This very thing happened to Ferrari's very own Felipe Massa in Hungarian Grand Prix 10 years ago. For me personally, no windshield = no drive.
I have. For over 22 years on the road and on the track and I've hit speeds in excess of what I've done in an F12 or 812 (though not that much excess). Other than a bee hitting my neck in cold weather (that stung… har har har) and a yellow jacket flying down my jacket that I half opened in hot weather I’ve had no issues. Well, I did crash three times but that’s more related to pushing my limits and only having two wheels which I don’t think the Monza suffers from. Motorcycle riding is a good analogy and one of the things I love most about it is the openness. The smell of the air as you’re clipping along a back country road or riding along the coast. Feeling the change in temperature as you hit different warm and cold pockets…it’s magic! Now give me all that and add the sound of a V12 as I bomb along in the open air in an 800hp Ferrari? Yeah, sign me up anytime. Plus, it’s far safer than a motorcycle which many happily ride without worrying about parts hitting their heads. The Monza is art you get to look at and admire with other car enthusiasts over wine / beer (or a martini!) in your garage. You get to occasionally take it out for spirited drives in back country roads then feel special and show it off a bit as others admire it’s beauty when you go through town. The Monza wasn’t made for real racing on a track. Neither was the 812, 488, or Pista for that matter. You take them relaxed racing. You drive fast, maybe slide around few turns and hammer the straights but you don’t race side by side centimeters apart bumping and jockeying for position (then later hammer out the bent fenders with a mallet). You do Challenge for that. Then you’re nice and protected in a cocoon and it’s its own kind of wonderful. Well, except the air conditioning on a hot day. That’s less wonderful. I respect everyone’s personal decision even if I don’t understand it. In fact, I even appreciate it! Everyone turning down a Monza allocation may have made it possible for me to get mine. So I will happily drive it as I think it was intended and then windex the bugs off my face with the biggest smile when I get home.
Two bee stings in over 22 years of public and track driving is it? No rocks, no debris, nothing tossed out of a window five cars up. Miraculous IMO. I would not be pushing my luck then! Enjoy your Monza nonetheless.
Nothing else I can remember anyway. Yeah a few rocks bounce off my helmet now and then but isn't that what the "virtual windscreen" is for? I’ve got to see these roads you’re riding on. It sounds like Mad Max out there!
His luck is WAY better than mine on both track and street, too. I bought a puncture-resistant FIA 8860 Stilo helmet with the reinforced Zylon visor after a leading car kicked up a loose bolt and shot it like a bullet completely through the Radical SR3 RSX air intake just inches above my head. I also rode motorcycles from age 12 to 51 and can’t count the number of times something much harder than an insect hit my helmet. Or the windshield on my cars in the past 37 years. There’s the time-honored racer saying: “Buy a $600 helmet if you have a $600 head.” No helmet is even cheaper... Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Hahaha, I’m not that lucky but I think my original point may be missed. Have I encountered rocks? Yes. Bugs? Yes. Something that would leave a scar if I wasn’t wearing a helmet? Yes! That’s why I wear a helmet. Something that is going to rip my head off? No. But then again, the point of my posts wasn’t really about motorcycle riding. If you’re going fast in the Monza wear a helmet like you would on a bike. If it’s going to kill you on a motorcycle it’s still less likely to kill you in the Monza because it has more protection than a motorcycle. The posts that show a bouncing wheel killing people or a busted suspension while someone is flat out in a formula 1 qualifying lap are (I think) an overreaction and that’s what I’m trying to point out. If Ferrari built the Monza to go into those conditions then I’d agree they missed some important safety features. However, that’s not what the Monza or any other road going Ferrari was made for. That’s why the Challenge car takes every yoga pose I know of to get in one. It’s meant for those conditions and has been built to match. Very very few will take the Monza on the track but I guarantee if that thing is on the track, open wheeled cars slamming into walls are likely not. Some posts are making it sound like a death machine and I’m pointing out that it’s no more dangerous than things we’re familiar with. Some don’t want the Monza for safety reasons and I respect that. I know some people that don’t buy convertibles for the same reason. However, others are defending the “Monza is dangerous” and “Ferrari is lazy to flaunt safety” tone and then mentioning their extensive motorcycle experience and that’s odd to me. It’s like saying, “I don’t fly because it’s too dangerous but I drive to work”. I suppose if that makes you “feel” safer then more power to you. Frankly I’m glad Ferrari made the Monza because it’s true…it’s not a track car and it’s not a practical street car. It’s something different, unique and special. Bravo Ferrari. Those that bemoan the Monza for its lack of practicality are, in my opinion, missing the entire point of the car. It’s a celebration of history and and a beautiful tribute. It’s not a track weapon or meant to drive to wine country with luggage and golf clubs every weekend. Remember, those that can get a Monza have plenty of other Ferraris for those adventures. Now bring on the posts about why it doesn’t have a carbon tub so a McLaren at half the price is better.
Agree the Monday is a rare beauty! But what kind of tribute is it to make car that can’t really be driven? How is that part of the Ferrari heritage? Love the car otherwise. SV Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
I’m saying it *can* be driven. The argument “it’s too dangerous on a track” doesn’t apply because it’s not going to be in the extreme track environment. The argument “it’s too dangerous for the road” doesn’t apply because it’s safer than a motorcycle (wear a helmet if you’re going speedy in it). The argument “it’s not practical on the road” doesn’t apply because you’re not hauling groceries in it. I’m saying drive it for what it is… but definitely drive it!
Sadly those people are all dead now. Either hit in the head with a wheel, golf ball, or dislodged spring. Poor souls.
oh my, what a way to go! I know they had no choice, but if they did, would they have chosen otherwise? I think not
I’m from the USA. I’m going with a show permit and won’t drive it over 2500mi/year Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
SP1. I like the asymmetrical look and close match to the 750 Monza Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
Ferrari 212 Export Barchetta Touring chassis #0078 E on 23 June 1951 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans after Jacques Larivières's fatal crash in which he was decapitated by a wire (31 minutes after the start). Marcel Massini Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
To be honest, I don't know that it will. I'm told it will and I've read the requirements and I don't see anything that specifically excludes it. However, I haven't tried yet (but I believe where there's a will there's a way).
I think I will go with the launch spec of silver + yellow. I haven't thought of anything better (though I'm happy to work with their team and have an open mind). However, I think the silver + yellow with the vintage leather is gorgeous and hard to top!
Only 1 Ferrari in the history of show and display has ever been approved (the Pope’s Enzo) and many cars (e.g. zonda) can’t get it. It’s not a certainty by any means it will be granted.
I’m not sure that’s true and contradicts what I’ve been told. Where did you find these stats? Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat