Newsletter 38: FERRARI 599 FIORANO

By Dee MunroNovember 30, 2021Comments Off

Replacing the 575 Maranello in 2006, the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano was the new flagship of the famous Italian brand. Named after Ferrari’s own test track, the 599 is a high-performance Gran Turismo with a V12 up-front, and rear-wheel drive.
A pure product from Maranello, the 5,999 cm³, V12 is capable of taking the car up to speeds of 330 km/h and go from 0 to 100 km/h in only 3.7 seconds.
If you think about it, back then in 2006, this was ballistically fast (and it still is). Just to put things into perspective, the Ferrari Enzo went from standstill to 100 km/h in 3.6 seconds. The 599’s engine is actually derived from the Enzo and was later used for the track-only 599XX.
The engine is so pushed back that you can actually call it mid-front position. Finally, it can rev up to 8400 rpm, and you can only just imagine the noise it makes when it reaches these speeds.

The design of the 599 is quite a controversial subject.
While some think the 599 GTB Fiorano looks a bit chunky, and with a behind that is up to Kardashian standards, many think that it’s one of the most beautiful modern designs to come out of Maranello. Designed by Frank Stephenson under the watchful eye of Pininfarina, it looks totally different from its predecessor, the 575 Maranello.
For the first time, the car was equipped with only one round tail light on each side, and this was weird because we were always used to having the signature circular quad rear lights.
The 599 was designed to deliver the greatest amount of downforce, a consequence of which is the very distinctive arches on the back, probably the coolest feature on the body.

There was a choice between a (very rare) six-speed manual or the automatic, called the “F1 Superfast gearbox”. Most customers opted for the automatic one. It was quite an innovation back in those days.
Ferrari promised smooth and near F1 fast-like gear shifts. Sadly not the case, although it was a giant leap from the one found in the 575, it was not a double-clutch box, so by today’s standards, the car falls a bit behind the competition. Only 10 manual versions were ever produced, and it’s the final Ferrari V12 that came with a “proper” gear stick.

What is a Gran Turismo without a great interior?
The now-signature start button on the steering wheel was brand new and it was cool to finally see the Manettino on a V12 GT.
There are inspirations from the Formula 1 world, like carbon fibre bits and pieces, or the optional LED rev display on the steering wheel, that help you shift like Michael Schumacher.
Of course, the seats are beautiful and comfortable, and you have all the comfort you need. This isn’t an Enzo, so you have a radio, satnav and leather everywhere, etc.
It really is a car you don’t mind doing many miles in.

The Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano had many variants, and we’re not talking about the various Mansory or Novitec Rosso editions.
Ferrari built a few exclusive and limited edition models based on the 599 GTB. The first limited-edition car that the brand released was the GTO. Iconic name for an iconic car. Only 599 units produced and it is a car that, like the F12 TDF, is faster, lighter and even more sporty than before.
Then came the real deal, as mentioned above, the 599 had a track car variant called the XX. Something crazy, from another world that was then followed by an even crazier Evoluzione.
Back to road cars, the open top SA Aperta, the one-offs P540 Superfast Aperta, Superamerica 45 and SP30, were all derivatives of the 599.
The 599 GTB is such a blast. It’s a true Ferrari Gran Turismo capable of blistering performances.
The 599 was such an achievement back in the day, that you had to love it.
Talking about investment, just think about the fact that this is one of the last naturally-aspirated V12 engine’s from the brand.
Could it be worth much more money in the future? ………….. It just might surprise us!

We are very fortunate to have just acquired this
2009 FERRARI 599 GTB FIORANO
With only 34,000 km’s, Full Service History, all books, spare keys, car cover, tools, jack and spare wheel.

A pristine example selling at only
R 2 649 990

Get in Touch

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Newsletter 37: 355 ….. THE PERFECT FERRARI?

By Dee MunroNovember 22, 2021Comments Off

The Ferrari V8 is one of the worlds most iconic inventions.
Shoehorn it into a 355 Berlinetta, the quintessential Ferrari shape, strap on a manual gearbox, the only gearbox to have….in any car, bolt a Capristo exhaust on, and you end up with what can only be described as Automotive Pornography!

The 355 was sold from 1995 to 1999, and it was offered in three body styles. There was the convertible (spider), which a lot of people didn’t like, mainly because it spoilt the cars lines with the top up. There was also a Targa model, the GTS which was an odd in-between compromise between a convertible and a coupe. And then there was the 355 Belinetta, the coupe version, which, for many, is the most beautiful regular production road car Ferrari has ever built.
There’s no bad line on this car, no awkward angle. It came at a time when Ferrari was trying to leave behind the dated wedge shape of the 1980’s, and before they went with the rounder less aggressive look of the 2000’s. For a brief period, they got things just perfect.

