The California convertible (top) is Ferrari's newest addition to its high performance road range while Kimi Raikkonen powers the F60 single-seater to the Scuderia's latest grand prix win, at Spa-Francorchamps last Sunday (bottom).

It’s one of the most often asked questions in the car industry – does motorsport really benefit the average road user? For Ferrari, the answer is, more than any other brand, an incontrovertible yes, with Ferrari owners able to trace a direct line for a multitude of technological advances in their cars back to cars driven on the track by a host of motorsport legends.

Be it the gearbox, the engine, electronic differential, the Manettino system, carbon ceramic brakes, aerodynamics or F1 Trac, the drivers of Ferrari’s legendary road cars know that technology that makes their cars safer, faster, cleaner and able to offer lower emissions started life on race tracks around the world. Honed by drivers like Schumacher, Mansell, Massa and Raikkonen, this technology provides Ferrari with a unique and unassailable position ahead of all super cars.

But this technology is not limited the a few individuals lucky enough to drive the world’s greatest supercars. This technology has spread through the industry as a whole and benefits many millions of motorists who probably are totally unaware that their car is safer, cleaner and easier to drive thanks to Ferrari’s pioneering work in so many different technical areas.

Take just one area, gearboxes. The sequential manual gearbox or robotized manual gearbox started life in a Ferrari Formula One car to give the team’s drivers an edge in gearchange speed without any of the traditional drawbacks of an automatic. While Ferrari owners are able to revel in this technology for its speed, development also revealed that these gearboxes also lift economy and cut emissions by removing the human element and making the perfect gearchange every time. Robotised manual gearboxes are not only fitted to some of the world’s fastest cars, but also to some of the cleanest and most economical, such as the Fiat 500.

Some of the most significant technology transfers include:

Carbon Ceramic Brakes

Ferrari’s Formula 1 ambitions meant that it was the first car manufacturer to supply carbon ceramic brakes as standard on its road cars, starting with the Enzo in 2002 and standard on every model from 2008. Brakes featuring CCM (carbon ceramic material) discs offer consistently excellent performance in intensive use. One of the most obvious advantages to adopting these brakes is their exceptional fade resistance – fade can compromise the driver's feeling of control when it comes to the pressure required on the brake pedal and responsiveness.

The CCM discs have a longer life under normal conditions, and even with continual track use, CCM brakes offer greater resistance to wear for better durability on the track. The CCM braking system also cuts around 15 kg off the car's total weight, which not only improves overall performance but also reduces unsprung mass, and thus improves vehicle dynamics and ride comfort.

On the 430 Scuderia in particular, the CCM braking system is specifically designed for the car and has unique brake dimensions that are aligned with the car's extreme performance characteristics. The diameter of the front discs has been increased (18 mm larger than on the F430), which offers an improved effective radius and thus more efficient braking. Combined with specific 6-pot callipers, the front brake discs dissipate the extra heat created by the higher performance delivered by the 430 Scuderia. This transfer of F1 technology to its production cars means that all Ferrari clients can now benefit from unrivalled brake reliability and durability.

Aerodynamics

In thoroughbred cars, aerodynamics play a key role in achieving and improving performance, stability and fuel economy. For this reason, and to put its F1 racing experience to good use, Ferrari has always paid particular attention to aerodynamics in the design and style development of its GT cars. Until now, the focus has been on improving efficiency by increasing aerodynamic down-force and enhancing the tyres' grip capabilities during braking or cornering, without increasing drag. As the upper part of the car body is shaped in such a way that it generates lift (unless aerodynamic devices like dams, spoilers or wings are added), the only way to create down-force on a GT car is by modifying the car’s underbody, an aerodynamic technology pioneered in Formula One.

