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2019 Ferrari 488 Pista Piloti Ferrari is only for people racing Ferraris

Ferrari revealed an interesting special edition car, the 2019 Ferrari 488 Pista Piloti Ferrari. Part of what makes it interesting is that it doesn't matter how much money you have, you probably can't get it. That's because this version was created to celebrate Ferrari's motorsports teams and the car that won its class in the 2017 World Endurance Championship. As such, this car is only available to people "involved in the company's motorsports programs." We're guessing it's aimed at drivers of Ferrari race cars, but we bet that managers and other members of Ferrari race teams with enough scratch could get one, too. Besides the exclusivity, Ferrari spruced up the 488 Pista Piloti Ferrari with a number of unique features. It has a special paint scheme with a center Italian flag stripe inspired by the championship winning 488. On the passenger side of the car is the WEC logo, and on the driver's side is the word "PRO" indicating the class of the winning car. On each side, the owner can choose a custom number that will also be placed on the steering wheel. In the case of the show car, it has the number 51 for the aforementioned race car. Inside, the car features black Alcantara everywhere. There are also a few Italian flag tributes. The seat backs have the Italian flag colors fading as they head to the top of the seat. The same colors are also found on the shift paddles. Red stitching also helps break up the black interior. Nothing has been changed mechanically about the Piloti Ferrari, which means it still has the 711-horsepower turbocharged V8. But we suspect that none of the customers will be complaining about it being too slow, and the exclusivity is pretty cool. Plus, we're sure plenty of these customers will at least have access to a race car if they need something more hardcore. Related Video:

Chevy ad compares Spark EV with Ferrari 458 Italia

Chevrolet's new commercial for the 2014 Spark EV emphasizes the little hatchback's performance over pretty much everything else, and it even goes as far as to compare it to a Ferrari 458 Italia. That's right, the electric bubble is pitched in the commercial as having a higher torque figure than the Ferrari - and it does, with a massive 400 pound-feet ready to be unleashed.
That doesn't translate into a quicker car, however, as the 458's V8 with 570 horsepower and not-exactly-quaint 398 lb-ft gives it a 0-60 time of 3.0 seconds compared to the Spark EV's 7.6-second run.
"We think the fun-to-drive element is an area for us to differentiate ourselves," Sam Basile, executive chief engineer for GM's global minicars and emerging-market vehicles, told Automotive News.

Ferrari 488 GTB turbocharges its way towards Geneva debut

Automakers left, right and center are embracing turbochargers as the best way to get more power out of a smaller package, and that includes performance automakers like Ferrari. In line with the latest FIA regulations, the Prancing Horse marque turbocharges its Formula One single-seater, and followed the same route with the California T. And now it's done the same with the replacement for the 458 Italia. Dubbed the 488 GTB, Maranello's latest mid-engined V8 supercar arrives forty years after the debut of the 308 GTB that launched Ferrari into the segment. It packs a 3.9-liter turbocharged V8 offering up 661 horsepower and 560 pound-feet of torque. That represents a 64-horse increase over even the extreme 458 Speciale, and an even more impressive torque boost of 162 lb-ft, despite a decrease in displacement by approximately 600cc. (Ferrari isn't saying exactly how many turbochargers its new forced-induction engine carries, but we're likely looking at a pair of twin-scroll turbos.) The new engine is said to be enough to propel the new 488 GTB to 62 miles per hour in three seconds flat, to 124 mph in 8.3 seconds and on to a top speed in excess of 205 mph. And at 1 minute 23 seconds, the 488's lap time at Fiorano is also a good half second faster than the naturally aspirated Speciale and two seconds faster than the Italia. Ferrari says it dedicated significant efforts to keep the engine responsive and the exhaust note enthralling despite the introduction of forced induction – the first time a turbo has been used in mid-engined, eight-cylinder Prancing Horse, since the F40. Of course there's more to the 488 GTB than the turbocharged engine. It also features a revised Side Slip Control 2 (SSC2) system, working in tandem with the F1-Trac and E-Diff systems to keep the supercar on the razor's edge without sliding off of it. The revised bodywork also generates 50 percent more downforce – thanks in no small part to the active diffuser that necessitated moving the exhaust pipes upwards – and a more slippery shape than any production Ferrari yet. The interior has likewise been revised with new control clusters, air vents, instrument panel and infotainment system for optimized ease of use. The new Ferrari 488 GTB – shorthand for Gran Turismo Berlinetta – is set to debut at the Geneva Motor Show next month, but you can scope it out now in the high-res image gallery above and the full details in the press release below.