Ferrari will present the all-new 599 GTB to the press later today in Detroit. With 620 hp, it will be its most powerful V12-engined production car of all time.
Amedeo Felisa, Ferrari's Vice General Manager will make the announcement at the NAIAS, and the company describes the new car as "a concentration of Ferrari's most innovative and technologically advanced engineering solutions applied to a mid-front engined two-seater coupé. The result is a new benchmark for performance, driver involvement and design".
The Ferrari 599 GTB will have class-leading power thanks to its 5,999cc V12 (derived directly from the Enzo Ferrari supercar), a motor that produces no less than 620hp at 7,600 rpm for a weight/power ratio of just 2.6 kg per horsepower.
Ferrari will use the well-developed all-aluminium construction technology for the car's body and chassis, a system that's been used in the 612 Scaglietti and F430 - the mid-engined car often described as the 'best in the world'.
The Pininfarina design is a meld of 612, Enzo and F430 and gives the Ferrari 599 GTB aggressive yet elegant lines clearly dictated to by aerodynamic necessity given the car's awesome likely performance.
This new model is the symbol of Ferrari's production - the V12 berlinetta - and represents the latest interpretation of a theme that has seen such classics as the 250 GT, the 275 GTB, and the 365 GTB4.
The Ferrari 599 GTB replaces the 575M Maranello, of which - together with the 550 Maranello introduced in 1996 - no fewer than 5,700 have been produced, a record for this type of model. The last incarnation of which was the limited-edition Superamerica with its innovative rotating roof with photo-chromatic glass.
The new car will be officially unveiled on the 28th of February 2006 at the Geneva Motor Show.
Words - Classic Driver
Photos - Ferrari - Strictly Copyright
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