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James May's Ferrari 488 GTB road test makes us miss Top Gear

Whoever the BBC lines up for the next iteration of Top Gear, the reality with which we're coming to grips is that the show will likely never be the same. The question is whether the departing hosts will ever be the same without each other, and without the show that brought them together. This clip could go a long way towards answering that question, though. In this video review for the Driving section of the Sunday Times, James May joined the gaggles of gathering journalists in Maranello to check out the new Ferrari 488 GTB. And suffice it to say, it's not quite as entertaining (or even as well-informed) as most of the segments in which we've grown accustomed to seeing Captain Slow driving fast cars. James does have some rather relevant experience he might have imparted, though, seeing as how he didn't just drive the ultimate version of the preceding model – he went out and bought himself a 458 Speciale shortly before losing his job. So with GBP200k of car payments to make, we're hardly surprised to see him fronting for another operation. Whether it's worthy of him or not, you'll want to watch the clip to decide for yourself.

Ferrari reports fewer sales, more profit to prove strategy is working

Ferrari's angle of emphasizing exclusivity by limiting deliveries is appearing to bear fruit. The company posted a 7.1-percent increase in revenues to 1.7 billion Euros ($2.2 billion at today's exchange rates) during the first half of 2013. Net profits, meanwhile, saw a jump of 20 percent to 116.2 million Euros ($153.5 million). The Prancing Horse delivered 3,767 cars, which, while an increase of 2.8 percent, represents a rate of growth that's slower than in the first quarter of 2013.
While Ferrari may be actively trying to slow its sales down to below 7,000 in 2013, it's seen increased numbers in the US, Great Britain and Germany, along with double-digit growth in the Middle East and Japan (39 percent and 28 percent, respectively).
The move to limit sales should have a greater impact on the numbers that come in later this year, which we told you about back in May. Ferrari's controversial move has already seen a drop in sales to China, which saw 50 fewer Prancing Horses than this time last year.

Ferrari SF-15T will look to reclaim former F1 glories in 2015

The parade of cars for the 2015 Formula One World Championship continues apace, as Scuderia Ferrari has unveiled the vehicle that fans of the Italian team will doubtlessly be hoping drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen will pilot to victory. After the questionable styling of last year's vehicles, this new Ferrari continues the trend of more aesthetically pleasing designs. The vacuum-cleaner-like snout of last year's F-14T has been replaced with a longer, rounded bill that feeds more gracefully towards the cockpit. The new front end is arguably the most noticeable change for 2015, while changes elsewhere on the open-wheeler's body are mere evolutions of last year's design. In fact, that's kind of the theme around the SF-15T. The brake-by-wire system, clutch and gear ratios (which are locked after the first race) have all been optimized based on last season's experiences, while the weight of the car has increased by just 11 kilograms, as per sporting regulations. Take a look at Ferrari's batch of images showing its new challenger, and let us know whether you think this new design will fare better than last year's troubled F-14T. TECHNICAL FEATURE OF THE SF-15T The SF15-T the sixty first car built by Ferrari specifically to take part in the Formula 1 World Championship. It is the second car made by Ferrari since the reintroduction of turbo engines in 2014. The first year of these new regulations was extremely challenging for the Scuderia and the lessons learned have been applied vigorously to the SF15-T to create a car that is in every respect a large step forwards with respect to the F14-T. Chassis The most striking visual difference between the SF15-T and its predecessor is the lowering of the front end of the car in accordance with the change of regulations for the 2015 season. After a few seasons of rather unappealing aesthetics, the 2015 rules permit the SF15-T an attractive nose shape which also brings excellent aerodynamic performance. Aside from the nose area, the regulations for 2015 are largely unchanged. This has given the Team a stable base on which to engineer a much stronger chassis than the year before: A casual glance at the back of the car reveals a much more tightly packaged rear end which allows more downforce to be extracted from the critical surfaces around the rear of the car. The rear wing family has been extensively redesigned to deliver stable performance in corners while producing a larger DRS effect on the straights.