5 seconds.
The lifecycle, as with almost all FCA vehicles, should be a long one. Ferrari tends to give its cars a major facelift, a revised or fresh engine and a new name after five or six years. Which means in the case of the Portofino, a series of changes in 2022 or 2023 with production of the revised and renamed model set to continue until around 2026.
One rung up the pricing ladder is the 488. Launched as the 458 Italia, this two-seat replacement for the 430 had its global premiere at the Frankfurt motor show in September 2009. The Italia was powered by a mid-mounted 4,499cc 90-degree V8 that developed a claimed 425kW at 9,000rpm. The gearbox was a seven-speed dual clutch transmission, making this the first Ferrari not to be available with a manual gearbox.
A convertible had its global debut at the Frankfurt motor show in September 2011. This variant, the 458 Italia Spider, had the same engine as the 458 Italia. It went on sale in Europe in October 2011.
A further variant, the 458 Speciale, had its global debut at the Frankfurt motor show in September 2013. It was powered by a 650cv 4,495cc V8. The 458 Speciale A, which had a retractable aluminium roof, was revealed at the Paris motor show in October 2014. Only 499 versions of this car were made.
The 458 evolved into the 488 GTB. This model had its global debut at the Geneva motor show in March 2015 and entered production six months later. As well as a major restyle, there was a new engine. This biturbo 3,902cc V8 produces a stated 660cv. It is not the same unit which powers the Portofino as that turbo V8 has a capacity of 3,855cc.
The 488 GTB is rear-wheel drive only and has a seven-speed dual clutch automatic gearbox. The 488 Spider has the same engine and is the convertible version. Its global debut was at September 2015’s Frankfurt IAA, sales commencing from the following month.
The 488 GTB and 488 Spider successors are due in 2020.
Ferrari revealed a rebodied 488 Spider in December 2016, with 10 units of this model, the J50, made. The two-seater targa was created by Ferrari’s Special Projects department and designed by the Ferrari Styling Centre team in Maranello. The J50 was powered by a 690cv 3.9-litre V8.
No further updates are expected for the 488 GTB and 488 Spider. Successors are due in 2020.
Costing roughly 30,000 euro more than the 488 GTB and 488 GTS respectively are the GTC4Lusso T (turbocharged 3.9-litre V8, RWD) and GTC4Lusso (6.3-litre V12, 4WD) hatchbacks. These are renamed and re-engineered versions of the FF.
Images of Ferrari’s Pininfarina-styled replacement for the 612 Scaglietti were distributed to the media in January 2011. The 4,907mm long FF (four-seater, four-wheel drive) was the firm’s first all-wheel drive production model. It went on sale in European markets in April 2011, having premiered at the Geneva motor show the previous month. The first cars reached North America in October 2011.
The (front-mounted) engine was new at launch. It was a 6,262cc V12 which produced a claimed 660cv. The transmission was a dual-clutch automatic. The car was fitted with a magnetorheological damping system (SCM3), as well as Brembo-supplied carbon-ceramic brakes.
As part of this car’s mid-life facelift, there was a name change: the FF became the GTC4Lusso. Its 6,262cc V12 produces 507kW and torque is 697Nm. Another engineering change was the addition of rear-wheel steering.
While it retains four-wheel steering, unlike the GTC4Lusso, the V8 T has rear-wheel drive.
The GTC4Lusso went on sale in its first European markets during August 2016. A month later at the Paris motor show, Ferrari revealed a second derivative, the GTC4Lusso T. This swaps the V12 engine for a 449kW (610CV) turbocharged 3,855cc V8. While it retains four-wheel steering, unlike the GTC4Lusso, the V8-engined T has rear-wheel drive.
See the section below on electrified models for details of the GTC4s’ replacement(s).
Another aged model is the 812 Superfast although there is also a case for saying that this car is less than 12 months old. The 812 started out as the F12Berlinetta. It was the replacement for the 599 series and had its global debut at the Geneva motor show in March 2012.
The F12 was powered by a 6,262cc 65° V12 engine with maximum power stated as being 740vc, with 690Nm of torque. A dual-clutch transmission was standard. Ferrari said the F12 accelerated to 100km/h in 3.1 seconds.
A one-off variant, the F12 TRS, was announced in June 2014. This was followed by the October 2015 announcement of the F12tdf (Tour de France), a limited run of 799 cars. The tdf gained 40PS, making a total output of 780PS. Torque was also up, by 15Nm, to 705Nm. Ferrari claimed the car would reach 100km/h in 2.9 seconds.
A facelift, updated interior, new engine and a fresh name for the F12 premiered in March 2017 at the Geneva motor show: the 812 Superfast. The 6,496cc 65° V12 has stated outputs of 800cv at 8,500 rpm and 718Nm at 7,000rpm. The car remains rear-wheel drive only and the standard transmission is a seven-speed DCT. Maximum speed is quoted as being in excess of 340km/h and the 0-100km/h time is 2.9 seconds.
The Superfast was the first Ferrari to have electric assistance for its steering.
The successor to the 812 Superfast is expected to have a hybrid powertrain (see below).
Electrified models
Successors for the GTC4Lusso T and GTC4Lusso should be available from late 2020. Expect a hybrid powertrain and again, both rear- and four-wheel drive variants.
The 812 Superfast replacement is expected to have a hybrid powertrain.
The 812 Superfast replacement should appear in 2021. It is expected to have a hybrid powertrain.
An effective replacement for the long-discontinued Enzo supercar was revealed at the Geneva motor show in March 2013. The company said only 499 units of the LaFerrari would be built.
The car was powered by a 6,262cc V12 engine and two electric motors, which produced a combined 963hp. The standard transmission was a seven-speed dual clutch gearbox.
The hybrid system was composed of two electric motors developed in collaboration with Magneti Marelli – one powering the driven wheels and the second the ancillaries – and a battery pack attached to the floor of the carbon fibre chassis.
The batteries were charged in different ways: under braking (even hard braking with the ABS active) and every time the V12 produced more torque than required, such as in cornering. In the latter instance, rather than the being sent to the wheels, the excess torque was converted to energy and stored in the batteries.
The electric motor was coupled with the F1 dual-clutch gearbox to the benefit of optimal weight distribution, but also boosting energy efficiency as torque is instantly available to the wheels and, vice versa, from the wheels to the electric motor in recharging.
A roadster variant, the LaFerrari Aperta, had its world premiere at the Paris motor show in September 2016. Ferrari is building 200 units of that car.
The electric Ferrari will likely be a low volume model that is priced at a stratospheric level.
An even more extreme version, the so-called ‘XX‘ is said to be under development.
Speaking at the recent Detroit auto show, FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne told the media that an electric Ferrari supercar would be developed, claiming that the company would be “first” to bring such a vehicle to market.
AMG built 350 units of the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Coupé Electric Drive during 2013. Audi, meanwhile, has never stated how many units of the R8 e-tron were manufactured. Like the SLS ED, it was a battery-electric supercar but made only to special order. The last car was hand-built in October 2016.
The electric Ferrari will likely also be a low volume model that is priced at a stratospheric level.
Future model plan reports for other manufacturers can be viewed in the OEM product strategy summaries section of just-auto.com.
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