A discussion about the Testarossa.

The reason I created a separate thread is so that we can talk about the many designs cues of the Testarossa without getting a few other forum members upset. Many people talk about the Testarossa, but not as many had taken the time out to find out more about it, which is unfortunate as there are many books and articles out about the Testarossa which features inserts directly from Pininfarina and Ferrari. The reality is that there is a lot more to the Testarossa's design by Pinnifarina than meets the eyes.

1) In order to cool the car down effectively, the radiator had to be moved to the side which was race car like -A first for Ferrari roadcar. This setup allows better cooling regardless if the car is moving vs. sitting in traffic. There are "spoilers" within the ducts that directs air into the radiators and into the engine bay. The so call Cheese graters were also there for a reason. They were there to creat turbulance so the air will flow into the ducts instead of just over them. They also work with the air vents on top of the engine bonnet to effectively cool the engine bay area. Pininfarina also did it to enhance the car's visual presence. Instead of having just two air inlets, it gives the car's line more texture and presence. Like it or not, it is one of the most recognized feature of the car, even today. Basically, they are parts of a complicated system, not mindless cosmetic openings. However, the same can not be said about the rest of the automotive designers that copied it. It was also copied multiple times by the aftermarket body kit vendors that ranged from Porsche & BMW, to Toyota & Honda and to Chevy and Ford.

1a) Coupled with the car's cooling system and configuration of the Boxer 12, which yielded a car with an extremly wide rear - Notice the extended width of the rear fenders from the front of the car, they also acts as an aero device - Similar to the sidepods of the F1 or Prototype race cars. Provides the much needed down force to the rear/driving wheels at speed. And this also give birth to point #2.

1b) By moving all of the cooling system to the rear of the car, this also freed up the front. The nose can be lowered, lack of long and complicated plumbing that can be tricky to deal with if a leak should occur and most of all, allows the creation of an actual trunk which is something that not all mid-engined 12 cylinder cars can claim. With its custom luggages, you can easily carry a week's worth of belongs. Needless to say, this also depends on who is doing the packing.

2) The Testarossa was the first regular production roadcar to feature 2 different tyre/wheel sizes in the front and back. With the wide rear fender, the use of wide tyres became a possibility. Again, a feature that has its origin in racing. Better traction to the driving wheels and better stability, in capable hands, this aids in letting the driver to go from understeer to oversteer entering and exiting fast corners. The Testarossa is also the first to feature two sets of dampers/springs in the rear suspension.

3) Tradition. Pinnifarina used the Testarossa to make a bold statement. It is a departure from conventional automotive design, perhaps not as radical (Not only visionally but also from the engineering POV) as the Miura or the Dino at its days, but it did enough to shake up the automotive world. Tradition means different things to different people, IMO, having round tail lights or oval front grill does not make the car more traditional. The blind following of tradition can also lead to lack of innovation or creativity, just look at how many retro-looking new cars we have out there? How exciting are these cars to look at? Nostalgic maybe, but not the type of excitment that can be invoked by a brand new innovative design. If one wants to stay within tradition, then there will be no need to design or creat new cars. Yes, the Testarossa was a departure from the traditional desgin cues, but it retained its spirit and the essence of what a Ferrari is within its own desgin cues. Not one feature about the car was wasted or unneccessary. For example. the center front grill was there to cool the brakes as oppose to the lower left opening was for the AC, hence only on one side. As oppose to the 512tr's front grill is only cosmetic, and was created to applease the "tradition".

When the Testarossa was created, Enzo was still alive. Even know that he no longer has any direct inputs on the creations of the roadcars, his presence along with the cars that bears his name still carrys plenty of weight. Pininfarina dared to take chances, they designed and came up with creative solutions. They innovated design features that were admired and copied by many. Their cars were unmistakable, Ferrari.

To my fellow forum members, please feel free to share more of the special design cues about the Testarossa if you know of any. I am sure all of the Testarossa fans will appreciate it greatly. Regards.

 

As I understood it, it was the first Ferrari to feature the staggered wheel/tyre front and rear.

Thank you, I was not aware of those. By BB, do you mean the 512BBs? I double checked on the Ferrari site, they didn't indicate that the BBs had 4 rear shocks as well. But under the Testarossa, they clearly indicated that there are 4 in the rear.

 

Taken from Ferrari World, Issue #13, 1991. By Sergio Pininifarina:

"Take the air intakes, which had to function particularly efficiently. At first, we found the car was so well stremlined that the air flowed along the sides without entering in sufficient quantity to cool the power unit.

In order to solve the problem, we had to design grilles that would convey air to the radiators in greater volume. The solution was not to make the car good looking; good looks resulted from finding a functional solution."

 

My mistake then, thank you for the correction. You wouldn't happen to know which car was the first to have a cosmetic front grill? Was it the F355, F360 or F430? Or do all of them function as some sort of air intake? TIA.

 

I may be wrong but not according to Ferrari's own website. Under tyres for the 1981 512 BBi: Michelin 245/55 VR 415 TRX was the only size tyre that came with the car, front and back. And under 1976 512BB, it was listed as: Michelin 215/70 VR 15 only, for both front and rear.

 

Unforunately, not all are functional these days. The useless front grill that some many "traditionalist" cries about has became a non-functioning add-on somewhere along the line. Hopefully someone more knows will post it here.