2006 Ferrari 430 Spider on 2040-cars

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Ferrari Roma platform to underpin Purosangue SUV, as product roadmap takes shape

To create the Roma, Ferrari started with the platform used for the Portofino convertible. Engineers strengthened and lightened the architecture and made it modular, so that it will support the company's range of front-engined vehicles included in CEO Louis Camilleri's near-term product roadmap of 15 new vehicles over the next three years. Auto Express reports one of those products will be the Purosangue SUV – or FUV, Ferrari Utility Vehicle if you heed the carmaker's marketers – expected to debut in 2021 before going on sale in 2022 or 2023. The breadth of possibility built into the platform means it can swallow Ferrari's range of V8 and V12 engines, as well as the coming V6, plus plug-in hybrid equipment and all-wheel drive mechanicals.  Although observers figure a V12 Purosangue will grace the lineup eventually, models with smaller engines braced with hybrid assistance are expected first. The V12, in fact, is unlikely to get a hybrid form if Ferrari can help it, the brand's marketing manager saying, "To be honest, electrifying a V12 means creating, very probably, a heavy and big car. So electrification ideally should be coupled with smaller engines." Absent Ferrari's righteous 6.5-liter V12, Ferrari's head of technology says there will be other ways the vehicle codenamed "175" distinguishes itself from V8-powered super-SUV competition, but wouldn't clarify what those ways are. We'll guess the people-hauler slots into the company's GT vehicle classification alongside the GTC4Lusso, Portofino, and Roma. In the next decade, the GT category grows with a new supercar that marks "the return of an elegant model" cued off classic, mid-20th-century Ferrari Gran Turismos, as well as a battery-electric car after 2025. The Sport Range includes the 812Superfast and 812 GTS, 488 and 488 Pista, and SF90 Stradale. The Icona line kicked off with the Monza SP1 and SP2, and will expand with "timeless design[s] of iconic Ferraris reinterpreted with innovative materials and state of the art technologies." One-offs like the F12 TRS, SP12 EC and SP38 form the Special Series. The carmaker's entire range will be split across two modular platforms, one for front-engined placement, one mid-engined. At the pointy end of the product roadmap, it's thought Ferrari's already begun development of its LaFerrari successor.

Bonhams auction at Quail Lodge led by 1959 Ferrari 250 GT Competizione

It doesn't take too much knowledge of the classic car market to figure out that, when it comes to values, Ferrari leads the pack. Bonhams 2015 Quail Lodge Auction did absolutely nothing to buck that trend with four of the five top sellers bearing the Prancing Horse. While none came near the auction house's sale of a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO for $38.115 million last year, there were still beauties in the bunch. The leader among these thoroughbreds was a 1959 Ferrari 250 GT Competizione Alloy Berlinetta (pictured above) that went for $8.525 million, including the buyer's premium. It was one of just seven vehicles made to this specification and raced extensively when new, scoring a win in competition at Watkins Glen. A classic 1971 Ferrari 365 GTS/4 Daytona Spider brought $2.64 million, and a somewhat more modern 1985 288 GTO had the hammer drop at $2.365 million. The final Prancing Horse in the top five was a 1951 212 Inter Cabriolet with a body by Vignale for $2.2 million. It scored second-in-class at the 2014 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Overturning the Ferrari trend, a 1955 Lancia Aurelia B24S Spider America rounded out the top five with a sale price of $1,952,500. While these are the most expensive vehicles to cross the block, you can check Bonhams' website for the results on all 111 lots. It's a wonderful array of largely European sports cars that are all in top shape.

The Monaco Grand Prix clearly highlights Ferrari's team orders

Sebastian Vettel stretched his championship lead over Lewis Hamilton to 25 points on Sunday after becoming the first Ferrari driver since Michael Schumacher in 2001 to win Formula One's showcase Monaco Grand Prix. Teammate Kimi Raikkonen, on pole for the first time in nine years, lost out in the pitstops but secured a Ferrari one-two with Hamilton finishing seventh for Mercedes after starting 13th. The German celebrated as jubilantly as his seven times champion compatriot would have done, whooping over the radio and beaming from the podium as mechanics sang the Italian national anthem. "It's obviously a great day for the team... great to get the points, great to get the win," said Vettel. As with Schumacher in his pomp there was also a distinct whiff of 'team orders', with Raikkonen pitting first and Vettel staying out for a further five laps in a move that worked in his favor. Vettel's 45th career win was the German's third in six races but there was plenty of sympathy for Raikkonen, who last won with Lotus in 2013. The Finn looked far from happy on the podium, staring fixedly ahead and taking gulps of the Champagne as Vettel sprayed his. "It's still second place but it doesn't feel awful good," he said. "It's how it goes sometimes." "I know how it feels, it's not a good feeling," reigning champion Nico Rosberg, who retired at the end of last year after years of battling Hamilton at Mercedes, consoled him as he conducted the post-race interviews on the finish straight. Australian Daniel Ricciardo took his second successive podium with third place for Red Bull. MINIMAL OVERTAKING In a race with plenty of sunshine and minimal overtaking, late crashes ensured the safety car made its traditional Monaco appearance. While Raikkonen led for the first 34 laps, the writing was on the wall at the pitstops with a consensus emerging already before the start that Ferrari would favor the championship leader. "It was a very tense race. I knew that (staying out) was the chance to win and I was able to use that window and come out ahead. After that I was able to control the gap behind," said Vettel. What had been a processional race, with the wider new cars making overtaking more difficult, turned into sudden drama with a collision between Jenson Button's McLaren and Pascal Wehrlein's Sauber at the tunnel entrance.