1989 Ferrari Testarossa Base Coupe 2-door on 2040-cars

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Ferrari California T gets sharper edge with Handling Speciale package

It's been about two years since Ferrari updated the California to T-spec with a 3.9-liter, flat-plane crank, twin-turbocharged engine, and we found it to be a suitable change – rewarding to drive, and compelling to experience. Now Ferrari has introduced a new handling option, which will debut at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show in March, which should add a sharper edge to the roadster. Like most handling packages, the springs and dampers get the most attention. The magnetorheological dampers fitted to the conventional California T get changes that increase their response time to changing road conditions. As before, damper settings are controlled via the steering wheel manettino, and the most aggressive change is to be found in the Sport setting. The front springs are stiffer – 16 percent up front, 19 percent in the rear – which will aid body control in all axes. Ferrari claims that, overall, the setup only marginally reduces the ride comfort. It'll take driving a Handling Speciale-equipped car to find out. The changes go beyond just handling hardware. Shifts are faster in Sport mode, both in automatic and manual modes, thanks to recalibrated transmission logic. Ferrari's engineers also found some additional corner exit speed by tweaking the F1-Trac stability control system's programming. The company claims this tweak also helps with acceleration on bumpy surfaces. Cosmetically, the California Ts with the Handling Speciale package will feature a matte grille, a rear diffuser with matte-painted fences, and matte black tailpipes. A special-edition plaque, located in the cabin, is also standard, Finally, in a very Italian move, the exhaust note has been recalibrated "to underline the performance gains." That is to say, if you don't happen to have a skidpad handy to do a direct measurement of the increase in cornering capability – which, it should be noted, Ferrari doesn't quantify – the sportier sound will serve as a psychological reminder. There's no claim that the new exhaust system changes the engine's output – cars so equipped make the same 553 hp at 7500 RPM as the model we tested back in 2014. Look for the Handling Speciale package to debut at the Geneva Motor Show.

Ferrari gives employees record $5,600 bonus on strong year

Ferrari has got to be a great place to work. In fact, it's named as one of the best places to work in Europe year after year. Add to that the pride of making some of the coolest cars in the business, running one of the winningest teams in all of motorsports (even if the Scuderia isn't doing so well thus far this season) and all around standing for the best Italy has to offer, and you've got the makings of a dream job. And it just got a bit sweeter.
That's because Ferrari has just awarded each and every one of its employees a bonus of 4,096 euros - the most the company has ever paid. That's equivalent to over $5,600 at today's exchange rates, and represents a whopping 20 percent of the annual salary for a recently hired young employee. Following two advances of 1,000 euros each, that means employees will find an extra 2,096 euros in their pay checks this month, which may not be enough to buy a new California T or 458 Speciale, but should finance a nice shopping spree of t-shirts and paperweights at the Ferrari Store or a family vacation to Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi.
The bonuses are part of a deal signed with the union in 2012, but are enabled by record profits reported by the company over the last couple of years. After 2012 emerged as Ferrari's most profitable fiscal year, it moved to reduce production, thereby increasing the value of each new car it sells to drive profits up even higher. Nice work, in short, if you can get it.

New Tesla, McLaren, and Ferrari models added to Takata recall list

UPDATE: A McLaren spokesperson confirmed to Autoblog that "a number" of McLaren models in the US, Japan, and South Korea will be recalled to fix non-dessicated airbag inflators. However, the recall only affects passenger airbags, as all driver's-side inflators use a different technology and are not affected. The timeline is still being determined. It's been more than two and a half years since the Takata airbag recall first made waves. Despite knowing which airbags were at fault and the exact cause of the failure, manufacturers like Audi, Ferrari, McLaren, and Tesla have been building and selling cars with defective airbags. Although it takes several years for the airbag to degrade to the point of failure, all of these new cars will eventually have to be recalled for replacements. It appears that time has come, as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has now issued a recall on some of these new models. Models from Tesla and McLaren have been added to NHTSA's recall list for the first time. Tesla is recalling every 2012 - 2016 Model S while McLaren is bringing back every model it's made since relaunching its road-car business in 2012. Not even the P1 is free from failure. Other automakers have expanded their affected-vehicle list. All of Ferrari's 2016 - 2017 lineup now falls under the recall and joins a number of previously recalled models, while Audi is recalling the 2017 R8. Since the recall started, dozens of automakers have recalled millions of affected cars to replace potentially fatal and highly flawed airbags that can deploy bits of metal at occupants. Eleven deaths in the United States are directly related to the faulty airbags. Before the recall, Takata held a sizable share of the airbag market. When the failures began to occur, some automakers were left with no alternative suppliers. As it takes a few years for the airbags to fail, automakers without other options faced a choice: they could either build cars that would be recalled in the future or stop building cars altogether until a secondary supplier could be found. These recalls seem to be happening so frequently that owners may not know what to do or where to check to see if their car is potentially affected. NHTSA is keeping a comprehensive list of all affected models. Their website can help owners determine if they have a potentially problematic airbag installed and the steps to take to replace it.