Mint Ferrari 599 Gtb Fiorano - 620hp! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Ferrari Dino prototype will go for auction at Pebble Beach

Following the announcement of a Duesenberg that could go for more than $10 million at Pebble Beach, we have yet another historic car headed for the auction block at the venerable event. This is a 1966 Ferrari Dino Berlinetta GT, and it was the second prototype designed. It previewed the production 206 GT, and it could be yours if you have the means. While the car looks very close to the production coupe, there are quite a number of differences. Compared with the production car, the prototype has its turn signals below the grille, and the taillights consist of three round lenses rather than two. They have a chrome rectangular background, too. The entire body looks to be a bit longer than the production car. Part of this may have to do with the fact that the 2.0-liter V6 in the middle is mounted longitudinally. In the production Dino, the engine was mounted transversely. The body has a more tapered tail, too, one that has less of a duck-tail spoiler integrated. Additional details not found on the production car are the chrome bars across on the side strakes and the large single windshield wiper. Even with these detail changes, the Dino prototype is still gorgeous, maybe even more so than the consumer version. Now we come to the part of the post where we discuss the car's high price. For this rare piece of Ferrari history, Gooding and Company expects someone will spend between $2 million and $3 million. Obviously that's a lot of money, in fact it's twice what the Ferrari Aperta cost when it launched. But this is a truly one-of-a-kind car, and it has an important place in history in helping give us the first mid-engine V6 Ferrari. So, it might be worth it. If you agree and have the cash, be sure you get to the Gooding and Company auction on Aug. 24-25. Related Video: Featured Gallery 1966 Ferrari Dino Berlinetta GT prototype View 9 Photos Image Credit: All images copyright and courtesy of Gooding & Company. Photos by Mathieu Heurtault Ferrari Auctions Coupe Concept Cars Classics Pebble Beach ferrari dino

'Top Gear' episode 1 recap | A new beginning, again

Season 27 of "Top Gear" kicked off Sunday night, and we were there on our couches for the premiere to see everything Chris Harris, Freddie Flintoff and Paddy McGuinness had to offer. With only five episodes in this season, this new group of characters doesn’t have much time to get it right. They started with a bang, on a massive road trip through Ethiopia in cars identical to their first vehicle purchases. Before that, though, the hosts recognized the rebirths and numerous changes "Top Gear" has gone through since Clarkson, Hammond and May left the premises. Good on "Top Gear" for not brushing over any sort of controversy and unrest, then getting on with the show as itÂ’s meant to be. As is typical for "Top Gear," the adventure/story portion of the show was definitely the most entertaining. We wholeheartedly approve of all the vehicles these guys bought as their first transportation — watching Chris Harris toss his little Mini around the sand and rocks was especially joyful. The boys get on rather well together for just starting off, and while the interludes for challenges didnÂ’t feel totally natural, the challenges themselves were still fun to watch. Being in Ethiopia with such a vast array of alien-to-us shooting locations definitely helped keep us entertained from a visual standpoint. We werenÂ’t surprised to see Chris Harris handling the “serious car review” portion of the show where he pitted a Ferrari 488 Pista against a McLaren 600LT — the others aren't traditional automotive journalists. We wonÂ’t give away who won, but the Ferrari did manage to surprise us in one particular area. Perhaps the most important aspect of the whole episode is how the three hosts got on with each other (Sabine Schmitz was nowhere to be seen). ThereÂ’s no Captain Slow or American car maniac amongst the group, but a comedian (Paddy) and cricketer (Freddie) certainly do bring fresh voices and perspectives. WeÂ’ll give them time to warm up to each other as the season goes on, with a new episode this coming Sunday. One thing we know for sure after this first go: Chris Harris really does not like the hot desert as much as he loves hot, burning rubber.

Ferrari configurator lets you play 458 Speciale customer

We all wish we had an extra $300,000 just lying around that we could spend on a supercar. And if we did, we don't doubt that the Ferrari 458 Speciale would be near the top of our list. It's hard, after all, to argue with 600 naturally aspirated horsepower churning away right behind your seat. Unfortunately few of us have that kind of scratch. That's where online configurators come in.
While these web-based customization tools don't exactly let you drive off the lot in a six-figure supercar, they can at least let you pretend that you're the kind of person who would (or more pertinently, could) do just that. And Ferrari's latest is among the cooler ones we've seen.
Like most online configuration tools, Maranello's lets you choose the colors of the bodywork and which wheels you want, but also lets you choose brake calipers, racing stripes and all manner of carbon-fiber aero components. Step inside and the choices are even more extensive, from the size and shape of seats to the color of the tachometer.