Wit all these debates about "brand" heritage, what does F1 do for the brand etc I have a question or two about the actual cars and their usage. Who has maxed out their ferrari. Who runs their car through the gears to close on redline each drive, say gears 2-4. Who pushes their car to the cornering limit or close somewhere on each drive just for the feel of it. In other words who regularily drives their ferrari as god and enzo intended
I have done those things to most of my cars, excluding my Ferrari. Maxing a car was fun untill I became a responsible father. ( German motorway so legal) I did overdo the cornering bit twice, and was lucky to survive. I was young, invincible and pretty stupid! Today I am truly happy to just cruise at legal speed and watch people looking at me and my beautiful, loud 575!
Boxerman: Enzo never intended the street cars being driven that way. He wanted something fast and sexy to sell to rich people to play with on the weekends and fund his F1 team so he could go racing. Your premise is based on a complete myth. It was ALWAYS the dream of Walter Mitty racing drivers and exclusivity of something exotic and rare (aka: branding). Enzo and perhaps more over Chinetti started the branding of what "Ferrari ownership" was all about. Luca raised it to a new level. Sergio is cashing in on that level before he completely destroys it.
This would be called a "track day" except the top speed part, few .... very few tracks have the capacity of even a 20 year old F car redlined in top gear. Large abandoned airfield runway maybe
Even at a track day you're going 7-8/10th for highly skilled drivers. Most modern cars are much more capable than most of its drivers, myself included. As others have mentioned, Enzo sold cars only to fuel his passion for F1 racing. His clientele was mainly gentlemen racers and movie stars. Completely different era and types of events available back then (as well as speeds and capabilities of the cars themselves). "Maxing out" your Ferrari on the public road is just idiotic. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Part of the delta of opinions here is whether you own a new or an older ferrari. A new one can probably not be maxed anywhere. On an older car getting to redline in 4th ona clear open road early am is no big deal. Similarily pushing towards the linits on bends(where you have great sightlines) is also no big deal. In period many people used their ferraris as deisgned, there are legions of stories and home movies attesting to this. My points. The performance of modern ferraris is irrelvant, and their capacity so high that driving enjoyment does not come untill speeds that are not attainable. Most(not all) of these newer cars seem to be used for parading about. In period many a daytona was maxed out. Its a arre day where my BBI does not see redline in 2nd or 3rd and sometimes 4th. Iyts is pushed through corners too. I am not a young child, I track often, never weave through traffic or drive like an ass.. But 6am on a sunday on roads you know with clear sightlines its not really somethig to get all carried away about, its what the car is for. So few seem to really enjoy their Fcar as designed, its not for soemthing else. I am going to say that the average lotus elsie or alfa 4c gets driven with more vigor than all those ferraris out there.
^^^^^^^^^ This... The older I get, the less I care about balls to the walls enjoyment. I want to take my car out on a fantastic fall day, crisp air around, empty back roads, and row through the gates. The more mature I've got (debatable in other areas lol), the lower the risks I'm interested in. Thinking about what I did on my ZX6R when I was 22-23 years old, how I'm alive is just pure luck. I do enjoy driving the FCar hard though when thoroughly warmed up, but I don't feel the need to completely push it to the brink (strictly because I'm not wealthy, and if I break my Mondial I'd be SOL).
- Yes, On a track. Or maxed out what I could drive it without wrecking it. - Cruising through town, definitely not. But it sure be fun. Up in the canyons, most definitely. - Yes, when on a track. It's just not safe or really possible with traffic and speed limits. Although I'm positive roads like ACH were made for driving fast. - Every time I'm out in my car, it feels and sounds so amazing that every opportunity I have to do so, I try and drive it like god and Enzo intended. That is what is so awesome sitting behind the wheel and looking down to see that prancing horse staring back at you saying "Drive me, hard. Let me roar"
The problem I have with this thread is you are implying theres a right way to enjoy a Ferrari and a wrong way. I say its your car and if you enjoy just having it in your garage then great for you. As to your specific questions heres my responses: * Who has maxed out their ferrari. Yes. At the track. * Who runs their car through the gears to close on redline each drive, say gears 2-4. Absolutely. Not all the time, but when I get the chance I will rev the cars out. Depends on circumstances. I love how you can get different feels from different rev bands. * Who pushes their car to the cornering limit or close somewhere on each drive just for the feel of it. Not on public roads - thats just irresponsible. I like getting some cornering done put I try to leave a zone of safety. * In other words who regularily drives their ferrari as god and enzo intended- I try to do this as often as possible- sometimes its every day! But I also get pleasure from just looking at them in the garage and also detailing them and even chatting on line about them!
I haven't maxed it out. I used to do late night/early morning highway racing with my turbo cars and we would have a spotter vehicle about a mile up. Have had no desire to do it with the Ferrari. I don't push it to the cornering limit as the consequences are too high but I do corner fast and also have some fun with the car. I'm not afraid to shift it at redline as some are, but if someone is enjoying their car, even slowly, I am fine with that. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1W_axP-HckQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nvSdJj0eqs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4LG-aDRbg4
Negative Ghostrider... I use to do wheel2wheel racing with NASA and other clubs, and my definition pushing a vehicle to the max would be dangerous on a public road. Whether it's a Ferrari or any other car, just enjoy the car within the legal limits on public roads. Why endanger yourself and others unnecessarily. If you're that curious about pushing the car to the max, take it to the track and work your way up to racing. At least there, everyone is assuming the same risk and you can push the car as hard as you'd like until you run out skill or road...
The only road you can legally max out a car in on some German motorways, but unless you pick it well and the right time it is not safe.
Not going to guess God's intention but pretty sure God does not intend Ferrari to be driven at the limit. Pretty sure God has more important things to deal with than some rich first world person maxing out his/her sports car. redline in 4th gear? at the track? outside the track? Pretty sure that's a trip to the slammer How many people cares that some fancy Swiss watch maker created a watch that was used on the moon or climb Everest or on a deep sea dive? How many people used their time piece other than some jewelry. How many Range Rovers make "Safari" trips to the grocery stores or to soccer camps. Ditto high-end tennis rackets, skis, golf clubs, etc owned by weekend warriors. who cares how some owner drives his/her car.
Do I drive her like some nitwit that rented a Ferrari for a day? No. Did I take her out this weekend and enjoy my favorite turns with nobody around? Yes. Did I even come close to her limits.. not a chance. And that redline.. why does everyone talk about how they hit it right before they talk about how they rebuilt their engine? Not me thank you.
Thanks. One of the great things about Ferrari is all the passionate and enthusiastic owners and even people who are just interested in the marque. I hope that never changes.
Good questions. I guess I'm in the minority here, I'm that guy. I enjoy running my cars hard safely where and when conditions permit. There are three cars I haven't found such conditions for, and likely never will, but they're not Ferraris. I think it's healthy to take an engine to it's rev limit and do so frequently in my GTC and BB.