Another reason that makes the 355 so great, is the manual transmission version.
Newer Ferrari’s with paddles might be faster, but nothing will ever take the place of manually shifting gears in a bright silver gate.
1997 was the last year that the manual transmission was mandatory. Beginning in ’98 Ferrari introduced the F1 style automatic paddle gearbox, which in the 355, was well……. Questionable. A bit slow, a bit jerky, a bit lurchy, but being as it was Ferrari’s first attempt at a production paddle shift box, it wasn’t too bad.

Now one of the most obvious quirks comes right away when you’re trying to get inside, because how do you enter a car with no visible door handle? Well you see, Ferrari trying to make this thing as beautiful and as perfect as possible, actually hid the door handle inside the 90’s style side strake. Interestingly, designers must have finished up on a Friday afternoon, because they couldn’t be bothered to hide the keyhole, instead they just stuck it on the door, in plain sight, for everyone to see.
Now once you get into the 355, you’ll notice two things simultaneously, that will be minimalism, and maximalism. The basic interior design is pretty minimalist. There’s no fancy screens or modern gadgets, even the gauges are just simple gauges, not on a screen with all sorts of readout’s.
As for maximalism, well, instead of modern gadgets and gizmos, Ferrari did what they thought their customers would appreciate; – they put leather on everything, everywhere, all over!
Obviously the seats are leather, and the dashboard is leather, and the door panels are leather too, but it doesn’t even come close to stopping there! The parking brake boot is stitched leather, and so is the little tray beneath the parking brake. The centre tunnel is completely covered in leather, except for the plastic parts that well……. just can’t be.
They even put leather behind the seats where no human, except maybe a two-foot contortionist midget, would ever possibly look.
The sun visor is of course finished in leather, and when you turn it over, you’ll find a surprisingly handy little pouch …… covered in leather!

Interestingly, the 355 has a sport mode. It’s a little toggle switch located in the centre console. Push it and it firms up the suspension for a sportier ride. Of course, this makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. Why would an exotic Ferrari need a sport mode … isn’t the whole thing a sport mode?!?
So, the 355 is a beautiful car, in the best body style, with the best colours, with the best transmission, and with a few little quirks, that you really need on an Italian car. This is a true Ferrari! The perfect Ferrari! And we haven’t even gotten to the best part …………. driving it.
While the latest Ferrari has 48 trillion horsepower and does 0 to 60 microscopically faster than the one that came before it; the F355’s 3.5 litre V8 only made 375 horsepower and it did 0 to 60 in around 5 seconds, it’s more of a sports car than an exotic supercar, so how does that translate to the road.
This car comes from a different era of exotic cars, – today, they try to make cars useable, comfortable and drivable, – the thing with the 355 was, just make it fun and to hell with the girly kak!

The 355 makes one of the most beautiful sounds of any car ever made, in the history of cars, ever, on the planet, of all time!
The main reason the 355 is so special is simply this, it isn’t overpowered, it’s not too much to handle, it’s a car that you can bomb down back roads with, and just enjoy and have a blast.
It’s not slow by any stretch, but interestingly, it isn’t incredibly fast, it’s in that perfect band, that you wish all cars could be in. That’s what makes it an absolute joy to drive. The 355 has so much more of a go-cart feel than a modern Ferrari, it even has more of a go-cart feel than the 360 which came next.
The clutch is easy to operate, anybody can drive this car.
Ferrari made the switch from old-school to modern exotic, when this car left and the 360 showed up. But more and more people are having an appreciation for these older exotics.
There is nothing more exciting than a gated shifter, It’s a shame everybody didn’t do it, seems nobody wants to do it anymore. – Man, that gear change! – Oh, that clink between the gears is intoxicating.
Once you get a gated shifter, you get it, and it feels so good to slot that gear into that gate, it’s just the most perfect feeling you’ll ever have!

Now for people who want to drive a really fast car, and want to mash the throttle at the robots, and be faster than everybody else on the road, this ain’t the car, – this is the car for people like who like to go on a Sunday morning and burn up some great back-roads, really use the whole engine, and really be able to down shift a gear and ring it out and hear it and feel it, – that is what this car is all about, and it may have been the last Ferrari that was really like that.
The truth is the F355 is the quintessential Ferrari experience, it is everything you’ll ever want in a sports car, it’s beautiful, has perfect body lines, a manual is the right transmission, it’s quirky and cool, and it’s amazing on the road, without being unusably fast, it is just the perfect Ferrari!

