Carbon Ceramic Brakes, Daytona Seats, Fender Shields, Carbon Interior Trim, F430 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Ferrari teases more specs on its Enzo successor

On its web site, Ferrari has divulged a little more info about the supercar that will succeed the Ferrari Enzo. The Ferrari magazine reported that everything the Scuderia has learned in Formula One has gone into its soon-to-be-revealed animal, and this latest disclosure shows just how much that's true. We don't know its length or width, but Ferrari says one of the targets for the car was "a reduction in height and wheelbase to match that of the 458 Italia."
Rory Byrne, the Ferrari F1 designer that's been involved in 11 world championships for the team, has spent three years contributing to chassis development. That chassis will be laid up by hand in the company's F1 composites department, each chassis composed of different kinds of carbon fiber and cured in an autoclave, F1 monocoque-style. That's part of where the lighter weight and vastly heightened torsional and beam rigidity versus the Enzo comes from. Just behind the tub - and behind the driver's back - will be the batteries and fuel tank, again, just as on an F1 car.
The cockpit will be personalized to the driver in a way that is rare among road cars, with each seat made-to-measure for the driver and then set in a fixed position in the cabin. The steering wheel and pedal box will move to accommodate pilots. What's more, we're told that "the occupant's feet are at the same level as the driving position." That, and the angle of the seatback, will provide "an extraordinarily racy feeling."

Michael Schumacher's 50th birthday marked by celebrations, privacy

Against the backdrop of celebrations marking Michael Schumacher's 50th birthday on Thursday, the medical condition of Formula One's most successful driver remains just as fiercely guarded by his close family. More than five years after a near-fatal brain injury in a skiing accident, the seven-time F1 champion continues to be cared for in total secrecy at home in the quiet Swiss town of Gland on the shores of Lake Geneva. He has been there since being transferred from a hospital in September 2014. "You can be sure that he is in the very best of hands and that we are doing everything humanly possible to help him," Schumacher's family said in a rare statement Wednesday. "Please understand if we are following Michael's wishes and keeping such a sensitive subject as health, as it has always been, in privacy." It was while skiing with his teenage son Mick in the French Alps at Meribel that Schumacher fell on Dec. 29, 2013. He hit the right side of his head on a rock, splitting open his helmet. Doctors at Grenoble hospital removed blood clots, but others were left untouched because they were too deeply embedded in his brain. With unsourced stories abounding, updates on his condition went from scarce to non-existent as his family closed ranks around him . But the family understands the level of devotion toward Schumacher from his legions of fans. Coinciding with his birthday, the family is releasing the Official Michael Schumacher App offering a virtual museum tour of his greatest achievements. "The app is another milestone in our effort to do justice to him and you, his fans, by celebrating his accomplishments," the statement said. Seven titles Many of those accomplishments were with Ferrari, where the German driving ace won five of his seven F1 titles, in 2000 through 2004. (He won with Benetton in 1994 and 1995.) Ferrari is honoring his 50th with a special museum exhibition of his achievements at its Maranello headquarters in northern Italy. His stature is Ferrari folklore is immense, while his impact on F1 is unparalleled with perhaps the exception of the late Brazilian great Ayrton Senna. Schumacher's winners' aura was perhaps unfairly viewed from the outside as cold and distant, when in essence he was incredibly appreciative of those he worked closely with. In 2000, he delivered Ferrari from years of frustration with a first world title since Jody Scheckter in 1979.

Faraday Future to hire former Ferrari exec Marco Mattiacci

Electric car manufacturer Faraday Future has lured a very big fish to its executive pond, hiring former Ferrari executive Marco Mattiacci, a source told Autoblog. Business Insider also reported the move. It's unclear what role Mattiacci will have at Faraday, but he served with distinction at Ferrari. Between 2006 and 2014, he was the head of Ferrari North America and Ferrari Asia Pacific, though that success didn't translate to motorsports. Mattiacci succeeded Stefano Domenicali as team principal of Scuderia Ferrari in April 2014 and led the team to a fourth-place finish, behind Mercedes, Red Bull, and Williams. The Scuderia were not pleased and Mattiacci resigned. Faraday is no stranger to snagging talent from other automakers. It hired employees from Ford, GM, and BMW and has done an especially good job of poaching talent from Elon Musk. It lured Tesla's vice president of regulatory affairs and deputy general counsel, James Chen, last month. Faraday hired the head of Model S production, Dag Reckhorn, to serve as its global VP of manufacturing, and in April it brought in Tesla's director of global supplier industrialization, Andrew De Haan, to run the Faraday's Nevada factory. Business Insider reports Faraday has even poached SpaceX employees. We expect more hiring from Faraday in the future, too. The company's website is packed with California-based positions for everything from vehicle safety to autonomous driving to product planning. Related Video: News Source: Business InsiderImage Credit: Dom Romney / Getty Images Green Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Ferrari Autonomous Vehicles Electric faraday future faraday marco mattiacci