In order to make the most of its down-forcing capability, the underbody of a car needs to be flat or regular. Diffusers added at the rear of the car help to increase air speed and mass flow under the car still further. Ferrari made its first attempt to produce down-force on the F355 with an under-tray, by partially fairing the mechanical components and with two long diffuser channels at the rear. After this first application, the floor design was gradually improved by fairing all the mechanics in the 360 Modena's underbody, and diffusers were added in front of the front wheels to increase the overall down-force and get the right aero balance.

The top-body of a Ferrari GT car needs to match both aerodynamic (minimum lift and minimum drag) and stylistic requirements. This is not an easy task since stylish bodies don’t often mean ‘wind-shaped’ bodies. The slotted B-pillars on the 599 GTB Fiorano are an excellent example of the perfect marriage of aerodynamics and style. By opening the slot on the B-pillar it was possible to slow down and lift the air blowing on the rear top-body, which reduced lift and also cut drag, without changing the style and design of the car.

Until now the main focus for Ferrari's aerodynamic engineers has been increasing down-force and keeping drag under control. The goal for the future is to improve aerodynamic efficiency by greatly reducing drag while maintaining and, wherever possible, increasing down-force. To achieve the target of drag reduction, Ferrari's aerodynamic engineers are focusing their attention on the areas that contribute most to drag.

Ferrari F1 Trac

Few aspects of electronic Grand Prix car systems have been so studied and refined as traction control. Traction control uses electronics to compare the car’s speed with the rate at which the drive wheels are turning, to detect whether there is any slip between tyre and road. If slip is detected beyond a desirable minimum, the traction control system intervenes to prevent excessive wheel spin. In its 599 GTB Fiorano, Ferrari was the first to introduce Formula 1 traction control into a road car. Known as F1-Trac, it was applied to the 599 in 2006 by a dedicated team, established to transfer the relevant technology from the Racing Division to production cars. Instead of simply switching on and off, F1-Trac uses predictive software to give more delicate, refined control of drive-wheel spin. It also provides more subtle drive-torque control in wet or icy conditions. When the car’s manettino is set in ‘RACE’ position, F1-Trac can improve acceleration out of corners by 20%, giving a 1.5 second lap-time advantage at Fiorano over conventional traction control. At the ultimate manettino setting the F1-Trac is turned off, giving the 599’s driver complete control.

The Ferrari Steering Wheel and Manettino System

In the quest to improve aerodynamics, designers have drastically reduced the cockpit dimensions of their Formula 1 cars. Along with the size restrictions imposed by the new driver safety requirements, the space that could formerly be allocated to an instrument panel has virtually ceased to exist. In 1996 Ferrari introduced a striking innovation. Other car manufacturers had cut away the top of the steering wheel to give the driver a clear view of his instruments, whereas Ferrari simply put the most important warning lights in the top rim of the steering wheel itself. They then continued to wire further operating buttons to the steering wheel, within easy reach of the driver. By 1997 more key features had been added to the Ferrari Formula 1 steering wheel, including digital water, pressure and fuel tank gauges. And now the steering wheel has become a computer in its own right, displaying and storing timing data over full laps or sections of the track, providing the driver with instant feedback on his performance.

In 2004 the F430 became the first Ferrari road car to benefit from the F1 steering wheel-mounted manettino. Just as in Formula 1, drivers can change the set-up of their car and quickly and simply control the electronics governing suspension settings, the Control of Stability (CST) and traction control, E-Diff and the change speed of the F1 transmission, as well as the integration between each of these individual functions. The manettino enables car settings to be changed to suit the personal preferences of the driver, road surface conditions and available grip.

The Ferrari E-Diff

Technology transfer from Ferrari’s Racing Division has taken many forms in its 21st-century road cars. Gone are the days when a detuned version of a Formula 1 car engine could power a road Ferrari. But some of the advanced control strategies and systems used in Formula 1 can be adapted to road cars. One example of this is the E-Diff, which was introduced on the F430 in 2004. The E-Diff features two packs of multi-disc clutches, each driving one of the rear axles. Pressing against each clutch pack is a hydraulic actuator. The hydraulic actuator’s valves are controlled by an electronic circuit. Sensors inform the actuator about the throttle-pedal position, steering angle, wheel rotation speed and yaw acceleration. Responding to these conditions, E-Diff decides how and when to allocate torque to each wheel. One of the most sophisticated differential controls ever fitted in a road car, E-Diff has proven its practical value. Ferrari engineers gave it much of the credit for the F430’s ability to lap the Fiorano track three seconds faster than its predecessor, the 360 Modena. Sheer speed on the road highlights the value of all of Ferrari’s innovations, including E-Diff.

