The California T wows the world
Posted: 05.03.2014
Source: Ferrari
Geneva, 5th March – The second day of the Geneva International Motor Show was dominated once again by the Ferrari California T, which is proving to the undisputed star of the Swiss event. Maranello’s new V8 turbo continues to grab the attention of the world media who are flocking to the Ferrari stand to examine it in detail. The California T is a strikingly sporty and versatile car yet also exudes the sublime exclusivity that is a signature of every one of the Prancing Horse’s extraordinary models.
Ferrari FF: the first car in the world to feature Apple CarPlay
Posted: 05.03.2014
Source: Ferrari
Geneva, 5 March – The Ferrari stand is thronged on day two of the Geneva International Motor Show as crowds flock to try out the new Apple infotainment featured on the FF, the first car in the world to be offered with CarPlay.
The new system from the Cupertino company is attracting not only the attention of motoring experts but also those from the technology and communications sectors who are getting a unique opportunity to see it in action in the FF. Since the Show opened, in fact, Apple and Ferrari technical staff have been inundated by requests from journalists and have been demonstrating CarPlay and its functionalities as well as explaining how it integrates with the car’s native system.
CarPlay allows Ferrari clients to use their iPhones in their cars in the simplest, safest possible way to make calls, use Maps, listen to music and access messages either by voice command or using the central touch-screen display.
FF now available with the new Carplay Apple system and a more comfort-oriented spec: new Tailor Made configurations for Maranello’s first four-wheel drive model
Posted: 04.03.2014
Source: Ferrari
Geneva world premiere for the California T and its revolutionary V8 turbo engine
Geneva, 4 March 2014 – Ferrari comes to the 2014 Geneva International Motor Show with a unique combination of sportiness, exclusivity and versatility in the form of the elegantly-designed and highly innovative new California T, and a more versatile version of the revolutionary FF four-wheel-drive four-seater with boosted in-car comfort and integrated Carplay Apple technology.
The California T continues a long and glorious Prancing Horse tradition begun in the 1950s, and boasts singular levels of innovation, most notably in its turbocharged V8, a completely new power unit that, in a world first, successfully combines the performance, torque and sound of a conventional Ferrari engine, with the additional benefit of the fuel efficiency afforded by turbocharging.
The new mid-front 8-cylinder car is exceptionally practical, thanks to its retractable hard top (RHT) and the signature 2+ concept which provides additional versatility for using the cabin space.
Alongside the California T is the FF which is presented at Geneva with new, more comfortably-designed and easily-accessible rear seats thanks to front seats that slide further forward.
From today, clients can also order the FF with Carplay Apple, the smarter, safer and more fun way to use iPhone in the car. Carplay provides iPhone users with an incredibly intuitive way to make calls, use maps, listen to music and access messages with just voice commands or by touch. Users can easily control Carplay from the car’s native interface or just push-and-hold voice control button on the steering wheel to activate Siri without distraction.
A seamless blend of sportiness and elegance, the California T is powered by a direct-injection 3885cc V8 turbo engine that punches out a massive 560 cv at 7,500 rpm, yielding a specific power output of 145 cv/l, the highest in its category, as well as maximum torque of 755 Nm in 7th gear. Figures that allow the California T sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.6 seconds and deliver extraordinary acceleration – even in higher gears – and excellent fuel efficiency.
For the first time on an engine using this technology, turbo lag has been virtually eliminated by reducing inertia and adopting an F1-derived flat-plane crankshaft in addition to innovative twin-scroll turbines. Increasingly powerful pick-up is guaranteed by proprietary Variable Boost Management software which adjusts torque delivery to suit the gear selected, thereby also cutting fuel consumption.
As was the case in Formula 1, turbocharging was adopted out of a need to boost efficiency. Compared to the previous California, in fact, fuel consumption has been cut by 15 per cent* despite an increase of 70 cv in power output and a jump of 49 per cent in maximum torque in seventh gear. Emissions have been cut to 250 g/km on the combined cycle and by 20 per cent in the CO2/horsepower ratio (0.44 g/km/cv). As a direct consequence, the car’s range has been extended by 15 per cent.
