4-Wheel-Drive-651HP: Ferrari FF Shooting Brake

[Tim.Wright]

I usually like hatchbacks, you know Golf, Polo, Leon... but this looks... well, wrong! The proportions of the thing are way off, the hood is too long and it is way too low for a hatchback.

Ummmm... because its not a hatchback?

[andrew]

You are not seriously comparing this... thing to the X6 are you? The X6 is one of the best looking SUVs out there in my opinion... agree on the Cayenne though

I'm afraid I am. This red monstrosity is ugly as sin, as is the X6 and the Cayenne. The Ferrari road car department has surely lost the plot with this one.

[tomislavp4]

I usually like hatchbacks, you know Golf, Polo, Leon... but this looks... well, wrong! The proportions of the thing are way off, the hood is too long and it is way too low for a hatchback.

Ummmm... because its not a hatchback?

To be honest I don't see any difference between hatchbacks and shooting brakes I mean, they are both 3 (ok, hatchbacks can have 5) door cars with boxy rear ends that offer space for 4-5 people...

The term shooting brake is used for more luxury cars that shouldn't be associated with the Golf and the other similar cars

[Formula None]

Well this is neat. The FF engine has two output shafts, one on the front and one one the rear. The rear one sends power to the main rear mounted 7-speed transmission, the front output shaft drives a 2 speed transmission for the front wheels. The front tranny has no differential; each wheel has its own wet clutch. The 2 speed tranny has two tall ratios that are slightly taller than the ratios of the 7 speed's 2nd & 4th gears. To compensate for the mismatch in output RPM the wet clutches are constantly slipping... I guess those Haldex clutch packs are intended to slip all the time though, so no concerns there?

They also made the tradeoff of having the front wheels over geared for half their operating speed vs. reducing the front gearbox size...

[bot6]

So tranny is heavy and bulky without the actual performance of a proper 4WD system.

And the car looks like they chopped the end off a normal coupé.

Nobody see a problem here?

[wesley123]

loks like a California with a additional part of roof, nothing more and nothing less, wouldnt say it is ugly, i'd rather call it awkward

[nipo]

Whether you like the looks of the FF or not, it was the result of reality sinking in at Ferrari. They are expanding their markets to where the money is. Problem is that the new riches in the world know not to appreciate art and finesse, much less race-ready road cars that are impractical from a daily point of view. So you start making user-friendly cars that carry more people and luggage around, while trying to retain the brand name and the insane prices to keep the "prestige" and the queues long. It's business, and it's about adjusting to your clients' needs. Sad.

God knows what next - they might start building genuine SUVs after this. Or maybe a Ferrari Flying Spur will do.

After pulling out as a fan of their F1 team, I might just forget about them entirely. They are slowly but surely losing their glory.

[hecti]

Whether you like the looks of the FF or not, it was the result of reality sinking in at Ferrari. They are expanding their markets to where the money is. Problem is that the new riches in the world know not to appreciate art and finesse, much less race-ready road cars that are impractical from a daily point of view. So you start making user-friendly cars that carry more people and luggage around, while trying to retain the brand name and the insane prices to keep the "prestige" and the queues long. It's business, and it's about adjusting to your clients' needs. Sad.

God knows what next - they might start building genuine SUVs after this. Or maybe a Ferrari Flying Spur will do.

After pulling out as a fan of their F1 team, I might just forget about them entirely. They are slowly but surely losing their glory.

sure, you can say this about the company, but the car in terms of technical development and point of view is quite astonishing. The way the front gearbox works is so well thought out to reduce weight and provide you with enough grip when you need it.
Ferrari's might have become an electrical engineers delight, but i feel that some how they have been able to bring back soul and passion to the equation [with the 458 and the ff]. I hate the f1 team, and i hate alonso, but if i had the cash to buy a luxury gt i would, with out any hesitation buy the FF. The car just works in all aspects of modern car building: performance when you want it, security of awd in rough weather, space, luxury, design and asthetics (its pretty beautiful to look at i think). It just ticks more boxes than any ferrari gt car has in past years.

[Pierce89]

People can slag off Ferrari all they want, but secretly,whether they would admit it or not, every person on this forum would love to drive this thing. First thing they would do is cruise down the main boulevard wherever they live, trying to pick up women(successfully, if you're in this car).

[andrew]

People can slag off Ferrari all they want, but secretly,whether they would admit it or not, every person on this forum would love to drive this thing. First thing they would do is cruise down the main boulevard wherever they live, trying to pick up women(successfully, if you're in this car).

You are quite wrong there! The only Ferrari's I would like to drive are the F40 and the Enzo.

Mind you, the badge doesn't could for a lot with some people......

[alelanza]

Nice non-motorhead article on the FF, even if it's more of an excuse to talk about Luca and Ferrari in general. I guess you can't really separate any of the 3 at the moment.


http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/15/busin ... &emc=tha25

[hecti]

People can slag off Ferrari all they want, but secretly,whether they would admit it or not, every person on this forum would love to drive this thing. First thing they would do is cruise down the main boulevard wherever they live, trying to pick up women(successfully, if you're in this car).

You are quite wrong there! The only Ferrari's I would like to drive are the F40 and the Enzo.

Mind you, the badge doesn't could for a lot with some people......

Why not? I too would love to drive the f40 and the enzo, but don't be so close-minded. If given the opportunity to drive it/own it I'm sure you would say yes. If not then there must be something wrong with you. Im not a big Ferrari fan but this car pushes all my buttons in all the right ways.

[andrew]

Why not? I too would love to drive the f40 and the enzo, but don't be so close-minded. If given the opportunity to drive it/own it I'm sure you would say yes. If not then there must be something wrong with you. Im not a big Ferrari fan but this car pushes all my buttons in all the right ways.

Why must there be something wrong? I choose not to be a sheep and follow the heard (it's what seperates us, well some of us, from the beasts) and declare this car to be hideous.

As for the power, all it means is I can zoom between red lights quicker, or reach 70mph 5 seconds sooner and be at my destination slightly earlier. This leaves me a problem? What do I do with all this extra time?

But the biggest worry for me is - are the petrol stations regular enough so this carbuncle does not end up on an AA truck?

Your argument has not conviced me to wish to drive a Ferrari, or any other super car, as being a red blooded male if I drive one of these I will yearn for it once I had it back and thus it will render every car thereafter as rubish. You see my quandry here?

[donskar]

Andrew, as a "Master," this board deserves better from you.

Does anyone SERIOUSLY think this car will not sell and make Ferrari LOTS of money?

[Just_a_fan]

I'm not a great Ferrari fan - too much hype for my tastes - but I do like the FF. I like the clever front gearbox design using twin wet plate clutches slipping to create the intervening gearing. As the front wheels only drive when the rears slip, this seems like a good system. I'm not a great fan of the front design treatment of the FF though. Looks like they've tried to get a 458 link going on.

I also like the 599 and the 456 - can you see a theme developing?

Don't like the 458 or the 360. In fact, the last mid-engined "proper" Ferrari I liked was the 355 - a properly pretty car. (The F40 was really a "special" designed to take the "first road car to do 200mph" crown etc. A great car, no doubt, but one you'd really need to be in the mood for.)