All Ferraris Will Be Hybrids Starting in 2019

Here is the point where they lose my interest forever. I don't mind turbos, but I'm not interested in a car that breaks if it's not left plugged in. I understand the pressures vis-a-vis emissions, and that they have to do it because of regulations, but that's it for me. The 488 and V12 Lusso are the ultimate inhabitants of my humble garage then.

http://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/future-cars/news/a31483/marchionne-ferrari-hybrid-2019/

 

Honestly, that would interest me more than a hybrid. The idea of a motor for each wheel AWD system with torque vectoring and four wheel steering intrigues me, and I'm sure it could be super quick, even with the battery weight penalty.

 

Yea, I would buy it, but only if it's a stick!

 

At least with electrics, we won't have transmission threads anymore!

 

This is so true. I drove a Model S P100D (that's the fastest Tesla, not a laptop) and the fastest version of the flagship sedan of a top German manufacturer back to back for two weeks in Germany and Switzerland last summer. The Tesla was so much better, and faster, it wasn't funny. It was shortly after I had 10 days in a 488 and I'm pretty sure the Tesla was faster than that, too (though not necessarily better). Ferrari needs to build a Tesla beater, as Rob says.

 

Great testimonial.

I wonder if an all electric is even on Ferrari's radar. I'd like to think it is, but they may be getting blindsided.

 

having owned a hybrid for a month or so now, i can tell you that it is THE solution for most issues within the modern envelope of restrictions and needs.
full electric is not the answer since it still has issues of battery life, potential, range, recharge, materials etc
but the governments around the world, in their idiocy, will mandate that electric cars will be the only vehicles allowed in city centers.
so, the way around this is the hybrid. it gives you electric when you need or want it, and it gives you ICE capability when you need or want it, and when you want some super acceleration and/or filling in the power band gaps, the batteries and ICE can work together.
getting all of that to run well and efficiently, and in a performance oriented way, is THE key for ferrari going forward. and it is NOT easy.

right now, there is only one car that manages to get it kind of right and that is the bmw i8. it is a series hybrid like my karma, but has figured out a much lighter battery and body solution. (btw, these are the only series hybrids).

for me, the best looking 4 door hybrid is the karma, and the best looking 2 door is the i8.

ferrari could compete if they set their minds to it - now.

 

I saw an i8 in the wild all the way back in 2015. It's an interesting car, and one review I read said it was an indescribably amazing experience to drive it. I'm OK with a hybrid at a BMW price point, but not at a Ferrari price point.

But that's just me. I'm sure there will be plenty of FF's around when I'm ready for one, and the 360 may lead to a 488, but that's where the line ends for me... but you never know!

I turn 60 next month, so who knows how long I'll be around anyway.

 

Agreed, instantaneous power, accuratly applied.
In 2 or 3 years battery tech will be there.

Fearrari can also then make a "classic serries" of slower gas powered cars.

 

I happened into the local BMW/everything else under the sun dealership not too long ago with my Daughter (shes the kid that got the car gene instead of my son, but at least i got one kid to share my passion with) and I was pretty impressed with the I8 sitting in the lot. The price tag didnt scare me as much as i thought it would either especially considering that prices appear to be up about 17% on new vehicles since I bought my vehicle in 2012. I liked the looks of the I8 so much i made sure to take a picture of it and look it up later. I was impressed, even more impressed that it had a back seat. i didnt expect that. As far as Ferrari goes I guess i decided to get in on the ride at the right time, as 360s, F430s, and Californias are all modern enough to consider but priced in a more doable price range for a guy like me with a small business. I really like the 458 spider but they are still too steep for me to comfortable pull the trigger and I aint getting any younger.

 

Is there something very new in battery tech? Everything I read is nothing revolutionary even in research labs. So called Hydrogen cars? requires so much energy to produce hyd. from water not feasible. Also It takes more energy to generate electricity to charge the cars, than just burning oil in an ICE. This is just my opinion: This electric/ hybrid will be to costly to maintain. And you know major renewable Electricity is a long way off.

 

Yep we expect batteries to double their power in the next few years.
A fossil fuel powerplant has about a 40% energy efficiency as opposed to about 10% for an ICE engine.
Battery elctrics are highly efficient in terms of conversion, thats why with relatively low energy density a battery tesla performs so well.
Fossil fuel Powerplants can control emssions reasonably, esp nat gas, and usualy dont emit where there are large population centres.
Think Of La of Shanghai with battery cars.

Just a important, a battery car, not an econo one, but a performance one has power responses and and power accuracy a gas powered car cant remotely get close to.

The current drawbacks of batteries are weight and range(energy density). As battery power increses these become less of an issue. I'll posit that an electric ferrari probbaly woudl do just fine with only 200 or 250 miles range, I doubt there are many ferrari that are driven this distance in a day let alone a week.

The performance advanges of electrics is simply yuge from accleration to power control to how the power is ven put down, this all aides handling. Just look at what tesla does with a big heavy sedan, drive one, youll see its the powertrain of the future for performance. All thats required is better energy density for batteries.