The Flat 12 engine

Few design challenges contribute more to the success of a racing car than a low centre of gravity. The lower the centre of gravity, the less its transfer of weight to the outside tyres on corners and the less its transfer of weight forward under braking. Keeping the mass of the car as low as possible helps the designer make best use of the traction available all four tyres. Flat or horizontally opposed vee engines represent the lowest possible configuration, placing their mass just above the road surface. Such engines were seldom practical in the front-engined racing car era, because their width would come into contact with the steering lock. But when rear-mounted engines became popular, the opportunity arose to employ flat-opposed engines.

The first racing car to compete using a flat-12 engine was a Ferrari: the 512 F1 in October 1964. The flat-12 engine really achieved its full potential, however, in the 312B in 1970, and enjoyed an 11-year career in both Formula 1 cars and sports prototypes. In 1971 it delivered 470 bhp at 12,600 rpm and in the 1976 season it became the first engine of the unblown 3-litre generation to deliver 500 bhp at 12,200 rpm.

This ‘boxer’ engine, which performed so well for Ferrari on the track, was destined to have a road application – one which made Ferrari the first (and so far, only) car manufacturer to offer a series-produced car with a flat-opposed 12-cylinder engine. This was, and remains, a remarkable innovation. A completely new 4.4-litre flat-12 engine was placed behind the driver and passenger in the new 365 GT4 BB (Berlinetta Boxer), which was first shown in prototype form at the Turin Salon in November 1971 and entered production in 1973. In 1976, this exciting Ferrari was substantially redesigned and re-launched as the 512 BB. Its larger engine (4,943 cc) endowed it with more flexible performance and confirmed its position as one of the most desirable of the exotic sports cars. The 512 BB was further refined into the Ferrari Testarossa that took the ‘boxer’ concept into the 1990s. Only replaced when a new generation of V12 cars was introduced, the Testarossa completed a third decade of innovative 12-cylinder flat-opposed engines for Ferrari.

The F1 Gearbox

The F1 gearbox is one of the most important F1 technological transfers, and was first tested and developed by Ferrari in 1988 on the Type 639 which was a never-raced Formula 1 prototype. It was then used in the Grand Prix Ferrari F1-89 that won the first race of the 1989 season in Brazil with Nigel Mansell at the wheel. This new technology allowed the driver to change gears using steering wheel-mounted controls, and without having to use a clutch pedal. Ferrari engineers explored the potential of the F1 gearbox and automatic clutch in their GT cars, and in 1992 the clutch was produced for the last six months of the Mondial T. Fitted to just over 100 cars, it demonstrated the potential of automatic control, with greater 0 to 60 mph acceleration times than the manual gear-change. In 1993 the final Mondial T prototype with automatic clutch was also fitted with actuation for the gearbox and steering wheel paddle controls, and Ferrari decided to work on a fully fledged F1-type transmission control. Modified and test-driven by Ferrari engineers, the F1 gearbox was an immediate hit and readied for launch on the F355, going to market in 1997 and receiving an extremely warm welcome from Test Drivers and Ferrari Clients.

The F1 gearbox has seen subsequent improvements, including changes to the shape and positioning of its shift paddles, which are now larger and located in a fixed position on Ferrari's latest GT models, and faster gear-changing. Changing gear on the 430 Scuderia, for instance, takes just 60 milliseconds, as measured by the 'hole' in acceleration during the change (intended as the overall time from declutching and changing gear to releasing the clutch).