Red Ferrari 360 Spider Convertible, Tan Interior F-1 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2020 Ferrari F8 Tributo First Drive Review | Italian warp drive

MARANELLO, Italy — What's in a name? Quite a lot in the case of the new Ferrari F8 Tributo launched at this spring's Geneva Motor Show and on sale this winter at for delivery. Tributo is a tribute to the Ferrari V8 – though to nitpick here, Ferrari's first V8 was actually a Lancia, designed by Vittorio Jano for the 1950s D50 grand-prix cars, which were handed over to Enzo for a song when Lancia faced financial collapse. That said, the first road-going V8 Ferrari was the Dino GT4 of 1973. Either way, just four years after the launch of the 488 GTB, Ferrari felt it had license to produce a new version.   “There was space to do a new 488 for the customers of the 488 GTB,” says Raffaele de Simone, FerrariÂ’s chief test driver, “there were enough new parts and know how. We had an opportunity to open a gap in which we can work and use.” In fact, the F8 sits somewhere between the 488 GTB and the limited-run 488 Pista. Consider it a stiffened-up version of the former, or a softer version of the latter; Take your pick.  All told, the F8 is the most powerful production mid-engined Ferrari, and at the heart of the matter is the F8Â’s F154 twin-turbo V8, criticized for its weedy exhaust note and not much else. It's won three handfuls of awards since it was introduced in the 488 GTB. Peak power is 710 horsepower at 7,000 rpm and peak torque is 568 pound-feet of torque at 3,250 rpm. ItÂ’s almost a straight lift from the 488 Pista, and thus makes 49 hp more than the 488 GTB. However, Ferrari shaved a remarkable 40 lbs off of the engine for duty in the F8, thanks to bits like a lighter flywheel and titanium connecting rods. The engine drives the rear wheels via a Getrag seven-speed, twin-clutch transmission and Ferrari's own electronically controlled limited-slip differential. This is likewise nearly unchanged from the Pista, although its gearchanges have been made less abrupt than that carÂ’s. Ferrari engineers referred to them as “gunshot changes”. Top speed is 211 mph, with 0-62 mph in 2.9 seconds and 0-124 in 7.8 sec. A warning note, however, is that these performance specs are predicated on a reduction in curb weight of 88 lbs over the 488 GTB (to 3,163 lbs), and this number includes optional lightweight parts, of which 22 lbs are derived from a set of carbon-fiber wheels that are not currently available and donÂ’t have a price tag yet.

Amazing LaFerrari tribute watch more intricate than the real thing [w/video]

The Enzo had no companion watch, but its successor, the Ferrari LaFerrari, does. Created by Hublot "entirely in parallel with the car" and "alongside the Ferrari teams," the MP-05 LaFerrari tribute watch is a similar test of how much gobsmacking gadgetry can be packed into a chassis. The manually-wound watch has 11 barrels set in a spine down the center that work together to provide a 50-day power reserve. So yes, it does need to be wound, but only once every seven weeks.
Hublot says the movement, engineered in-house, has 637 components. It has more pieces than any other movement Hublot has ever designed, and it gets a tourbillon to further showcase the "demonstration of watchmaking virtuosity." The face is sapphire crystal, the case is black PVD titanium and features an open case-back, the strap is rubber with a PVD titanium buckle. Time is told via the barrels to the right of the the spine on the right - it's 10:05 on the watch above. To the left are the barrels displaying the amount of power remaining.
Hublot hasn't disclosed the price, so you know what that means. There will be 50 tribute watches made, each sent in a presentation case wrapped in Schedoni leather and carbon fibre and including the miniature power tool you need to wind the timepiece. You can read all about it in the press release below, and for true watch geeks there's also an in-depth wrists-on video of the MP-05, performed by ABlogtoWatch.com.

Lewis Hamilton scores a record 80th pole in Japan, Vettel ninth

SUZUKA, Japan (Reuters) - Formula One leader Lewis Hamilton seized a record-extending 80th pole position at the Japanese Grand Prix on Saturday, timing his sole flying lap to perfection while Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel managed only ninth. The Mercedes driver, in dominant form all weekend at the Suzuka circuit, pumped in a one minute 27.760 second lap on the super-soft tires while it was still only just spitting with rain. Vettel and Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen, who went out on intermediate tires in the final part of qualifying with the track still dry, lost time coming back in to fit the super-soft tires. The German then made another mistake on his first flying lap and was unable to get another one in as the intermittent drizzle turned into a full-blown shower that drenched the track. Meanwhile, Hamilton – who along with team mate Valtteri Bottas had gone out straight away on the super-soft tires to beat the rain – was lighting up the timing screens. "The team have done an amazing job this weekend, and the call that we made for Q3 was probably the most difficult," said the Briton, joined by Bottas on the front row after the Finn completed a second successive Mercedes front row lockout. "It's so difficult when the pressure is on to make the right call but that's the big difference between us this year and that's why we're the best and the team deserve it," added Hamilton. Vettel trails his fellow four-times champion by 50 points in the standings with just four races left after Japan. His hopes are fading fast and he needs a huge stroke of luck now to reignite his challenge. "Obviously it's not the position we deserve to be in," said the 31-year-old. "I think we have better speed than ninth but we'll start there and see how it goes. "Anything can happen tomorrow. Tomorrow is a new day." RICCIARDO FUMES Vettel's misfortune allowed 21-year-old Dutch driver Max Verstappen to qualify third for Red Bull. "We have a bigger chance now to be on the podium," said Verstappen, doubting that he would need to worry too much about the others' title battle: "Is it still a battle? I'm not sure," he said. While the Dutchman celebrated, teammate Daniel Ricciardo was left hoarse with anger after a power unit problem sidelined him during the second phase of qualifying before he had set a time. The Australian, as a consequence, is set to start 15th. "I just can't catch a break," said Ricciardo, who is leaving Red Bull for Renault at the end of the year.