Amazing 2014 Ferrari 458 Spider With Just 70 Miles on 2040-cars

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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

2019 Ferrari 488 Pista First Drive Review | Quantum physics

MARANELLO, Italy — Ferrari's special-edition V8s have a long history of delivering more than the sum of their individual parts. The 360 Challenge Stradale (2003), 430 Scuderia (2007), and 458 Speciale (2013) each leapfrogged the capabilities of their donor cars to cement their notoriety in supercar history. The latest in that lineage is the Ferrari 488 Pista, a hopped-up variant that is the most powerful road-going V8 in Ferrari history. The Pista is so quick that its lap time around the company's own private Fiorano circuit is only 1.8 seconds behind the LaFerrari. With 49 more horsepower pushing around 198 fewer pounds, the $345,300 488 Pista looks, at least on paper, like a no-brainer for deep-pocketed speed fiends. But there are also a slew of tiny changes that alter its persona — 50 percent of the engine components are new — as well as intangible characteristics. The carbon fiber intake manifold, for instance, shaves weight but also features shorter, lower-volume intake runners for better throttle response. The turbocharger's turbines are composed of a new aluminum-titanium alloy that slashes inertia in half, trimming the powerplant's already minimal turbo lag. Titanium connecting rods aid cylinder acceleration. And new robot-welded Inconel exhaust manifolds are 10-percent wider and slightly longer, offering reduced back pressure and a throatier note. Coupled with reduced sound-deadening materials, the pipes are responsible for more engine sound reaching the cabin. Before tackling the famed Fiorano track, I drive the 488 Pista on the street to see what 710 horsepower in a twin-turbo Ferrari feels like, and my first impressions came on thick. Sure, there's the expected interior upgrades of copious Alcantara and carbon fiber, visible aluminum floor plates, and massive carbon paddles borrowed from the 488 Challenge race car. Hold the red steering wheel-mounted engine start button with a press of the big drilled aluminum brake pedal, and the 3.9-liter V8 fires up with a noticeably more bass-heavy thrum than before, the first hint that this is an entirely different beast than the off-the-rack 488. Leave the seven-speed dual-clutch in automatic, and gearshifts happen remarkably smoothly, even in the second-most aggressive "CT Off" mode, which removes traction control but keeps stability control active.

Ferrari 312PB looks amazing, sounds like you're ripping sheets

Whether it's Mozart, Beethoven or The Beatles, they all (arguably) pale in comparison to just the right engine note for many auto enthusiasts. Petrolicious has found one of the absolute best with its latest focus on a 1972 Ferrari 312PB.
The 312PB is important for more than just its ability to sound like an automotive symphony. It was also the final purpose-built prototype racer of the era from Ferrari before the Prancing Horse put its entire focus into Formula One. Maranello went out with a bang, though. The 312PB's design is simplicity itself with just a modified wedge shape combined with the necessary scoops and ducting to keep its 12-cylinder engine at full tune. The car won a string of races and scored the 1972 championship. Although even if it had been a loser, the racecar likely would have been famous just for its wonderful exhaust note.
In the video, Petrolicious expertly balances its interview with owner Steven Read with wonderful cinematography and just letting the Ferrari sing around the Willow Springs track. Crank up the volume and scroll down to get a wonderful earful of this sonorous vintage racer.