Thanks to meticulous design and sophisticated production techniques adopted for essential components such as the flat-plane crankshaft and the three-piece cast exhaust manifold and turbo housing, the California T’s engine produces an enthrallingly powerful sound that becomes even more impressive as revs increase. This is a completely unprecedented achievement for a turbo engine.
The California T boasts true sports car dynamics too, thanks to reduced steering wheel activity and improved steering wheel response courtesy of a new steering box and new suspension set-up. New springs and latest-generation Magnaride dampers (now more than 50 per cent faster) combined with body motion accelerometers reduce roll and pitch to deliver more precise handling whilst still guaranteeing an incredibly comfortable ride.
The car also sports the latest evolution of F1-Trac, which guarantees maximum acceleration out of corners, and CCM3 carbon-ceramic brakes – with new composite discs and pads – integrated with the ESP 8.0 Premium system, which controls the high-performance ABS to deliver extremely short stopping distances (100 to 0 km/h in just 34 metres).
The combination of the California T’s uncompromising architecture, dynamic controls and new engine guarantees consistent fun behind the wheel both in challenging and more relaxed driving conditions, in perfect Grand Tourer style.
The Ferrari Styling Centre, in collaboration with Pininfarina, radically reworked the California T’s design to endow it with a completely new personality whilst still retaining its original dimensions. Its flanks are an homage to the 250 Testa Rossa’s famous pontoon-fender styling, with the front wing line stretching back towards the compact, muscular rear and bringing an aerodynamic sleekness and movement to the sides. The rear benefits from meticulous aerodynamic research resulting in a new triple-fence diffuser.
The air vents in the bonnet boost the efficiency of the front radiator, helping reduce its overall dimensions, while the lower section of the front bumper has been profiled to channel air to the intercoolers.
The warm, sumptuously hand-finished cabin is trimmed in luxury semi-aniline leather. The space on-board is flexible too, and owners can make the most efficient use of its generous boot capacity even with the top down, thanks to the communication between the luggage compartment and rear seats.
Continuing the theme of versatility, at Geneva, three new configuration options for the FF are being presented in the exclusive Tailor Made personalisation programme, which is available to clients desiring a completely bespoke car.
The three configurations (Ski, Golf and Country) avail of tough, waterproof technical materials with functional and design details inspired by each specific area of use. Ski, for instance, includes a luggage compartment lined in anti-scratch carbon-fibre with metal inserts, while the Golf configuration is trimmed in the classic tartan that is widely used in the sport. Country, on the other hand, is designed for outdoor and country activities, and so the focus is on warm leather tones with the luggage compartment entirely lined in the same Testa di Moro leather used to trim the cabin.
Aside from the California T, which is on show in Rosso California, Blu California and Bianco liveries, the Ferrari stand also plays host to an F12berlinetta, the most powerful mid-front V12 in the range, in black with a beige interior, and, in a Rosso Corsa livery with a leather-trimmed cabin, a 458 Spider, the spearhead model for a whole new generation of drop-tops combining the RHT with a mid-rear engine. Also on show are two Grigio Silverstone-liveried FFs featuring the Apple system, Sabbia interior and full-length glass roof, the car in the Tailor Made area sporting the Ski configuration.
*The consumption reduction is calculated over a typical, real-life route.
Montezemolo: “Ferrari and Apple – on the same wavelength”
Posted: 04.03.2014
Source: Ferrari
Geneva, 4th March – The Ferrari FF has debuted at the Geneva International Motor Show equipped with CarPlay, the simplest, safest way of using your iPhone in the car. Ferrari chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo had this to say of the Prancing Horse’s partnership with the Cupertino company: “I am both proud and delighted to announce Ferrari’s collaboration with Apple on CarPlay. We are the first company in the world to offer its clients a car equipped with a system this advanced. It is the result of two years of working on absolutely the same wavelength with a young, extremely innovative company very much at the cutting-edge of technology.” Apple’s vice-president of iPhone and iOS Product Marketing Greg Joswiak also highlighted the extraordinary understanding that existed between the two companies as they collaborated on this innovative, technologically leading-edge project.