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Newsletter 36: MODELS …. NO, NOT THE ONES WITH BOOBS!

By Dee MunroNovember 15, 2021Comments Off

All of us have a few Ferrari model cars in our lives. It might be one on your office desk, one or two in your garage or a couple dotted around the house.
Some of us have larger collections, I personally have about 2000 1:18 scale Ferrari models in my garage and I know people who have 4 or 5 times that. But here’s a piece about a guy called Milan Paulus from the Czech Republic,
who has so far amassed a collection of 57 models, and his goal is to reach 107 (the number of F1 cars made by Ferrari).
Not very impressive you might think, until you hear that each one is made by hand …………… OUT OF PAPER!!
Yep, you read correctly, paper, you know, the stuff we write on, wrap our fish and chips in, and when caught short, wipe our arses on ……. Paper!

The passion for Ferrari knows no boundaries and sometimes manifests itself in the most unusual forms.
Recreating models of Ferraris with paper is something frankly, hard to believe.
Milan Paulus is a Niki Lauda fan.
After the horrific accident of the Austrian at the Nurburgring, he decided to celebrate the qualities of Ferrari, the car that, due to its construction, likely saved the life of his beloved champion.
Malan decided to channel his passion for the Red into making paper models, all in 1:6 scale, whose perfection of detail and correspondence to the originals are truly amazing.

The dream of this wonderful craftsman is to sell his collection to Ferrari. Milan has specialised in Ferrari F1 paper models since 2008.
As of now, 57 are completed. His goal is to make all Ferrari F1 cars made. He is one of those Formula 1 enthusiasts who create amazing things without receiving broad recognition.

Paper models start with cut-out prints and building them is all about being precise and having sharp edges, clean seams, well defined shapes and coloring.
Malan says, “After a while, classic paper modeling became unfulfilling for me, not challenging enough. Without intending to offend paper model-makers, no matter how good you are, assembling cut-outs only means taking another step in a process that was already started by someone else.”
He adds, “There is no responsibility or humility in that, and it does not require much time. I need to spend hours in front of the computer, looking for resources, documents, photographs… then I need to draw the blueprints, take exact measurements… it requires a lot more effort. Much different from classic paper modelling.”

Q. So the only material you use is paper… including the spiked wheels and tyres?
M.P. It is 90% paper. The rest is other materials like cables, wires, toothpicks. The wheels are paper but the spikes I make from fishing line.

Q. How do you make the really sharply curved parts and tyre treads… is it pressed into a mold?
M.P. Rounded shapes are definitely the hardest, but there is no moulding. Everything is folded paper, glue, putty, scraping, grating, more fillers, rasp, sand, polish… over and over until I am satisfied. As for the treads, I first draw them on and then burn them out using a soldering iron.

Q. How do you determine the exact size of wings, cockpit, and so forth?
M.P. Well, I have plenty of resources in regard to that… more than I need. In addition, any specific dimension could be easily calculated from pictures that contain another component of known size.

Q. Why the 1:6 scale? It is not exactly traditional?
M.P. I started with classic scales, then experimented with 1:10, 1:8 and even 1:3… but that was way too big! Nine years ago I settled at 1:6, and worked with that ever since.

Q. Your goal is to build all the Ferrari F1 cars ever produced. Each model takes nearly 300 hours to complete, so that amounts to a pretty ambitious project!
M.P. There are going to be over a hundred and right now I am working on no 58. I spend at least 3-4 hours every day doing this… I don’t go out for a beer with my buddies, and vacations do not exist for me anymore either. Which makes me a fool, I suppose? I will sell the entire collection once it is complete.

MALAN PAULUS
A truly remarkable craftsman with an unrelenting passion for what he does.
If you’d like to see his video click HERE.

Read all about Formula 1 in 2022 here.

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Newsletter 35: FORMULA 1 CARS ARE FASTER, BUT WORSE !

By Dee MunroNovember 8, 2021Comments Off

Formula 1 cars have got absolutely enormous.
Since the start of F1, they’ve grown and grown, with them now being both longer and wider than a Ford F150 pickup truck, and this has to be a bad thing, the cars may be quicker now – but they don’t look nearly as fast as they used to. So, why have they got so big and, is there still hope for smaller Formula 1 cars in the future?