 

battery tech is not 'there' yet. there are many issues that you dont hear much about because the media is in love with the concept and wont speak ill of it. but there are problems with the manufacturing, the disposal, the recharge capacity, the recharge network, the weight, etc etc. lots and lots of obstacles to clear sailing with a world fleet of electrics. never mind that outside of the oecd, it makes little sense.

thats why the hybrid is the answer, for at least the next couple decades.
but the key is absolute reliability, and adequate performance for the vehicle's brief.

 

i purposely did not include the hyper cars since they are not really production cars. but i agree, the 918 is a beauty !

 

NatGas combined cycle power plants can achieve 60% thermal efficiencies.
Streetable IC engines can achieve 28% thermal efficiencies at peak TQ and WOT
Current F1 hybrid engines are achieving 50% thermal efficiencies.

 

Ok 60% vs 28%.
An additional issue is the 28% also pollutes the air where most people live which is a big big issue. You're also not taking into account in your 28% the pollution and energy used in transporting and refining the liquid fuel to get to gas stations. 28% is also a cruising efficiency, not a hammering a turbo car efficiency so reality is far less.

Pollution and energy efficiency aside, if you drive a tesla, you can tell that from a performance perspective its vastly superior form of powerplant even though currently the tech is not quite there for prime time. (weight and cost).

Legislation will increasingly limit pollutants from car tailpipes esp in areas where people live with some density and those tend also to be the areas where the people with the $$$ for a ferrai live. Meanwhile electric technology will continue improving(partialy because of stopgap hybrids) and offering better overall performance to IC regardless of legislative issues.

Lest put aside legislation or pollution issues. Based on how the current crop of paddle shifted turbo cars run, an electric propulsion system is just the next step in terms of how this perfromance is meeted out, experienced and or measured.

I love my BBI, I love NA motors, I love rowing the gears, its all part of the charisma and engagement. Untill last week I thought all paddles suck because you loose too much and with revy motors an 7 closely spaced rations it was either on or off.. But then I drove a 488 and experinced where we are now; The era of immediate abundant power everywhere in the rev range, coupled with immdiate responses from the other controlls namely steering. . The throttle pedal is now more of a rheostat. The experience is different to manual car, but its also its won thing, whereas to me previous paddle powertrains were more of convenience than an enhanced experience.Yes there is still some turbo lag, yes there is still a transmssion and yes we have some engine sound albeit muted. But these modern Hipo turboed powerplants with paddles, theyre mimicking what electrics can offer, just not as well, immediate repsonse and imediate speed at or from any velocity.

Drive a tesla, response is immediate and exact. You meet exactly as much power as you require in infinite accurate increments. Its just the logical next step from where we are now.,

Hybruids like laf, where the flywheel is electric and you have paddles, well that really mimicks electrics, you still have excess weight but i guess you gain endurance from the Ic part of the equation and sound. How much endurance does a ferrai need. rabge anxiety is less of an issue for a n occasional use low miles ferrari than a daily toyota minivan

My track car, i go out for 40 mins and then come in, and at 5-6mpg have to add race gas. If it performed better and I mean way better and I had to plug it in for 10 or 20 mins between seesions, same difference. Also maintannace costs go way down and reliability goes way way up with electrics. Yes they are noto quite there yet, but battery tech motor tech its all moving fast now. Maybe the betetr stuff is expesive for the mainstream, but ferrari motors and cars are not inexpensive to start with.

Its all now a function of battery tech. Hybrids are a stopgap, youre carrying two powerplants which makes no sense as a long term solution.

BTW for those of us who love real fire brething machines. Well the componant car industry offers cars of your dreams powered by real fire brething ICE motors, and with 3 d printing well be able to get these types of cars for 100's of years.

Who knows maybe in the more electric future, ferrari will offfer a Cf tubbed V12 NA track only car.

At soke poitn areally really fasts electric sportscar will come along, it will eprfrom in way that ICE cars cant. Ferrari will need to be ready.

 

Using electric boosters for rapid initial acceleration is cool, but after that you have a soulless Vehicle with no high torque or acceleration after hitting 60-150 mph. So, love the laFerrari, but the i8 Beemer was underpowered and boring (looks good though). Tessa's looks like cars made by a committee of accountants and computer geeks (I am one). I just know, that if Ferrari start building 'drivable toasters' with no real engines I will give up on them. HEY, now I know how some of us old farts feel about the transition to automatics

 

I am curious though if they can make a hybrid Ferrari......what are the odds that the interiors will still be "sticky"?

 

100% likely to be sticky.

this made me laugh out loud. so true.
made me think further too.....here you have cars that start out priced in the stratosphere, regardless of the model, and for years they supply us with parts the they absolutely know will turn to **** in a few years - how disrespectful and blind to your customer can you be??

as a counter example, my fisker, which has many other problems, has an interior that is wonderful. luxurious, sleek, functional, and NO sticky buttons. the buttons are either made of solid aluminum, stainless steel, or hard clear plastic. its what you would expect in a ferrari. and yet we get their ****ty sticky fiat parts bin buttons.

 

I also found the i8 boring. Not the Tesla, though. That was fun.

 

so how do we get that sweet ferrari sound in an electric motor? Teslas make no noise, I own one as my daily and its a great car but it definitely lacks the soul of a ferrari

 

Electrics have their own sound. Here are some Formula E cars launching with nicely recorded sound.