The 612 will be a great Ferrari

I think like all 2+2s the back seats were designed for children, maybe 2+2s like the 612 were designed for a young family with 2 children. I'm sure most children will fit comfortably on the back of most 2+2's until they reach the age of 10 or 12.

 

I think you need to visit your local hospital...no offense!

 

No offense taken . I do not wear Ferrari Rosso tinted glasses and quite frankly the 612 is ugly and I have seen it in the flesh. Loved the look of the 456, but as I said the reason the 612 is ugly is the moving the engine back ... which achieves absolutely nothing for the intended purpose of the car ... which is very fast touring, NOT terrorising the race tracks.

Pete

 

Hmmm... how tall are you? Every magazine this month is reviewing the 612... and they all seem to give it a thumbs-up for rear seat comfort... including a 6'2" writer.

Achieving a balanced handling car that can run 0-60 in 4.3s while carrying four 6' adults in comfort is quite a feat... and I believe exactly what a Ferrari should be trying to achieve with a four-seater. Starting with "big enough for four 6'2" adults, you already have size. To keep the weight down with a car that big, they used all-aluminum construction. To get the 4.3s 0-60, they need a big damned engine... which they did. Now with such a big engine, to keep balanced handling, they made it mid-engine. Goal achieved.

Now, that did result in a very long nose... but several of the great vintage Ferraris back in the days of front-engine V12's were similarly proportioned. So, I don't really fault that, given it was done to achieve balanced handling.

That just leaves the very smooth, sleek styling vs. the more curvy, muscular, and sculpted styling that I prefer. Yes, I'd have preferred something a little more 250GTO-like... but I do see the beauty of the 612. Take a look at the silver 612 on the cover of the Robb Report this month... very interesting effect. I think the 612 may be better looking with light metallic paints... paints that will emphasize the curves that it has... darker, flatter paints will further hide the already subtle curves.

Compared to the DB9, the 612 is a rocket. The DB9 is the "compromised" car that doesn't make much sense. Big car... but only holds children in the back... fairly slow in a straight line... lots of sedans match it... slushbox and big car handling do not give the feel of driving an upper end sportscar. All that in contrast to the 612's F1, balanced sportscar handling, and ability to carry 4 adults.

Way to go Ferrari! Now if they'd make that a spider, my wife would replace her kid-carrying 911 four-seater.

 

Brian, I'm 6'2" and the rear seats on the 612 give just about as much room as the E55, which is not all that much when the driver's seat is pushed all the way back. For the kiddos or ladies, I'd don't see much of a problem other than getting in and out might make for some interesting sights if the ladies are dressed for a night on the town.

HW, once again, I believe that FNA will sell every one shipped to the USA for roughly around sticker. FOH already has firm deposits for 4 (or was it 6). Because they will be bringing in only 200, this shouldn't be a tough sell.

Now, what will be interesting is the next Maranello which also promises to be a "front-mid-engined" car. All alum chassis and body. Maybe with a drop top similar to the new MB SL? Ah, life on the open road....

 

I just talking to my dealer he told me I may be
having to spec my 612 in a few weeks time.
I was wondering if they are any opinions on
exterior and interior combinations. I was also
thinking about Daytona seating with deviating
color inserts. I would appreciate everyones
thoughts and opinions.

 

I have only seen the car in the ruby red color and i don't know the rest of the colors there are for the car except blue and sliver so really can't help u..sorry

 

"I was wondering if they are any opinions on
exterior and interior combinations. I was also
thinking about Daytona seating with deviating
color inserts."

Since I don't care for the smile and the side scallops, I would want to de-emphasize these design features by getting black.

I would probably choose black/cuoio. Maybe black inserts on the Daytonas but probably not.

 

I've also thought about the 612 in a dark color - say, black on cuio, Daytonas w/black inserts, black carpets, black calipers, no shields. Can the car be ordered with modular wheels? I guess I find the show car wheels good looking but too plain for my taste.

Edit: That said, both my wife and I like the car in rossa corsa.

 

Right now... go to B&N or Borders or whatever your big bookstore is... almost every car magazine has pics of the 612... and many in different colors.

Based on just seeing those, I think the 612, with its very subtle lines, will look best in a light metallic color. The silver on the Robb Report looks cool. But if I was ordering one today, I'd order it in Azurro California with light blue interior with dark blue dash top and Daytona inserts. I think a search on Azurro will yield a picture of a 360 spider done that way. I think it would look awesome.

If you want some traditional Ferrari red, then silver (like on the Robb Report) with burgundy interior would be striking. Optionally, black daytona inserts. Alternatively, silver would look good with light gray interior and dark gray dash and daytona inserts.

If you prefer something more unique than silver, but not so bright as azurro, consider Grigio Ingrid. Its a very classy and fairly metallic color... and you don't often see it... I think it could look great on a 612.

Hope that helps.

 

How about the following thoughts

Ingrid alloy, blue dash crema seats
with blue inserts and blue stiching

Silver, rosso dash,rosso seats with
gray inserts,grey stiching.

Black, rosso dash,rosso seats with
black inserts,black stiching. yellow
calipers to match the sheilds.

Ingrid grigio,crema dash,crema seats
tan inserts tan piping,tan center consul
and tan stiching where ever appropriate.

