I don’t think any VIP’s are getting a 12C Comp, so whether they have a 296 in the garage is probably irrelevant.
SF90 owners who sold their SFs weren't given allocations for XXs. No SF90 in your garage, no XX. New rules are in play. The GM of our dealership told us that a client who had a SF was given an allocation for a XX. Order in for 'his' XX, car was his. Done deal...or so he thought... He then SOLD his SF. Ferrari found out that he sold his SF (dealer did NOT tell them). Ferrari told the dealer that he wasn't going to be receiving the XX and THEY canceled the order. IIRC the dealer lost the allocation. Ask your dealer. Don't believe what you read here. Ask them to put what they promise in writing.
Until you see with your own eyes, in Ferraris CRM, (MODIS) what your actual status is (your dealer DOES KNOW), you don't truly know what your actual status is with Ferrari. VIP is an actual status level in Ferraris CRM, Modis. Of course, ALL dealers tell their repeat clients that they are VIP. Ferrari buyers are at least 75% status seeking. Imagine a dealer telling a repeat client that they aren't 'VIP'. Our dealer tells us we are VIP with them...the dealer. They aren't lying, we are VIP with the dealer (they are wonderful, BTW). However, we are NOT VIP with Ferrari. And we have had nearly 20 Ferraris over the last 20 years. to be clear....I know that we are NOT VIP with Ferrari. To be VIP with Ferrari (not the dealer) would require 3-4 cars in our 'garage', a race car, a vintage car, Ferrari events...etc etc. Ferrari has their own rules. Those rules are changing as the competition to get a special series car (and beyond) have tightened. Bottom line, ask your dealer to show you in MODIS what your status is with Ferrari. There IS a section in MODIS that shows your status. Until you see that page, you are flying blind. I DID have a dealer lie to me about this. I hope you are indeed VIP with Ferrari. If you are, order all the VS cars and share your specs here. ALL OF THIS SAID, if Ferrari prices the 296VS out of line with the market it will flop. 296 owners are already gun shy after losing $$$ on their 'base' 296s. This is 90% correct, watch Eds video: https://supercarblondie.com/vinwiki-georgia-ferrari-vip-list-requirements/
Right, I wondered about that too. I will ask the dealer next Friday when I will sign the final contract.
Thanks for sharing - i spoke to my dealer and they have denied this. They said we know our allocation numbers and we know who they are being allocated to. Ferrari has not placed a requirement that you have to have 296 in the garage to take delivery of the speciale. What you said later concerns me as if dealer says no but if one sells the 296 prior to delivery of speciale, the customer is the one getting screwed. How does one go about confirming other than relying on the dealer?
When I first got my 296 I was under the impression that the Speciale would be offered to those who spec’d their own 296 first (and kept it) but the rule is now any 296 and priority to multiple Ferrari models. Makes sense, I guess.
XX more limited than 812C, SF90 was selling 200k premium as was 296 Spider 50k, Time of 296 debut was 2021 - deposit until the sale of VS will be 8 years. Ferrari is an 8 year pattern, dealer sells you car / buys back / sells you track version and is guaranteed a sale and profits two times and takes a large portion of profit if there is one. You are basically a factory for free to the dealer and the more you provide the dealer they try to reciprocate.
In the end, being completely realistic about this totally useless kindergarten game except for flattering the ego, I allow myself to ask a question. The race for the VIP to buy which car in the future, thank you for enlightening me, I see nothing except the VS of the 12C! hybrid cars with body kits, no thanks! Icona 4, not that either... So which interesting car ? I don't see any, thank you again for enlightening me. (Post in a friendly tone, don't see anything other than a bit of general irony that is not directed at you personally).
For those interested, according to Ferrari, the 296 Speciale laps Fiorano in 1'19", the same as the SF90 (the SF90XX is at 1'17.3"). The published time for the 296 GTB (not clear to me whether AF or not) is 1'21". All these times are controlled exclusively by Ferrari, so there could be some "engineering" in them for marketing purposes (I suspect some cars could be actually faster than claimed...) At least for an average driver, it seems to me the 296 Speciale will probably be faster on track than an SF90 - because the 296 has a very familiar behaviour (it's like any typical mid-rear engined Ferrari berlinetta, just a lot faster and more efficient), whereas the SF90 has a specific behaviour (due to 4WD and the more noticeable weight).
Yes, for several reasons and without disrespecting those who love it. There are a huge number of projects and the designers are under pressure and scattered everywhere. This is what I call emergency design... there is no search for homogeneity at the back that can be found between a 488 and a Pista, for example. One team handles the front, another the rear, and they assemble (the worst being the F8 in this setup, a pinnacle of nonsense, admitted even internally). In terms of weight reduction and the engine, it's the legal minimum, or even less (the base 296 actually outputs almost all 860 hp). Even the livery and the stripes show a lack of imagination. And more generally, the concept was not thought out, because if it had been and decided correctly, we would have started from a Challenge base (which would have disavowed the hybrid for management). Contrary to what everyone thinks, VS are done quickly. In any case, Ferrari is aware that it is not necessary to to make efforts (like Porsche for example with a 992 GT3 RS), because it knows that everything sells effortlessly thanks to the badge... 'capitalizing on the badge.' Now, it is certainly a very good car, thanks to the expertise of the best engineers in the world (who do what they are told to do...). A 296 with a body kit...
Thank you very much, this is very helpful. Do you know what „Front bumper in Carbon Fiber“ (PACF) is for approx. 15.6k€?
