Ferrari will not be
officially present at the 23rd North American Auto Show,
missing the show for a second consecutive year, but the
famous Italian sports car maker is once again
exhibiting one of its current models with the Chrysler
Group's line up, "in homage," it says, "to the agreement between
Fiat and the American company".
The model chosen for
Detroit is the 458 Italia which was selected not only
because of its ename and for the enormous commercial and
critical success it is enjoying worldwide, but because
the 458 Italia represents an example of technological
transfer from Formula One.
Ironically last year last
year it was widely reported that the Chrysler Group
wanted to show the 458 Italia on its stand but Ferrari
resisted aligning its latest product with the diminished
U.S. carmaker's range. Instead the track-special Ferrari
599XX was displayed while there was more Fiat Group
representation on the Chrysler Group stand as Maserati
also chipped in with a GranCabrio.
The incarnation of the new generation of mid-rear-engined
8-cylinder Prancing Horse sports cars, the 458 Italia
aims to meld technological innovation, creativity and
style. Having been put through its paces in no uncertain
terms by the worlds’ most authoritative motoring
journalists, it very quickly garnered most of the major
international awards in the United States and Europe as
well as in the Middle and Far East. Most recently, in
fact, the New York Times awarded the 458 Italia the
number one spot on its Top 10 Cars of 2010 list,
defining it “The world’s best sports car”.
Thanks to its 570 hp engine and a weight-power ratio of
just 2.42 hp/kg, the 458 Italia sprints from 0 to 100
km/h in under 3.4 seconds and reaches a top speed in
excess of 325 km/h. Despite its sporty vehicle dynamics,
the 458 Italia remains an exceptionally comfortable car,
while its electronic control systems guarantee excellent
performance in all driving conditions. Mirroring the
development of the F1 single-seater, the Ferrari
engineers focused their attention on improving
efficiency across the board with this model. As a
result, the 458 Italia has been homologated with
excellent fuel consumption and CO2 emissions levels
(13.3 litres/100 km and 307 g/km on the ECE+EUDC
combined cycle). Also derived from the F1 car is the new
model’s man-machine interface: an ergonomic cluster of
controls on the steering wheel which means drivers never
have to take their hands off the wheel which, in turn,
reputedly improves driving safety.
