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A Glimpse into Ferraris' Future
The following article, written by Luca Ciferri, appeared in Automotive News Europe:
But, in a marked change of strategy, Ferrari recently invited selected journalists to Maranello to explain some of its future innovations.
The luxury sports car niche is getting increasingly crowded, said Ferrari technical director Amedeo Felisa. Pressure is mounting from rivals such as Porsche, Jaguar and Aston Martin. Mercedes-Benz and BMW are also showing interest in Ferrari territory with their SLR and Z9 supercars. "Technical innovation is written in the Ferrari DNA," said Felisa. "We want to show that our company won't survive purely on its name, historical heritage and racing legend. It also has to maintain its leading technological edge."
With this in mind, Ferrari staged a full-day seminar that focused on various areas of Ferrari's engineering operations. "Whoever enters this niche, wanting to find his own space, has to push on the innovation side," said Felisa. Ferrari hopes the move to aluminium spaceframes and body panels on all its mainstream models will help it stay ahead in the race to cut weight. The recently launched 360 Modena Coupe uses an aluminium spaceframe rather than a tubular steel frame. It is 32 percent lighter and 44 percent more rigid than its 355 predecessor.
For limited-production cars - such as the future F60 - Ferrari will continue to use a full carbon fibre chassis.
Ferrari is also working on a pre-catalyst with a bypass valve to maintain performance while meeting new emissions regulations. The pre-catalyst functions for the first 100 seconds after engine start-up. Engines pollute the most during the warm-up phase. After that, the bypass valve opens, cutting off the gas's passage through the pre-catalyst. The pre-catalyst absorbs almost 4 percent of power - or around 8hp.
Ferrari is planning to draw heavily on Formula One technology to maintain the cutting-edge performance and handling of its road cars. Future Ferrari production engines will be closer than ever before to Formula One units. They will use variable inlet manifolds, a single throttle per cylinder commanded by drive-by-wire and twin fuel injectors. In future production Ferraris, a pneumatic valve recall is expected to replace the hydraulic variable valve timing system. A Formula One-style gear box will offer sensations closer to a racing car by more than halving the gear change response time.
Regarding aerodynamics, Ferrari is working to reduce underbody depression at speeds over 200kph by the use of variable flaps. The 360 Modena was the first 300kph-plus car to be launched without any visible spoiler. Ferrari is also working to improve the flow of air underneath the body through a revised double wishbone suspension. Although there are no plans to introduce active suspension, a stability control system will be offered to customers when it has satisfied Ferrari's own test drivers.
On the layout side, Ferrari engineers have modified a 550 Maranello to help meet stringent emission requirements. The 550 features a wheelbase lengthened by 200 mm, allowing bigger catalytic converters to be installed closer to the engine. In this prototype, the exhaust pipes have been moved to the sides of the car, as with the Dodge Viper. This solution permits a smaller front section thanks to a thinner central tunnel that carries only the transmission shaft.
Ferrari is experimenting with a fully adaptive seat. Thanks to electronically controlled pneumatic cushions, the seat can change in size and rigidity according to self- adjustable damper settings. Ferrari expects it to weigh just 500g more than a conventional seat. Sensors within the adaptive seat will be used to give information about the occupant's size and weight to the smart airbags.
A Formula One-style steering wheel will be fitted to future Ferraris. The steering wheel will incorporate side indicators in its lateral spokes. The controls for the antilock braking system, dampers, F1 gearbox and ground clearance will be housed in a central area. Finally, the upper part of the steering wheel rim won't be circular anymore, but U-shaped. It will feature an LED (light-emitting diode) indicator for the rev counter, again as used by Formula One cars.
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