 

Good point, are we discussing here that the v12 engine is NOT the right engine for this application?. The long nose comes from the use of the v12 engine and it would be a far better looking car with a v8 or if we must have 12 cylinders a w12!

A Jensen Intercepter, for example, has 50/50 weight distribution and this is because the v8 engine is behind the front axle, and it has great rear seat access (a little short on leg room) and does not have the 'my penis is not long enough' look.

Also surely they could achieve the 50/50 weight distribution with the front couple of cylinders sitting on the front axle, and relocating many other things to the rear of the engine or car, OR could they not have cheated and made the windscreen slope such that the engine went under the back of the bonnet and under the dash. To solve servicing they could do what Bentley have done and made the complete engine removal only take 15 minutes (!!! now that is clever design!).

You see the thing is with many of the old Ferraris like the 250GTO the engine was a puppy compared to these modern HUGE capacity v12s. I bet the little Columbo v12 of 3 litres is only 3/4s as long as these new beasts of engines

Anyway the car I saw was blue and I thought that the dark colours would have suited the car better and made the sculptured sides stand out. I have never seen another coloured one in the flesh ... but I after your comments I would be very interested to see a silver one.

Pete

 

I just finished reading the article in Motor Trend about the 612 and I am pretty impressed what Ferrari has accomplished in the attempt to get people in the back seat of a car with this kind of performance. The wheelbase of the car is actually a hair longer than the Chevy Tahoe.. but I guess the long wheelbase was a must to accomplish the 46/54 percent front/rear weight split, which I think is pretty good for a V12 up front. The article begins with a shot of the front end of the car, and when I flipped by it the first time, I mistook it for the new Chevy SSR truck The car's performance is there, but it should be interesting to see how people will accept the styling of the car.

 

I just read the 612 and DB9 reviews in CAR and EVO. I quote, almost verbatim, only one sentence about the 612: "I would expect this level of performance from a 911 GT3 or 360 CS on mountain roads, not a 2+2 GT that's only millimeters shorter than an S-class."

Both reviewers were overwhelmed by the 612's all-around excellence. Predictably, they were less than convinced about the shape, but they did not utterly dismiss it the way many have here at F-chat. Interesting......

They also reviewed the DB9 and gave it a predictably glowing, criticism free review. One even called it "the most complete car in the world." Let's call them enthusiastic about a truly world-class British car. It has been some time.

As I've stated before, I see the DB9, and it's child-intended back seats, as more a 360, 911 Turbo, Gallardo niche creator. It's much slower than all these cars, but the combination of stunning looks, luxury and outstanding, all-around ability will definitely make it a success. As will similar qualities in the Bentley GT.

The keys to the 612 are the very usable, from almost every report, backseats, and the stunning performance. Wouldn't it be interesting to see the track times for the 612 compared to everything else, short of a Zonda, an Enzo and a Carrera GT.

The looks will grow on us, as the Enzo's did. I for one cannot visualize a Ferrari coupe, or any coupe for that matter, that's as long as an S-class, and a Tahoe. I must reserve judgement until I see it in the flesh. Preferably with my flesh holding the keys.

In some ways Maranello and Pininfarina have moved down a more difficult path. The last three clean sheet designs have not been especially photogenic cars. I remember the first pictures I saw of the 360. I thought it was a space-ship or something equally alien. Yet, in the flesh, it is breathtalking. Even today, some shots of the 360 are not nearly as beautiful as the 328, 348 and 355. Yet, in the flesh there is so much more to it than the others.

The Enzo pushed that extreme envelope even further, especially when it was first shown. Now, I understand and enjoy its extremity. I think the 612 will develop in the same way.

It is never easy to be daring. Thankfully Ferrari (and Lamborghini lest we forget) does not simply modify small pieces of the same design the way many other makes do.

Forza,

Cavallini

 

As an aside, more aggressive rims on the 612 will make an enormous difference in the car's beauty. The stock rims are dull. I saw a rear quarter shot from an auto show of another, more elaborate rims style that truly changed the car. It reminds me of the original rims on the XK8, how they hid the beauty of the car. Then when the Silverstone editions came out with the 20", five spoke, rivetted rims, the car's shape became breathtaking. I've seen similar transformations on other cars. Rim changes would vastly improve the Bentley GT, which is otherwise dull.

The DB9's rims, however, are perfect. AM should be proud. There's very little you could improve about the DB9, 0-60 times aside. It reminds me of the last two F-cars.

Forza,


JPR

 

What kind of after market 20 inch rims would suit the 612?
Do have any brand suggestions, how about 2 peice spit modular rims.

 

At first thought, HREs. They have several lines and several choices within those lines, and they all look very, very sharp. Personal taste would dictate of course.

There may also be a few BBSs and OEMs that would not look too radical on the 612 but would give the required edge.

One of the advertisers here on F-chat carries HREs and possibly one of the others.

Your thoughts,


Cavallini

 

I've looking through a few magazines past few days. The only wheels
that seem to get my attention are Zauber F-01 .Theres a pic on page 7 April issue of Forza magazine.
Since the 612 is being launched in Europe a few months ahead
of US launch.I am sure some new choice of wheels will become available