Ferrari 599GTB Car Review

Facts At A Glance
Car: Ferrari 599 GTB
Prices: £179,902 – on the road
Insurance Group: 20 CO2 [g/km]
Emissions: 490g/km
Performance: Max Speed 205+mph / 0-62mph 3.7s
Fuel Consumption: (combined) 13.2mpg
Safety: Twin front and side airbags / ABS / F1-Trac WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE ?: Length/Width/Height 4660/1960/1340mm

612 PRANCING HORSES

Our Rating: 7.0 / 10

Ferrari’s Astonishing 599GTB Is A Technological Showcase, A Work Of Automotive Art And A Reminder That Money Can Buy A Very Specific Kind Of Happiness. Andy Enright Reports

Ferrari haven’t had the easiest ride recently. They’ve ceded supremacy in Formula One, some of their recent designs have received a mixed reception and a crop of upstart supercar manufacturers have started tilting at their crown. The likes of Pagani, Koenigsegg, the rejuvenated Bugatti and even Lamborghini, the urchins from down the road, have all lined up to take pot shots at the Maranello marque. None have the depth of history, anything like the same sort of success on the race track or the sheer charisma of Ferrari. Despite their manifold attractions, nor do any of these companies have a product on their books quite like the 599 GTB.

Ushered in to replace the 575M, the 599GTB moves the game on in many more ways than would at first meet the eye. It has a lot to live up to. The 575M started life as the 550 Maranello back in 1996 and despite some initial grumbles about its styling, soon came to vie with the F355 for the title of most loved contemporary Ferrari. It grew more sophisticated and powerful through its metamorphosis into the 575M, but the basic philosophy remained the same. Big engine up front, playful rear-wheel drive handling and a ride/handling compromise that could play the GT and sports cards with equal success. The 550 was a car that marked a change in philosophy for Ferrari’s product portfolio, leaving the entry-level cars (the F355, the 360 Modena and subsequently the F430) to act as the sporting standard bearers, and allowing the front-engined cars to appeal to a more mature clientele. Perhaps that philosophy has now run its course.

The 599GTB may keep the front engine, rear driven layout of the 575M but this is a very different animal. Pop the bonnet and you’ll get your first clue why. Nestling back behind the line of the front axle is a mildly detuned version of the engine that powers the Enzo hypercar. In this form it’s good for 612bhp which is more than enough to make this the most powerful and quickest series production Ferrari to date. Although there is a fraction less power than the 660bhp Enzo, the 599GTB compensates for that with a more generous draught of torque, with 90 per cent of peak torque available from as low as 3,500rpm. Given that this engine will rev to 8,400rpm - an utterly staggering figure for a V12 powerplant – that’s quite some feat.

The old jibe that with a Ferrari you bought an engine and the rest was thrown in for free certainly can’t be levelled at the 599GTB though. Let’s start with the suspension. High-tech magneto-rheological dampers contain fluid that changes viscosity when an electrical field is applied to it, allowing the damping to be continuously tuned on the fly, the MR dampers reacting in just 0.01 seconds, resulting in improved body control at all times. Keen drivers will also enjoy the F1-Trac traction deployment system. This uses an electronic brain to constantly work out exactly how much power can be deployed at any one time and works overtime to deliver that power to the driver’s right foot. Around Ferrari’s test track, it allowed a typical 599 owner to come within 0.9 seconds a lap of Michael Schumacher’s best mark. With the system disengaged, Schumi was able to leverage a three second advantage. The 599’s chassis is assembled at Ferrari’s Scaglietti coachworks and is constructed from aluminium, resulting in a superstructure that’s claimed to be 50 per cent stiffer than the 575M’s and a whole lot lighter.

Customers get a choice of either a conventional six-speed manual transmission with the traditional Ferrari open gate design or a slick F1-Superfast semi-automatic gearchange. A fast-acting paddle shifting sequential manual, this offers a mode that replicates a fully automatic box as well as a launch control mode for high-speed getaways. Ferrari quote a top speed for the 599GTB in excess of 205mph and a faintly academic sprint from rest to 62mph of just 3.7 seconds. The 0-124mph (200kmh) benchmark disappears in 11.0 seconds and the standing kilometre a smidgeon over 20 seconds. This is savagely quick stuff but Ferrari are at pains to stress that the 599 isn’t a raw sportster. One glance inside shows why.

It may have a spare, pared down look but the 599GTB packs in a lot of kit. You just need to know where to look. Take the seats. These lightweight carbon fibre composite cha