First, let’s cover why does it actually matter that these cars are getting bigger and heavier? They are the fastest racing cars out there, lap times are faster than they have ever been, and, quite rightly, pushing the envelope of what is physically possible.
From the outside, the speed is absolutely astonishing, but from onboard, the cars don’t look like they are going any faster than say, a GT3 car.
larger cars make it more difficult to pass. A wider car fills more of the track, making it easier to defend. In MotoGP, for example, they have to defend by just being faster, you can’t block very much of the track, consequently, there is a lot of overtaking.
In the current Formula 1 scenario, there are some tracks with very few places, e.g.; Monaco (below), where you can actually fit two cars side by side.
But, at the risk of venturing into, ‘it was better in the good ol’ days,’ territory, let’s dive into the reasoning.

WIDTH

The width of the cars has gone up and down over the years, but from 1997, the width was reduced from 2m to 1.8 meters, as part of a collection of rules targeted at slowing the cars down in the interest of safety.
It did a pretty good job, cars were slowed significantly, and this was for a number of reasons.
A narrower car means a narrower chassis with less space, so a lot of the components needed to be mounted higher, and typically this raises the centre of gravity.
It brings the tyres closer to the car, and therefore the tyre wake with it, this means there is more dirty air disrupting the floor and the downforce generation on the rear of the car.
So the cars got shorter to allow for better balance in the corners, a side effect is that they were very light, around 600 kilograms, and this meant that they were really agile and, due to the comparatively unrefined suspension, they looked alive and resulted in smaller Formula 1 cars.
The narrower cars stayed around until 2017, when they returned to 2 meters to try and add more drama to the sport.

LENGTH

The biggest difference between the cars of today and the 90s, is the length. The cars are nearly a meter longer now. The length has been rising enormously since 2017. Turns out, the reasoning behind this is pretty clear.

Whilst the regulations don’t directly control the length of the cars, there are regulations on the maximum overhangs, front and the rear. Maximizing this allows them to create larger wings that are further away from the wheels, increasing the effect of the downforce on tyre grip, but the wheelbase is actually unrestricted.
The increase in length is mainly down to the turbo hybrid engines that were introduced in 2014. They come with far more baggage than before, like batteries, regen systems, an electric motor, 110 kilograms of fuel, larger safety cell and lots more telemetry and cameras, etc.
All of this has to go in somewhere.
Trying to fit all this into a shell from the 90’s would be absolutely impossible.

Mercedes have adopted the longest wheelbase for aero reasons.
The longer the wheelbase, the more aerodynamic surface you have, which makes an enormous difference. It also means they can run less rake, which in turn means the rear isn’t as high and there’s less drag on the car. It also typically lowers the centre of gravity, so you can place components lower, improving cornering ability in the faster corners.
It’s not all good news though! The longer the wheelbase, the less agile the car is. This is why the Red Bull is normally faster than the Mercedes through the slower corners. The shorter wheelbase, higher rake design, allows for cars to be much better on turning, and rotate better through the slower corners.
With the addition of hybrid systems, additional safety and removal of in-race refuelling, the FIA have had to increase the minimum weight of the cars in order to keep safety a priority. Subsequently, with strict limits on width, the cars have naturally got longer.
It must be said however, that the cars are longer, wider and heavier, because the rules have pushed them in that direction.

2 Ferraris aiming for smaller Formula 1 cars

The real question is, could they actually fix it?
Obviously they can’t magically shrink the car to less than it is now whilst keeping all of the additional safety, the hybrid and everything else that comes with these new cars.
The Le Mans hyper cars, Indy cars and some of the lower formulae seem to have managed to run shorter cars with the same components as F1.
So, it stands to reason, if the regulations were to force the move to smaller cars, the teams would manage it.
And the good news……….. they are!
The 2022 Formula 1 regulations are mandating a maximum overall length of 5.63 meters, and a maximum wheelbase of 3.6 meters. Admittedly this is only a hundred millimetre reduction from the length of most of the current cars, and actually no reduction for the current Ferrari, but it is a step in the right direction.

2022 Ferrari wish for smaller Formula 1 cars

Wouldn’t it be fantastic If this is what next year’s car looks like!

These new 2022 regulations look really exciting, – promising smaller Formula 1 cars, simpler aero and much better overtaking.
The even better news for us as Ferrari fans, is they already have a car that complies with the new size regulations, so logic would dictate, we have an edge! All Ferrari need to do is up the power, and with Merc and Red Bull having to compromise their current layouts, we should be in with a shot next year!
Here’s hoping!!!

