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Why newly independent Ferrari may be forced into fuel-efficient cars

The repercussions from Ferrari's pending transition into an independent automaker won't be understood for some time, but one of the biggest consequences could be that the iconic Italian marque will be forced into building more fuel-efficient vehicles.
As Wired points out, while Ferrari built fewer than 7,000 cars in 2013, its status as a public company could trigger pressure from shareholders to build more six-figure supercars and grand tourers. In turn, doing so could lead the company afoul of US Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards, which dictate that any company that sells over 10,000 vehicles needs to maintain a certain fuel economy average across its fleet or risk fines.
With arguably its most popular model, the 458 Italia, hitting just 17 miles per gallon on the highway and its most efficient model, the turbocharged California T, stuck at 18 mpg, Ferrari isn't in a great place to hit the government's mandates (which are somewhat convoluted as Wired explains). The gist of the situation is that Ferrari will either need to continue limiting the number of vehicles it sells each year - a move that's certain to upset shareholders and irk its boss, Sergio Marchionne - or radically improve the fuel economy of its cars at the risk of performance. Rock, meet hard place.

Ferrari SUV is probably happening

Just a few weeks after another report that Ferrari has some sort of SUV or crossover in the works, Bloomberg releases its own report of the same thing. The news outlet spoke with anonymous sources that said the plan is to release an SUV in 2021. The sources said that it is still in the early days of development, and it could have either two or four doors, but it will be more spacious than the most capacious Ferrari on sale now, the GTC4 Lusso. It also will likely be aimed at the Asian market, and could sell as many as 2,000 units a year, which would make it easy for the company to continue increasing its sales, possibly past the 10,000-unit mark that exempts the company from some U.S. and European emissions regulations. The previous report from Car about the Ferrari utility went a little further in its predictions. Supposedly the utility will share the GTC4 Lusso's platform, which makes sense as it's the only all-wheel-drive platform in Ferrari's lineup. It will also likely have a V8 and possibly a hybrid variant. A hybrid version would fit in with Bloomberg's report that Ferrari is also planning on more hybrids in addition to the crossover for both more sales and to help meet emissions regulations if the company exceeds 10,000 units a year. Considering that Ferrari CEO Sergio Marchionne famously said he'd have to be shot before building a Ferrari SUV, it's a little surprising that Ferrari is headed this way. But if a company wants to expand sales, there's no easier way to do so than to offer some kind of crossover. Porsche learned that a long time ago, and now Lamborghini and Aston Martin are following suit. And if this Ferrari utility launches in 2021, it will be right about the same time that Marchionne plans to retire from Ferrari, so he'll sort of be able to keep his word. Related Video: Related Gallery Ferrari GTC4Lusso T: Paris 2016 View 17 Photos News Source: Bloomberg, CarImage Credit: Lorenzo Marcinno Ferrari Crossover SUV Future Vehicles Hybrid Luxury Performance

Ferrari LaFerrari is so nice, we say it twice [w/poll]

Forget about the F70, the F150 and the F150th Italia - this is the Ferrari LaFerrari. Earlier this morning we got our first official look at the successor to the Enzo throne, but now we bring you live shots of the LaFerrari straight from the Geneva Motor Show floor.
There is nothing about this car that isn't impressive - from its 949-horsepower hybrid powertrain returning breakneck acceleration to the aggressively curvaceous body creating a new evolution of design for the storied automaker. The best part of the LaFerrari's design is that there is no single focal point, but one of the more interesting elements of the car is its canopy-like cover protecting the occupants. Every detail of the car has been perfectly sculpted into the carbon fiber body creating an appearance that is probably only outdone by the car's overall performance, which Ferrari promises will include a top speed more than 217 miles per hour and a 0-62 mph time of under three seconds. Ferrari says the LaFerrari will be its fastest street car ever.
While it's hard to make criticisms about of the LaFerrari, there will undoubtedly be many regarding the car's name, but with a design and performance numbers like this, we're sure this car could've been called the Ferrari LaBradoodle and all 499 examples of the hybrid supercar would've been snatched up just the same. After checking out the details posted in a press release below, let us know if you think the Ferrari LaFerrari is a worthy successor to past Maranello supercars like the F40, F50 and Enzo.