“Innovation and technology are essential elements where we are concerned and we found both in the way Apple operates,” added Montezemolo. “We will be doing more good work together in the near future, particularly on cars like the FF and also shortly on the California T which is not a competition model but a car you can get great pleasure from every day. A system like CarPlay, that allows you to safely use and enjoy your phone in the car and can also be controlled using just voice commands, has the innovative component that is so important to us. Being the first to develop this technology is a source of enormous satisfaction to us and proves yet again why Ferrari is a highly innovative, technologically pioneering company that commands such huge respect internationally.” A perfect, synergic partnership between two great brands.
Montezemolo: “New F1 project very complicated”
Posted: 04.03.2014
Source: Ferrari
Geneva, 4 March – “It will be interesting to see how many cars will finish the first race in Australia,” commented Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo at the event to launch the California T, the new Prancing Horse V8, which is already proving to be the star attraction at the Geneva Motor Show.
Speaking to the journalists in Switzerland, Montezemolo went on to say, “The design of these new Formula 1 cars is very complicated, with a lot of aspects still to be defined. Some parts of it we have already developed, whereas others still need working on to give their best. The run up to this season is a bit like a puzzle, with the parts slowing fitting together.” With less than two weeks to go to the start of the Formula 1 World Championship, many teams have experienced difficulties during pre-season testing and look like heading to Melbourne less than completely ready. However, the President was only concerned with his own team. “The testing we have been able to do has been indispensible. I’m not interested in what the others are doing, we are only concentrating on ourselves,” he affirmed. “It seems to me, that in terms of reliability the work is very complicated for everyone. These difficulties are understandable, because for 2014, Formula 1 has taken on a big challenge, going down a very innovative route.” The President also spoke on a topic that has touched him greatly, Schumacher’s condition. “Michael was and still is a very important person in my life. From 1996 onwards so many things happened in the lives of both of us and, in the difficult times, Michael was always incredibly close to the team. What’s happened to him was a real shock to me, after all the events we shared and a great affection still remains. Michael at the moment needs that affection and support from everyone.”
The Ferrari California T and the Apple CarPlay equipped FF debut tomorrow at Geneva
Posted: 03.03.2014
Source: Ferrari
Geneva, 3 march – The Geneva International Motor Show 2014 provides the venue for tomorrow’s debut of the California T, the new Prancing Horse V8 which looks set to be the queen of the event. Flanking it on the Ferrari stand will be Maranello’s revolutionary four-seater four-wheel-drive FF sporting the new Apple CarPlay system.
This means that from tomorrow, Ferrari clients will enjoy the smarter, safer and more fun way to use iPhone in the car. CarPlay provides iPhone users with an incredibly intuitive way to make calls, use maps, listen to music and access messages with just a word or a touch. Users can easily control CarPlay from the car’s native interface or just push-and-hold the voice control button on the steering wheel to activate Siri without distraction.
Businessweek: “Ferrari’s successful strategy”
Posted: 03.03.2014
Source: Ferrari
Maranello, 3 March –The Geneva Motor Show opens its doors tomorrow, when Ferrari will launch the new California T, which is already booking its place as the star of the show. The new model stands out with its elegance, sporty nature, versatility and, of course, its exclusivity. This also happens to be a time when the Maranello marque is garnering praise from economy and business experts for the strategy it is adopting which is proving to be very much the right choice. In a recent article, the prestigious American magazine, Businessweek, acknowledged that the Maranello company and its President, Luca di Montezemolo had put in place a strategy destined for success.
“Every company must grow, but growth isn’t solely about getting bigger,” said the Businessweek article. “If you increase volume too quickly, you can easily run into product or service quality issues and internal culture conflicts. By focusing instead on cultivating fierce customer loyalty, you can create not only a virtuous cycle of profit and reinvestment, but a growing sense of pride and satisfaction as well. As Ferrari’s di Montezemolo put it, “The quality of the sales is more important than the quantity.”