2022 FIA concepts smaller Formula 1 cars

Read our follow up newsletter Formula 1 in 2022.

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Newsletter 34: BY THE NUMBERS: THE STATE OF THE FERRARI MARKET

By Dee MunroNovember 2, 2021Comments Off

There are collector cars, and then there are Ferraris. The cars that Enzo built are in many respects a market unto themselves, coveted by the ultra-rich for their beauty, performance, and the very status they confer. Ferrari can claim the world’s most valuable car, the 250 GTO – and has at times dominated the international auction scene as thoroughly as it dominated Formula 1 in the Michael Schumacher era.
Yet even at these lofty heights, Ferraris are not immune to the factors affecting other enthusiast vehicles. As we wind down 2021, some notable numbers from the Ferrari market this year show how they are and aren’t just like any other cars.

$10,840,000

The sale price of the only Ferrari to sell at auction for eight figures this year, which is the 1959 Ferrari 250 California LWB Spider, sold by Gooding & Company at Pebble Beach. The lone eight-figure Ferrari sale is down from the record eight sold in 2015, but none sold for more than $10 million in 2019 or in 2020.

40/41

The share of Boomers (1946–1964) versus Gen X (1965–1981) who have called us for insurance quotes on Ferraris since the beginning of 2020.
That represents a huge surge in interest from Gen Xers, who are gradually supplanting their older siblings as the prime movers in the classic car market.
Note, however, that quotes are different than policies – the former represents interest, the latter ownership. Policies show that Boomers still have the majority of the cars, with a 53/33 split.

24

The average premium for which $1 million-plus Ferraris sold at auction this year relative to their condition-appropriate value in the Hagerty Price Guide.
Most of the sparks in the pandemic-era classic-car market have been in the more attainable, more modern segments – think Nissan Skyline GT-Rs and the like.
We’ve even wondered whether the ultra rich are sitting out the latest surge in the classic car market.
The fact that million-dollar Ferraris are seeing such active bidding indicates top collectors are indeed joining the Ferrari market frenzy.

18

As Ferrari values have risen, we’ve seen appreciation for ever-more-recent models, most dramatically the 1987–92 F40, but also for much newer cars like (stick-shift) 1996–2006 575 Maranellos.
It thus bears mentioning that Ferraris do depreciate.
The typical three-year percentage depreciation for a 488 Spider from new – 18 percent – is less than that of competitors like the V-12-powered Aston Martin DB11 Volante (21 percent) but more than that of the Ferrari Portofino (9 percent) and Lamborghini Huraca n Spyder (15 percent).

13

The percentage of people calling us for policy quotes on Ferraris who are inquiring about a 2010–16 Ferrari 458. That makes it the most popular Ferrari, followed by the 488, with 11 percent, and the F430, with 10 percent.
The most popular Enzo-era car is the Dino 246, at 1 percent of our quotes. This largely reflects how much Ferrari has scaled up production in recent years.

73

The average percentage premium in the Hagerty Price Guide for an open-gate transmission when compared to its F1-equipped equivalent. The average includes the F355, 360 Modena, F430, 612 Scaglietti, 575M Maranello, and 599 GTB.
With Ferrari continuing to expand into new product lines and likely expand into electric vehicles, demand will remain strong for the models that built Ferrari into the most sought-after car maker in the world today.
The generational shift from Boomers to Gen Xers is happening with this generation representing the largest share of quotes. However, with the Gen X share of quotes for Enzo-era cars only about a quarter, the demand for vintage cars is uncertain.

Courtesy of HAGERTY/JohnWiley

https://www.hagerty.com/media/market-trends/hagerty-insider/the-state-of-the-ferrari-market/

Month: November 2021

Newsletter 38: FERRARI 599 FIORANO

A pristine example selling at onlyR 2 649 990

Newsletter 37: 355 ….. THE PERFECT FERRARI?

Newsletter 36: MODELS …. NO, NOT THE ONES WITH BOOBS!

Newsletter 35: FORMULA 1 CARS ARE FASTER, BUT WORSE !

WIDTH

LENGTH

Newsletter 34: BY THE NUMBERS: THE STATE OF THE FERRARI MARKET

$10,840,000

40/41

24

18

13

73

Courtesy of HAGERTY/JohnWiley

A pristine example selling at only
R 2 649 990