1988 Ferrari Testarossa Tr / 36,000 Miles / Fresh Engine Out Major Service 2013 on 2040-cars

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Ferrari planning sleeker FF coupe?

There are a lot of things you could call the Ferrari FF. Innovative, advanced, pioneering, ponderous... beautiful may not be one of them, though. Because while it does pack Ferrari's first all-wheel drive system, it doesn't pack it into a very pretty shape, alternately described as a chopped shooting brake or stretched hatchback. Word has it, though, that Ferrari is working on a solution.
That solution, according to Car and Driver, would be to chop it down into an FF coupe. Apparently separate from the SP FFX project that ultimately emerged as a one-off, this rebody could potentially solve the FF's stylistic shortcomings and attract more buyers, while retaining the 6.3-liter V12 engine that drives 651 prancing horses to all four wheels. But here's where it gets tricky: if Ferrari simply sloped the roofline and got rid of the rear seats, the finished product would end up precariously close to the F12 Berlinetta, albeit with an extra set of driven wheels.
We'd sooner guess that Maranello would lengthen the form slightly to keep the rear seats, add a trunk and give it a more graceful profile, though the elongated form of the preceding 612 Scaglietti strikes us as what Ferrari was trying to get away from with the FF in the first place. And guessing is as good as we've got at this point, as our attempts to get more from Ferrari PR resulted in a sad (if predictable) "no comment."

Maserati Levante could get a V8 to battle the Cayenne Turbo

Maserati's new Levante crossover is based on the platform shared by the Ghibli and Quattroporte sedans. The Quattroporte's top engine is a 523-horsepower, twin-turbo 3.8-liter V8. When asked if that engine would fit in the Levante, a Maserati engineer gave the answer we were hoping to hear almost immediately. "Yes, it fits, and we have a prototype already," said Davide Danesin, the head of Maserati vehicle programs. The Levante will launch with two models, both of which use the 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 that Ferrari builds for Maserati, but in two different tunes. The first generation of the V6 launched in the Ghibli and Quattroporte. While the V8 is only currently used in the rear-drive Quattroporte GTS, Danesin assures us that packaging the V8 and an all-wheel-drive system works. There is that prototype, after all. The fact that Danesin volunteered that a V8 prototype exists leads us to believe it's being very seriously considered, since manufacturers reluctantly acknowledge that there will even be a future, let alone one that will bring new, as-yet-unannounced products. Maserati officials caution that it may be tough to make a case for such a vehicle, however, as the over-500-hp SUV segment is pretty small, at about 12,000 units per year by their estimates. It's also relatively crowded, with the logical bogeys being the Porsche Cayenne Turbo (520 hp) and Turbo S (570 hp) and the Range Rover Sport SVR (550 hp). None of them will touch the Levante's upcoming American cousin, the Hellcat-powered Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, but that's cool. View 21 Photos We'd guess that the yay/nay on a V8 Levante will hinge on the overall popularity of the new model as well as the mix of 345-hp Levante versus 424-hp Levante S models once customers start ordering. Which is to say, if you think you'll want a V8 Levante eventually, get out there and buy a few Levante S models when they hit dealers this October. In other Maserati powertrain news, we're told the second-generation V6, which makes 20 more horsepower in its angriest tune and debuts in the Levante, will show up in the Ghibli and Quattroporte "soon." We'd peg that at mid-cycle refresh time, which should be in a year or so. The second-gen V6 gets its extra power from re-profiled camshafts, some redesign work on the heads, and other tweaks, likely in software. Oh, and for more on the first Maserati crossover and that updated engine, watch for our first drive of the twin-turbo V6 Levante very soon.

Bertone's shark-nose Ferrari 250 set to break records

If Nuccio Bertone had one regret, it's that he didn't get to work more with Ferrari. "They have always been with Pininfarina," Bertone was quoted as saying toward the end of his career. "I would have liked to have done more for Ferrari." There were a few exceptions, like the atypical Dino GT4, the angular Rainbow concept of 1976, and the unique 250 GT you see here. Only this one wasn't just designed and crafted by Bertone – it was designed and crafted for Bertone. And now it's going up for auction. Inspired by the 156 Grand Prix racer, this one-of-a-kind 1962 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta was commissioned by Bertone to showcase its capabilities at the Geneva and Turin motor shows that year, and to serve as Nuccio's personal wheels. The design was carried out by none other than Giorgetto Giugiaro, in close collaboration with Bertone, and is characterized by the shark nose that would look right at home on a week-long Discovery Channel special... if it were directed by Roberto Rossellini. It's painted in Blu Notte Metallizzato (Italian for "midnight blue metallic") with a rich burgundy leather interior. The only one of its kind, chassis 3269 GT has been part of the Lorenzo Zambrano collection for over three decades now. It's slated to cross the auction block for the first time next month at Pebble Beach. That's where Gooding & Company expects it will fetch around $15 million, which would (according to the archives at Sports Car Market) make it one of the most expensive Ferraris, and by some margin the highest-priced 250 GT SWB Berlinetta, ever sold at auction. 1962 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta Speciale (Estimate $14,000,000-$16,000,000) Any coachbuilt Ferrari will stir excitement on the auction block, but 3269 GT is quite possibly the most important 250 GT SWB ever to be presented at public auction. Built for and personally owned by Nuccio Bertone to showcase his company at the Geneva and Torino Auto Shows in 1962, this one-off "sharknose" Berlinetta Speciale Ferrari is sure to electrify the Pebble Beach Auctions when Gooding & Company presents this Italian masterpiece in August. This unique Ferrari was one of the first cars penned by the well-known stylist, Giorgetto Giugiaro, while working for Nuccio Bertone. The two worked together to create one of the most viscerally moving designs in Ferrari's history, which was inspired by the world championship-winning Grand Prix car - the Ferrari 156 F1.