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Ferrari

With the new Spider variant of the Roma, Ferrari adds another convertible to its range which also replaces the Portofino M that was launched in 2020. The Roma Spider has much of its platform similar to the coupe (which was introduced in Malaysia in September 2021) but with a folding fabric soft-top in place of the solid metal roof.

Recalling the Italian lifestyle of the 1950s and 1960s, the Roma Spider marks a return of a soft-top to the sportscar maker’s range on a front-engined model 54 years after the 1969 365 GTS4. It’s also the first soft-top convertible from Ferrari since the F430 18 years ago.

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Ferrari and Naza have been associated for the past 15 years but the association will come to an end after this month. The Italian sportscar maker will end its business relationship with Naza Italia Sdn Bhd – aka Ferrari Malaysia – on April 8, 2023 and a new company will take over as official distributor for Malaysia.

Confirming the termination, a statement from the Naza Automotive Group today explained that the company has been reviewing the brand mix of its automotive business to find the right fit for its business strategy. “We have agreed to conclude our relationship with Ferrari S.p.A due to the non-alignment of their expectations to our strategy,” the statement said, giving assurance of support to Ferrari for a smooth transition of business.

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Around lunchtime (7 pm in Malaysia) today at Ferrari’s Fiorano track in Italy, its Formula 1 team unveiled the 69th F1 racing car built by Ferrari. Being the first physical launch of a model after two years of virtual car presentations (due to the pandemic), 500 fans were invited to attend the event.

Before the launch, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz went to greet the crowd which included many members of the various Scuderia Ferrari Clubs and students from Muner, the Motorvehicle University of Emilia-Romagna, and some from the Alfredo Ferrari Higher Education Institute, along with their teachers.

The new car is designated ‘SF-23’ and this marks a return to the format of the Scuderia Ferrari initials combined with the year of competition, as has been the case for most of the hybrid era, was first seen on video.

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As the teams begin their phased unveiling of the new cars for the 2023 Formula 1 World Championship, the FIA has also confirmed that 6 manufacturers have registered as Power Unit Suppliers for the 2026 – 2030 seasons of the championship.

The manufacturers that will supply the F1 power units are Alpine Racing, Audi, Ferrari, Honda Racing Corporation, Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains and Red Bull Ford. It’s interesting that Honda has signed up to be an engine manufacturer after 2025 when Red Bull Racing, which will use its engines until then, will switch to a new power unit jointly developed with Ford (and so will Scuderia AlphaTauri).

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China may be one of the important markets for supercar brands but as it only began to open to the world in the 1980s, the first official orders for such cars in modern times were actually made within the past few decades. For Ferrari, the first order the company received was from a customer in Beijing in 1992.

This year, the company celebrates the 30th anniversary of receiving that first order with a one-of-a-kind Tailor Made Ferrari Roma. Drawing inspiration from traditional Chinese aesthetics and craftsmanship through the many personalisation options offered by the Ferrari Tailor Made programme, the Roma was designed in collaboration with the prominent Chinese designer Jiang Qiong’er.

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Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, the theme park of the legendary Italian sportscar brand, will launch the world’s most immersive mega-coaster in January 2023 as an addition to its Ferrari-inspired rides and attractions for both adults and younger guests.

Known as ‘Mission Ferrari’, this new roller-coaster will offer an even more exhilarating, high intensity and multisensory 5D experience. A unique world-first feature is the sideways coaster drop which is enabled by the cutting-edge technology. Other features are an inverted loop and state-of-the-art special effects with stunning scenic show sets.

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To mark the closing of the 75th anniversary celebrations of the time when Ferrari’s first-ever racing car, the 125 S, exited the factory gates in 1947, the sportscar maker has unveiled the Ferrari Vision Gran Turismo. However, this closed-wheel single-seater is not a production model: it is the first Ferrari concept car created specifically for the virtual motor sport world.

This model signifies an important step for Ferrari in the virtual environment, while also redefining  its stylistic language. It represents a futuristic design manifesto for Ferrari’s road and racing cars, a stimulus for both the engineers and drivers (real and virtual) of tomorrow.

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The 499P is the new Le Mans Hypercar with which Ferrari will tackle the World Endurance Championship in the elite class from 2023. It pays homage to the Ferrari endurance tradition, re-establishing a historical connection 50 years after the 312 P made its last appearance in world endurance racing’s premier class.

The designation follows Ferrari’s practice where prototypes were identified by the letter ‘P’, frequently preceded by the number of the engine’s displacement. The 499P is no exception, but its powertrain is significantly different from past racing cars. The 499P’s hybrid powertrain combines a mid-rear power unit with an electric motor powering the front axle. The internal combustion engine (ICE) has a maximum regulation-limited output to the wheels of 500 kW (680 ps) and is derived from the road-going twin-turbo V6 family.

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Ferrari is an exclusive brand and owning one is already something special. But for those who must have ultra exclusivity, the company’s Special Projects programme will create a ‘One-Off’ model that is literally one-of-a-kind in the world. Each of these unique Ferraris will take around 2 years from start to finish and the latest example is the SP51.

Commissioned for a customer in Taiwan, this latest addition to Ferrari’s One-Off series was designed by the Ferrari Styling Centre and sits on the 812 GTS platform. The front-engined V12 spider’s most striking characteristic is its total absence of a roof, making it an authentic roadster in every respect.

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Although it seems like every carmaker has a SUV today, that’s not really been the case. Ferrari did not jump on the SUV bandwagon like Lamborghini but even they have to offer customers such a car. And as with some other carmakers, they have tried to disassociate their new Purosangue as ‘another new SUV’ but rather, another new Ferrari.

Porsche tried that same line too when they launched the Cayenne as their first SUV, referring to it more as ‘another new Porsche’. And Rolls-Royce, perhaps feeling ‘Sport’ and ‘Utility’ are not appropriate for the brand to be associated with, chose to initially refer to their Cullinan as ‘a high-bodied car’.

But ‘SUV’ has become so embedded today, after having been in use since the `1990s’, that carmakers trying to call their SUVs something else have eventually had to call them that. Some try to use crossover which refers to a blending of SUV and passenger car, with a bit more of the latter.

Anyway, here it is – the first ever SUV in Ferrari’s 75-year history. Just as Volvo took a long time to come out with its first SUV because it had to be satisfied that the important issues of safety were fully addressed, Ferrari has also taken time to ensure that the driving dynamics and performance of allow the Purosangue to have the Prancing Horse on its bonnet.

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