Ferrari 849 Testarossa Styling

100%
Honda 'V8' engine in the form of a four-cylinder, by designing oval piston allowed 8 valves per cylinder, and connecting two con-rods to each piston. Such a configuration led to almost unprecedented complexity in terms of engine design, with 32 valves and eight con-rods incorporated into the dimensions of a regular four-cylinder motorcycle engine - 20,000 rpm's

 

I recall that the original Testarossa from the 80s made a bold design statement due to the side slats A feature which was echoed throughout the exterior design both at the rear end and also engine cover.

I recall that the slats were required to comply with road safety regulations which stated that a vent opening needed to be smaller than a child’s head.

The large side opening would not have met that requirement. Pininfarina found a creative and beautiful solution within the world of regulations.

The black band ? Is that a design element meant to pay homage to the side slats of the 1984 Testarossa? I think so.

(Many Ferrari engines have red cam covers)

 

F80 showed engineering - the driver 1+ more than the engine producing power, Could this be the coolest Ferrari ever built - I would say 100% - yes.
My guess is Ferrari wants to reduce weight / size - lots to learn, this is out of my league.
When Porsche went to the warehouse and grabbed an old failed F1 V10 for the Carrera GT - it produced the world best sounds and drivers engagement. The CGT was only produced because of the amount of interest My guess is a manual Ferrari is driving this - and it''s going be very expensive.
V6 V8 great shape and no issues - time for the V12 to get some love.

 

WEC, not F1.

 

No one is currently working on this engine; it remains in the patent state.

 

That makes art least two of us! I'd have one in my garage now if it the seats were 18" closer to the ground.

 

I believe there are many drawbacks, but one big benefit: packaging. You can fit more pistons down the length of the block by squashing them.

I was hoping this would open the door to a new hybrid V12 (since packaging long V12s with hybrid systems is a challenge). But, it doesn't sound like it's being pursued per @day355. Probably because of all the drawbacks of the design.

 

Valhalla is beautiful but more expensive. It’s a much more interesting comparison between Valhalla and XX or Testarossa XX.

 

Whoever posted the picture of the girl and the 1980’s Testarossa seems to be forgetting that that Testarossa was at least as controversial as the current one at launch. Somewhat defeats the point IMO.

 

I saw the 849 yesterday. All i will say is, wait until you see it in real life guys before judging. It looks dynamic, futuristic and wonderful.

 

Since you asked, fair warning, this is going to be a long, off-topic post. Apologies in advance! And please, to all, don’t get offended or take it personally these are just my opinions about some of these cars, not your loved ones LOL.

F355 my first Ferrari, used car, I owned it around 20 years ago can't recall exactly, it was a targa tiptronic, design was ok but soft, I didn't care because I wanted an exotic, It was my childhood dream, to be honest what I really wanted was a Lamborghini but the Gallardo I negotiated on didn't come through, I missed a few Murcielago's at auction (didn't have enough money) but during my searches I came across the F355, at that point I didn't care, I was on the war path of buying my first exotic, I wanted an exotic of any kind and to me there are only two choice, two exotic brands at the top of the tree, Ferrari or Lamborghini, love everything about them, the feud, the story, the history, how different the fans are etc etc.
What I remember about the F355 and liked the most about it was the smell, it smelt so good, like a typical smell I encountered in other older Ferraris (not the new ones), that kind of stays with me even today, weird LOL

At the time I had a bunch of fast Japanese JDM cars, R32, R33, R34 GTR's a bunch of Mitsubishi Lancers EVO, Supras, RX7, few Porsche, etc. as I said I am a car nut and have been for the best part of 30 years since I got my first car at 17 years old a beat up moon miles Ford Fiesta ,oh the fun I had in that car, my first ticket to freedom and independence haha, anyway I digress.

One time I was driving on the freeway with my wife in the F355. I stepped on it to show off and she just looked at me and said, “Is it just me, or does this car makes a lot of noise but feels really slow compared to your other cars?” Then she asked, “Does it handle better? Brake better? What’s actually better about it?” All I could say was, “It sounds better.” She laughed and said, “But your other cars are just as loud, if not louder.” I finally said, “Well, it’s a Ferrari.” Her reply: “I don’t get it, but if it makes you happy, fine.”

A week later, the Ferrari left us both stranded three hours from civilization with no phone reception in the middle of some mountains where I decided to drive for some hill climb action haha. I had no other excuses for my wife, this car isn't just slow it is also unreliable, we were looking at sleeping in the car or walking 7 hours LOL.
After tearing half the car apart on the side of the road, I found the ignition wire had come loose. I jammed it back in, got it running, and on the way down the mountain the inside of the side mirror fell out of its housing and dangled by a wire (the plug is inside the door and I couldn't unplug it), I had to hold it the whole way down so it wouldn’t smash into the door. I figured the car didn't like the rough tarmac of the mountain road and the vibrations were causing all sort of issues. That was the final straw, I sold it few weeks later. Six months later, I saw it on the evening news: same car, caught fire in traffic and gridlocked half the city, that put me off Ferrari for years but being the car nut I am I started looking again.I started poking around looking and test driving but the F355 was my last Ferrari until I bought the SF90 Spider AF which is one of if not my favorite street cars of all time.

Since I looked and test drove some of the cars you mentioned I will outline them bellow, with a brief opinion and experience with them:

F360, was next on my list to look at, soft lines again, not my style, I briefly drove one after the F355, boring, forgettable, not me, left it at that.

F458 is ok, the lines are a bit too soft for me, as I mentioned I like more aggressive design (origami style) sharper lines that's why I prefer Lamborghini design language and tend not to like the organic looking shapes of cars from the 50's to 80's (with few exceptions of course),
I only drove a Spider for few hours, I thought it was something wrong with the car when I saw the shake in the rear view mirror, I thought that the rear wheels were out of balance, called the dealer he told me there was nothing wrong with it and that's how the body shakes, pretty much it has the torsional rigidity of a wet noodle, I can't remember the drive, wasn't very memorable, but it did sound good, that I remember.

F488, I absolutely love the Pista, possibly one of my favorite Ferrari designs, could not buy one because I have had no history with Ferrari I did not qualify for one, my friend owns a stunning example and let me drive his, I loved driving that car but I did not push it hard because it is owned by a friend and I value our relationship more than any car haha.

I do currently own a F488 Challenge EVO, I love the design, I wish it were a street car, I enjoy tracking the car but to me it's still not a proper racer and I get that it is built for gentlemen racers non pro-drivers, having said that it's a tone of fun and I absolutely recommend the car and the program with Ferrari, top notch and most fun you can have in a car without risking jail time.

812 SF I like the design, the standard car is a bit soft but it has beautiful lines with a bit of aggression to them but still maintains the Ferrari characteristic organic lines. my favorite design of the 812 SF series is the 812 Comp Coupe, there are some stunning examples out there, I own a 812 Comp Aperta, the design to me isn't as good as the Coupe but the car has an open top and that's ultimate to me, you can not beat that in a street car, I love Spiders.

I hope this answers your questions and gives you a bit of an inside of my history with the brand.

 

It's still an amazing family wagon which drives, sound and handles (doesn't brake LOL) like a sports car. You should have one.

 

So do photos do it justice?

 

I probably should, but I could never get used to that seating position.

 

See if you can take on an extended test drive (a weekend) I felt the same and it took me a week to get used to it but now I drive it regularly and I would miss it if I didn't have it, I still can't get my head around how a car of this size and height can corner so flat, witchcraft!

 

Good luck on v12 ever going anywhere with the brain trust in charge. All evidence suggests nothing good will ever come or last.