2013 Ferrari 458 Spider My13 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Ferrari P80/C one-off built for 330 P3/P4, 1966 Dino 206 S fanatic

For more than four long years, one person has kept a major secret with Ferrari. The company and the client were working on a project that Ferrari calls its "most extreme one-off design ever." Inspired by the 330 P3/P4 and the 1966 Dino 206 S, the P80/C is a new-age take on a track-focused sports prototype. Typically for these types of specialty builds, Ferrari does as they've done in the past and reshapes a new exterior over an existing car from the for-sale lineup. But because it is a track car, Ferrari used the 488 GT3 as a starting point, and made "radical changes" to the equipment from there. It not only has a slightly longer (about two inches) wheelbase than the 488 GTB, but it also has a cab-forward design rather than the 488 GTB's centrally located cabin. Ferrari says this allowed for more creative freedom and played a major part in how the design took shape. Flavio Manzoni and the Ferrari Styling Center set out to make what they described as a "Hero Car." The client's direction was to make a "modern sports prototype" with design cues from the 330 P3/P4 and the 1966 Dino 206 S. These two cars carry significance in Ferrari's design history, as they impressed on the track but also influenced future road cars such as the Dino 206/246 GT. With heavy involvement from the client during the process, Ferrari has been working on this car since 2015, the longest the company has ever spent on developing a one-off. Starting from the ground up, aerodynamics played a major part in the appearance of the P80/C. A gigantic front splitter, which is specific to this car, snuggles the ground and extends beyond the dimensions of the body. Visually, it carries on along the flanks with aero skirts, and circles around the rear with a bulky exaggerated diffuser. The lower kit is left in exposed carbon fiber, creating a two-piece look that's separate from the Rosso Vero body paint. Ferrari says only pieces that were strictly functional were highlighted with bare carbon and that the car has a five percent aerodynamic improvement over the 488 GT3. For the designers, the P80/C was a safe space of opportunity and experimentation. It is a track car that does not fall under racing regulations, but it's also a customer production car that is not forced into road-ready restrictions.

Chevy ad compares Spark EV with Ferrari 458 Italia

Chevrolet's new commercial for the 2014 Spark EV emphasizes the little hatchback's performance over pretty much everything else, and it even goes as far as to compare it to a Ferrari 458 Italia. That's right, the electric bubble is pitched in the commercial as having a higher torque figure than the Ferrari - and it does, with a massive 400 pound-feet ready to be unleashed.
That doesn't translate into a quicker car, however, as the 458's V8 with 570 horsepower and not-exactly-quaint 398 lb-ft gives it a 0-60 time of 3.0 seconds compared to the Spark EV's 7.6-second run.
"We think the fun-to-drive element is an area for us to differentiate ourselves," Sam Basile, executive chief engineer for GM's global minicars and emerging-market vehicles, told Automotive News.

Race recap: 2016 Bahrain Grand Prix was everything good and bad about F1

Nothing was as it seemed heading into Bahrain. We were told team bosses had nixed the qualifying experiment that flunked every test by every measure in Australia, but that didn't happen. The FIA didn't give the teams the option of a wholesale return to the old format, the governing body only held a vote on whether to revert back to the old format in Q3 but stick with elimination gimmicks in Q1 and Q2. McLaren and Red Bull dissented, denying the chance for hybrid rounds. We're surprised none of the smaller teams voted against since elimination qualifying is hardest on them. Given the chance to fix the system again in Bahrain, Formula 1 failed again. The FIA and Bernie Ecclestone don't want to go back to the old system – because the race promoters don't want to go back to the old system – so all we know for sure is that there will be more meetings. We also thought Fernando Alonso would race in Bahrain after being given medical clearance, but a follow-up scan by the FIA showed fractured ribs and a damaged lung, ruling him out. And we thought Ferrari might have the pace to conquer Mercedes-AMG Petronas this year – and they might yet, but not on Saturday. That's why the Bahrain race began with another Mercedes one-two, Lewis Hamilton ahead of Nico Rosberg, Ferrari drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen behind. The Australian outback is plagued with rabbits, which must have something to do with how Daniel Ricciardo keeps pulling them out of his helmet; the Aussie got his Red Bull up to a surprising fifth on the grid. Williams drivers Valtteri Bottas in sixth and Felipe Massa in seventh would need to get him out of the way quickly to show what the car can do after an unsatisfying race in Australia. Nico Hulkenberg lined up in eighth for Sahara Force India. As proof the qualifying format failed again with its sophomore attempt, the last five minutes of Q2 were disappointing. Hulkenberg had the track completely to himself for his quali run, the only two cars on track after him were the Williams duo who weren't setting a time, but getting a set of soft tires ready to start the race on. As for Q1, the only reason for on-track action in the last three minutes was because Hamilton flubbed his first timed run. Romain Grosjean continued Haas F1's fruitful start to the season with ninth place, ahead of Max Verstappen in the Toro Rosso closing out the top ten. At the end of a long red light to start the race, Rosberg claimed his right to victory before Turn 1.