Top Gear: Turbocharged Ferrari 458

“If you went to see the Rolling Stones and they came out and said tonight we’re only doing an acoustic set because we’re getting old and don’t want all the noise then the crowd wouldn’t be very happy and rightly so.”
—recent quote by David Coulthard on the 2014 F1 V6 turbos

Another interesting fact: attendance at all the GPs thus far has declined 15-20% on avg.

I guess to some, sound does matter. The 6-speed to flappy paddles analogy is a farse imho.

 

We have short memories. Do you recall what happened with the Indy 500? The predictions would be less interest and after a (very short) time who cared? The world changes hourly. Best

 

this will be great car but not a car with great exhaust sound

 

Sound is one thing but anything less than immediate response is a deal breaker. Not for a joy ride to baskin Robbins but exiting a corner and having a sudden dead spot is a no go in my Ferrari book.

 

Just two years ago, every sports car review lamented the loss of the manual transmission. Every single one. Today? You see it every so often but not nearly as much. The world changes and we change with it; frankly the transition to flappy paddles was a much bigger deal than turbos. But despite the romanticism of the manual, and our love for the manual, we evolved and while we may still miss it we cannot deny that the dual clutch is pretty damned good and significantly faster. Doesn't mean we don't miss the stick and three pedals but ... We move on. The turbo won't sound as good but will be so much better in many other ways that few will care. And more importantly Ferrari will sell as many as it damned well wants to. With evolution, something is always lost ... But typically something gained as well.


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I may have posted my sentiments before but as a owner of a 458 coupe and now a spider... I recently received a 911 Turbo S Cab.
The 458 puts a smile on my face wight he sound and the emotion and the danger...
The Turbo on the other hand is wicked fast and a technical marvel and brakes like no other car but sound like a vacuum cleaner.
The Turbo lag is not present and it red lines at 7000 RPM in sports plus there is not drama involved when it red lines (the 458 has all kinds of drama).
BUT
After a few days of driving, the Turbo S is growing on me ... I am stunned at its speed and turbo boost and technology and putting less emphasis on its sound.
The next 458 or its next iteration will overcome the absence of a good exhaust the same way... time moves on and so do we...

 

NA to turbo, cannot be compared to manual to paddle shifter. In the evolution of transmission, paddle shift becomes much better and more fun than manual. But if the NA to turbo becomes like 2013's F1 to 2014's F1, for me that's a disaster. If I had an aging 430 and the successor was 458, it took me 1 second to decide to get the 458 (if $$$ is not an issue). But if I have an aging 458, and the successor is something sounds like a vacuum cleaner, but performs much faster, I'm confused. That words "the next .... is always the best" comes from Porsche, not Ferrari. Some Ferrari models like 360 CS and 599 GTO have become the most wanted today because of the sound they produced, not the numbers on paper.
Currently the 458 is selling much better than the Panasonic MP4-12C, even the Panasonic is faster on track and straight. One of the reason is because the 458 sounds better. Means in super car's competition, performance is not the main stuff.

 

Hard to agree with this as fact although I do agree whatever they bring out will sell well. Look at the analog Porsche GT3 RS selling up to 400k when the new GT3 which is quicker with PDK retail for 130k. It's really hard to predict the outcome of a radical departure from what has brought buyer loyalty for years. Certainly a mint 458 or speciale could be worth a lot ten years from now but who really wants to let one sit in their garage to find out.

 

The 2016 turbocharged 458 replacement has been out for two years already. It's called a McLaren 12c.

...<zipping up flame suit>...

Best.

Mike

 

Lol.

Both 3.8L V8 TT.

I have a feeling the F cars' will be better...

with newer turbo tech.

(but by then McLaren will be out with their new model which is priced lower. )

 

+1
Well stated!

In don't see the problem behind the 458 successor.

I'm looking forward to each new Ferrari, no matter which product line. It is fascinating to see how the technology, the design and the performance capabilities continue to evolve. It is a fact that the new stuff contains always better and advanced technology which allows higher performance figures. However this doesn't mean that the "older models" are becoming worse. The 458 will stay an outstanding car!

 

Highly unlikely. The V12s will remain NA, as they ought to. The 8s had to be turbocharged as hybridisation is too expensive.

 

If the turbocharged successor sounds like 2014's F1 compared to 2013's, then the waiting time to get the V12 could be at least 3-4 years. Anybody who doesn't want turbo will go for previous Ferrari or V12.
I have never seen any turbocharged successor ended up with better sound. Zonda to Huayra, BMW M5 V10 to V8 turbo, and the worst nightmare : 2014's F1.
As for F40, by that time there was no cat in the exhaust, so that basically was a straight pipe. and I've seen a video of F40 tracking with 360 CS, I think the 360 CS has a louder sound.

 

Even a straight piped F40 makes an uninspiring sound. Loud but not sonorous. Meh...

 

I agree, NA V12s definitely should stay in the Ferrari line up but according to the TopGear article the engineer at Ferrari spoke about getting the most they could out of the NA V8 in the 458, while keeping emissions to an acceptable level.

The current highly tuned V12s will at some point (or will soon) approach that level. For the next generation hypercar they either have to improve the electric/hybrid portion of the drivetrain or add forced induction to continue making gains if that is their intention.

 

It will likely be electric ... Porsche and Ferrari will lose money on the 918 and La Ferrari no matter what they charge but they do so to test future technology. Electric works ... Imagine if today they could use a natural 4 liter V8 and supplement with 200 extra HP from electric motor ... We wouldn't be talking about turbos. Still several years away but the 458M replacement will no doubt feature electric. Next FF will support pure electric mode with a 30 to 40 mile range ...


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I really doubt Ferrari loses money on the LF. Highly unlikely in fact.

 

If you consider all of the development costs, the research, the testing the government standards compliance and so on, its not as crazy as it sounds. Every part on that car is unique ... My point is simply that in addition to showcasing their capabilities they are using it as a test bed for future tech. They did not build this car for profit, it is a marketing tool in more ways than one.


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They don't lose money for sure. They are still developing something called LaFerrari XX. And the most wonderful part : It's NOT turbocharged. Ferrari knows very well that Turbocharged will screw everything except performance, that's why for their high-end version, they don't use turbo. Well, some customers don't want turbo, some don't mind. But I seldom see any customer prefer turbocharged engine. Ferrari next V8 turbo will sell very well for sure, because currently there are many rich people out there, especially in Asia. But for me, I don't buy super car with turbo. I have one more space in may garage, and it will be V12 NA or Ferrari's previous model.

 

Aston Martin say that they will still build cars with V12 but in the future their V12 will have smaller displacement than current engine
maybe Ferrari will do the same?

 

This was my hope for the 458 replacement. It just makes sense. I guess the tech just isn't commercially viable on a "mass" scale yet.

 

What we need here is not more power, but lighter weight.
A car will perform better if you can drop the weight 20% rather than adding additional 100 hp.

 

Agreed! But that's not nearly as sexy or marketable as more HP!


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Not neccessarily. The V12 can go up to 6.5-6.7 litres and rev higher still. I believe they won't go down the turbo route.

 

+1

+1

Considering how bad hte Huayra sounds I really hope Ferrari will use some degree of intelligence and keep the V12 N/A and achieve their emission figures by reducing weight.