Thanks, this is more than I could have asked for. Curious what you mean by legal minimum. You’re referring to engine output and saying that the 296 engine already makes +\- the power to require no further tweaks for the Speciale? Should we then expect the Speciale to be basically equal to the 296 in straight line performance despite what’s advertised? Because I was hoping for more. I refer back to it often because it’s what I know but if you drive a 720 back to back with a 765 the difference is massive despite only 45 more BHP, it’s an entirely different level. I was hoping for something like that. I guess for this forum, 488 to Pista would be more appropriate but the Pista was such a step above the 488 I actually don’t expect the difference between the base 296 and Speciale to be that drastic.
Pista such a step ahead of 488? Can you please clarify? Other than design and internals from a challenge engine what else? It is by far one of the most beautiful rear mid engine ferraris. Having driven pista and 488 i did not walk away thinking it was so much better than the 488gtb from a driving standpoint. I thought speciale was much better than 458 in same regards. 296 front end and handling is so superior from the past rest of the mid engine Ferraris that i just dont know how they can improve on that in the VS. they do and i hope make the VS feel visceral. That can only come if the engine sounds more raw and loud (not from more speed).
Yes, the base 296 produces more than 830 hp... put it on the dyno under good conditions and you will get around 860 hp. But in my opinion, the problem isn't the power or speed, it's simply that the car is heavy for what it's supposed to do, and it's the features like steering calibration and power that give it the feeling that it isn’t. This comes at the expense of the front end, because I imagine you perceive this bad steering sensation in the front end of the 296, which gives you the impression of not feeling the wheels on the asphalt as one should. Customers want more power than there already is and that they do not know how to use, so Ferrari puts in power (...) at the expense of a true concept that would have been to start from a Challenge base without hybridization.
I don’t think I’d describe the front end as bad. The change of direction is instant, and, for me at least, the defining characteristic of the handling. There isn't any feel, you're right, and I don't fully trust the car like I do the 765 because it's a tad nervous. I weighed my car at my local track at 3600 pounds, more or less (couple pounds under). It's about 550 pounds heavier than the 765 but yes, feels lighter. Which I know is artificial, but it's a hell of a trick.
Interesting... I actually do think it will be as drastic. I put over 6k miles on our 296 and I like the car a lot. I also have a Pista Spider and have driven the 488 quite a bit. So, I am qualified to answer your question comparing 296/296S to 488/488Pista. The changes in aero, ICE engine/electric motor output, suspension tuning, recalibration of the transmission, weight reduction all over the place, etc... that's a lot of improvements on the already capable 296 platform. I was offered a Speciale Coupe and couldn't be more excited!
If you have a friend who has a Huracan STO, make the same road with both cars and you will certainly notice a huge difference in steering sensations. The fact of having a very direct and filtered steering allows, with the electric calibration, to reduce the the sensation of weight and feeling lighter than one is...(296) the downside is that the wheels do not convey the information we expect... in my opinion.
Happy to. For me (just my opinion!), the 488 was the most disappointing mid-engined Ferrari I've ever drove. The Pista is a huge step on. Particularly in the pace and the way it flies through the gears. The power bump is pretty substantial, but it feels more due to how Ferrari shortened the gear ratios. 765 did the same thing over the 720. I absolutely love pulling the paddles on a DCT with close ratios, particularly on multiple downshifts. Your comment on 458 speciale and 458 is interesting to me because I've owned both and I think they're very similar, and you'd have to be quite in tune with both to savor the differences. The Speciale was just a bit better in a bunch of different ways that added up to something but the whack of the Pista is quite a bit on from the 488 GTB and very apparent.
Multiple, actually! But not in my city, unfortunately. Where it apparently just rains every day now and my cars just sit and wait
Do it on occasion in good conditions by switching from one car to another and you'll tell me what you think about it... we did it and it's .... impressive.
Ill be going to dealer to spec mine this week havent had a chance. Seems to me this will be a 550-600k the way i configure cars. Love my pista, its just so damn beautiful...perhaps the most beautiful modern ferrari made IMO. Dont love the 296 speciale, hoping itll grow on me. To me the CF wheels are a must, the standard wheels just look blah. Hoping we know the MSRP soon, i think itll be somewhere in the range of 400-450k.
I had a few DMs. One convo is worth sharing here: Ferrari should study what Porsche is doing with their pricing strategy. Ferrari is pricing their cars so that the MSRP consumes what would have been the owners (potential) profit. At the very least, the pricing was such that the owner didn't LOSE value. From a shareholders perspective, I love it. From an owners perspective, that has created depreciation. TRUE ultra high end brands products do not lose value. That is part of what makes ultra high end products desirable. This is not flipper thinking (I buy and hold) its OWNERS thinking. There IS opportunity cost of the money spent (what else could the money be doing for you, insurance, storage, upkeep...PPF etc) that folks do take into consideration. In Porsche world you buy a 911 ST for $400k, the car then resales for 2x...after a while it settles down to a lower price and holds. The new GT2RS will probably be $400-$425, resell for a year or so for more and then find its market. Zero depreciation, ever. Owners always feel secure knowing there is little to any downside $$ and probably they will end up selling for more. (I have had this happen many times with GT Porsches) I HOPE that Ferrari is going to realize that their most loyal clients who bought the hybrids and took a hit won't easily accept another beating. If they over price (and produce) the 296S and those cars lose value, the brand will have challenges getting new buyers to step into the ring. VS level cars must be more than stellar products considering the competition. Competition = other brands and opportunity cost. Repeating myself, NO ultra high end brand can exist if its products lose value. There are droves of examples of high end brands who did pimp themselves out, lose exclusivity and poof...they are gone. The new Ferrari buyers are largely lifestyle buyers. They are not loyal, they will hop to the latest and greatest flex car. I love Ferrari and hope they realize the mistakes of the last few years. Lets see with VS pricing.
