So...I drove 430, Scuderia and 599...

I don't know whether to post under 599, 430 or Racing and tracking....Mods feel free to move to wherever most appropriate!

Today was the first day of the first session of the Ferrari Driving Experience at the Circuit Mont-Tremblant. This year they have 2-599, 4-Scuderias and 7 (I Think) 430 Coupes, so I thought I'd write about my first impressions with these three cars before I form a more solid opinion.

First drive was in a 599 around the north track and my first impression was of how comfortable this car is. Mont Tremblant is pretty technical and this was my first drive so I did not have the opportunity to really drive this car hard, but my initial impression was that all this power would not be very useful in a circuit like this (north course) that doesn't have long straights. I really wanted to fall in love with this car because I've grown fond of how it looks and it seems to foreshadow the future styling direction Ferrari is taking, but, frankly, I was underwhelmed. Comfort and sound were top notch, but I think the natural habitat for this car is an open highway, and I would have loved it so much more in that environment. If they let me drive this again tomorrow, with better knowledge of the track, or if I can bum a ride with one of the instructors going at a quicker pace, I may change my mind altogether, but for now, it wasn't my favorite.

The next thing my group did was a slalom/braking exercise, and I was fortunate enough to get a Scuderia for the duration. First impression when I sat down was "Wow, these seats are firm!", second impression was "Wow, these seats are comfortable!", third (during the slalom) was "Wow, these seats hold you in place". As you may have already figured out, I loved the seats. Maybe I wouldn't after an hour, but for now, I love them.

The next thing I noticed in this drive is that the Scuderia seems to have no body roll. My 360 feels like a Cadillac when compared to a Scuderia and the body roll of a Scuderia when compared back to back with the other 430s they had here was noticeably less.

The Scuderia is much quicker than my 360, feels a little quicker than the 430s and shifts much quicker than the 430s, albeit a little more harshly. Going through the gears feels like someone cracking a whip behind your ears followed by a surge of forward thrust accompanied by a much better soundtrack than on a regular 430. You go through the slalom, run up through the gears and as soon as the fun starts, and the adrenaline starts to pump, it is time to come back to reality...

The brakes: End of the fun, slow down and downshift. The car's carboceramic brakes grip and the grip some more. No nosedive to speak of and no fade. Anyone who tracks their car should have these brakes, period.

I'll just cut to the chase, The Scuderia was my favorite car today. It just feels.....right. Like a comfortable pair of shoes or a nice pair of gloves.

I gotta go for now, have dinner to go to, but just wanted to share how great this car is. Will post more in the next few days. And none of that "this thread is useless without pictures". I brought a camera and will post pictures when I get back home next week!

 

The program ends this afternoon, but I think they have another one next week, so the Ferraris will probably still be here.

 

A quick update before I head out for the day. Yesterday, after the slalom, we did a (wet) skidpad exercise in stick shift 430s. I was surprised to learn that in 'race' mode, the car will still spin under power. I think this is important to know because I had been under the impression that in all settings except 'CST off' the electronics kept you from power oversteer.

That bit of knowledge right there is worth the price of admission...Now I'm curious if in 'sport' mode the electronics cut the power quickly and decisively enough to eliminate power oversteer... I'll ask, but those in the know feel free to chime in.

 

Update: To all you 599 lovers out there, I'll be the first to admit I was "kind of" wrong about it. I wasn't able to drive it again today, but I did spend a lot of time in it in the passenger's seat in a lead/follow lapping exercise and driving behind it in a Scuderia.

I'll jump to the conclusion first: I like it more than yesterday and would even consider owning one, but I still prefer the Scuderia.

Now for the details: Today's exercises included lapping the south loop and the full track, so there were longer stretches where the 599 could stretch it's legs, and we were moving at a faster clip, revealing more of the car's character. On the upside, the 599 accelerates very, very fast, and it is very civilized while doing it. The car can corner very well. As a passenger, the car felt balanced and planted with no apparent drama. On a couple of hard stops from about 120 there was very little nosedive for such a heavy car. On the downside, the body roll I mentioned yesterday was still apparent, and on one of those hard stops entering a chicane I noticed a little scrubbing. I asked the instructor if the car understeered a bit and he confirmed my impression. My guess is that understeer is a teeny bit more prevalent in this car than in a 430 or Scuderia, which makes sense with the additional weight in front.

From behind, chasing the 599 in a beatiful yellow Scuderia, I felt I could keep up with it through the corners, but once it was time to get back on the gas there was no way I could keep up. The difference in acceleration is very, very noticeable. The numbers you read in magazines do not accurately reflect how quickly a 599 can pull away from a Scuderia in a straight line at speeds above, say, 40.

My favorite is still the Scuderia because it assaults all your senses and leaves you with no question of what you are driving, but if I had to choose for a long run through the mountains, I could very well see myself picking a 599.

The interesting thing here is that the venerable regular 430, which I mention in my original posting on passing, and just mention for the first time here, might be the smart choice. Not as fast as a 599, for sure, and not as raw as a Scuderia, but I could drive it for a prolonged period comfortably and it is sharp and direct enough when you get to the corners. If you factor in the MSRP delta between a 430 and a Scuderia of over $50K and an actual street price delta of probably more than twice that, it becomes really hard to justify getting a Scuderia over a 430...But then again, if you factor in love...who can put a price on that?

So now that I've realized it may be time to change my six speed 360 Spider for a one of these beauties, a whole new set of questions arises. For the same money on the secondary market: 599 or Scuderia? Go for what I now consider the bargain of the decade, the 430 coupe? I just wish I could get my hands easily on a Scuderia; then the decision would be simple....

 

Next week. I didn't bring the cable to connect the camera to my computer. (D'oh!)

 

By the end of the program there were 16 people spilt into three groups.

 

I don't know, the F142 is pretty far off still, so who knows what they come up with...even Ferrari has been known to make mistakes every now and then
Besides, I cannot imagine how you can improve on the Scuderia's handling.

 

Hi Mark, glad to see you found your way home safely...

I think the highest praise for the Scuderia is that the instructors themselves couldn't stop raving about them.

 

Hey Mark, going through my pictures of the weekend, I found these two: Almost at the same exact spot in the course, same driver (me), both cars under hard acceleration, one with the Scud following the 599 the other with the Scud following a garden variety 430. Check out difference in the gap between both cars. I don't think the 599 will walk away from the Scud quickly, but given enough room, I think it will eventually leave it behind.
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For all those people who asked for photos....there's a bunch coming after I get some work done, but here's one to whet your appetite:
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