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Ferrari renews partnership with Marlboro [UPDATE]

Formula One and Big Tobacco may have parted ways years ago, but the alliance between Ferrari and Marlboro continues on, apparently as strong as ever. Though neither party has made any official announcement or revealed any details of the arrangement, reports from the motorsport press indicate that the Scuderia and Philip Morris – the tobacco company which owns the Marlboro brand – have signed an extension of their longstanding partnership. Marlboro first arrived in Maranello way back in 1973, ramping up over the years to become its main sponsor by '93. The Italian outfit changed its name to Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro after the tobacco brand parted company with McLaren in '97. After tobacco advertising was ultimately banned in 2006 (at least in Europe), Ferrari was forced to remove the Marlboro branding from its cars, but the name stuck – and so did the logo, in various forms of obscurity and subliminality through 2010. The Marlboro name was dropped from the team's handle in 2011, but that didn't stop the two from renewing their partnership. And now they've reportedly extended again through 2018. Though the deal hardly comes as a surprise (even given the complete lack of discernible public association between the two), we don't doubt that Maurizio Arrivabene – the former Marlboro exec who recently took over the struggling team – had something to do with it. UPDATE: A spokesman for Scuderia Ferrari downplayed the significance of the story, telling Autoblog by correspondence that "the contract is extended through 2018 and details are confidential." UPDATE 2: Philip Morris International responded to our inquiry with the following statement: "Our agreement with Ferrari has been extended beyond 2015, but we are not in a position to provide financial or other details. This partnership provides us with opportunities such as enabling our adult consumers and business partners to experience motor racing through Ferrari factory visits and attending F1 races."

Bonhams is auctioning a genuine, Tom Selleck-driven, Magnum P.I. Ferrari

If you're down at the Scottsdale car auctions this week, and love TV Ferraris, this is your chance to own one of the most famous of all. Bonhams will be selling a 1984 Ferrari 308 GTS Quattrovalvole that appeared on the detective show Magnum P.I. and was driven by Tom Selleck in all of his mustachioed glory. According to the auction house, this was one of the later models that was used for filming in 1984 and 1985. The car is in superb shape, too. It had only two owners after its time on the show, and its second owner had the car since 1989. It's nearly 100-percent stock, and it even comes with the factory tool kit. The only change was an aftermarket Tubi exhaust. However, the original piping is included with the car. The 232-horsepower V8-powered Ferrari won't come cheap, though. Bonhams estimates the car will sell for between $150,000 and $250,000. According to Hagerty Insurance, that's pretty high for a 308 GTS Quattrovalvole, which the company values at $83,900 for an "Excellent" condition model, and $122,000 for "Concours" condition. However, that's for one that never turned up on TV. And for a wealthy Magnum P.I. fan, you can't do much better than a Ferrari driven by Magnum himself. Related Video:

Ferrari's modular next-gen platform is under construction

Ferrari and Altair ProductDesign are teaming up to create a next-generation platform for the automaker's future vehicles, reports Automotive News. The platform will provide Ferrari with a base for several new flagship models, claims Altair in a press release that is no longer available, noting that the engineering and design company has worked with Ferrari for more than 10 years. According to the report, vehicles on the next-gen platform are expected to be lighter and better performing, and the platform will reduce vibration, noise, and harshness. Altair's designers and engineers worked alongside the automaker's manufacturing, design, and engineering teams in Italy to create the platform. Altair currently works with an extensive list of automakers on various design and engineering aspects for vehicle chassis. We reached out to Ferrari to get a better idea of what Altair is bringing to the table, but the automaker declined to comment about its relationship with suppliers or on future products. As previously reported, a modular platform would help Ferrari cut development time and share more parts within its lineup. The next generation of the Ferrari California is the first model expected to utilize the new platform and is predicted to be unveiled sometime next year.Related Video: News Source: Automotive News-sub.req., Altair ProductDesignImage Credit: GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP/Getty Plants/Manufacturing Ferrari Coupe Lightweight Vehicles Performance Supercars