“LaFerrari is the finest expression of our company’s unique, unparalleled engineering and design know-how, including that acquired in Formula 1” – Ferrari’s President, Luca di Montezemolo

The ultimate Ferrari just got unwrapped at the Geneva Motor Show, and even if you are in the show halls, the chances of you getting up close and personal with the new uber-Ferrari are slim to none – the scrum around the Ferrari stand makes a Six Nations game look like a leisurely pyjama party!

This is the most popular car at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, bar none. Sorry McLaren P1, sorry Lambourghini Veneno; it’s all about LaFerrari. And this video from Ferrari shows us what she can do, and she can do plenty!

The video walks us through Ferrari’s most famous super-models, from the 1984 GTO to the 1987 F40, 1996 F50, and the Enzo from 2002. Fast forward to 2013 and it’s time for LaFerrari. And, I think, it is the Maranello brand’s rich history of wonderful cars that sucks us car fans in like flies around a sticky bun, every time they launch a new car. As Ferrari’s President, Luca di Montezemolo says; “LaFerrari is the finest expression of our company’s unique, unparalleled engineering and design know-how, including that acquired in Formula 1”.

There’s a nice bit of drifting in the video – although more tyre smoke would’ve been nice – and LaFerrari clearly corners with extreme flat and firm precision. And, yes, it howls like a banshee! But, behind every great Ferrari video is a red car that seemingly defies physics. Here are the performance stats to back up that achingly beautiful, £1 million carbon fibre body…

– Dry weight: 1,255kg

– Engine: 6.3-litre, V12 petrol + an electric motor on each rear wheel, plus 60kg KERS-style battery system by Ferrari F1

– Gearbox: 7-speed dual-clutch

– Power: 950bhp

– Torque: 900Nm

– 0-62mph: under 3 seconds

– 0-124mph: under 7 seconds

– 0-186mph: 15.5 seconds

– Top speed: around 220mph

– Max revs: 9,250rpm

– CO2: 330g/km (but who cares!)

– Front brakes: Brembo; 398mm wide

– Rear tyres: Pirelli P-Zero; 345mm wide

– Aero: fully active, F1-style, including motorised rear wing

– Differential: thrid generation electronic rear differntial, or E-Diff

– Suspension: magnetorheological damping with twin solenoids

Yes, it reads like an F1 tech spec, but, unlike some who would criticise a new McLaren supercar for being all techno and no soul, Ferrari always manage to breathe life into their supercars, and LaFerrari seemingly pulses with some kind of organic-performance. Yes, the new Lambo and McLaren all get searing power and razor-sharp looks that’ll lose you an eye, but the new Ferrari, yet again, brings its Gran Turismo tech spec to life.

That’s what makes every new top-notch Ferrari a car-lovers fantasy, and that’s why, until the best of the rest can capture some of that prancing spirit, a super-fast Ferrari will always be the dream car of dreams.

 

 By Dan Anslow