Ferrari's New Car Tech Idea: Make Car Go Really Fast

cartechboy writes "Forget EV batteries and autonomous driving. Ferrari understands old-school advanced car tech — basically, they just want to make the thing go ridiculously fast. The Italians showed off very serious chasis technology today in the new Ferrari Speciale at the Frankfurt Auto Show. The new electronic 'Side Slip angle Control' system uses algorithms that compute and analyze lateral acceleration, yaw angle, steering wheel angle and wheel speed in real-time. The system compares these readings to target data, and then just adjusts traction control and electric differential to be more efficient. Top speed: 202 mph."

Please proofread

[Anonymous Coward]

The word chassis has a double-S in the middle.

201 mph

[swaq]

Ferrari built a car that could do 201 mph in 1987. Glad to see they're improving...

Re:202 mph

[dicobalt]

But does the ZR1 handle as well on a track in the twisties? Of course, I'm going on the assumption that people get cars like this to race them. Where racing is defined by doing something more complicated than going in a straight line.

Re:202 mph

[AlexOsadzinski]

The Corvette and the 458 are both terrific cars, but in very different ways.

I don't have a ZR1, but I have the 427, which is reasonably close to the ZR1 in many ways. While Chevrolet probably makes very little money on the Corvette, they still have to cut a lot of corners, and it is NOT an exotic. The performance is amazing in a straight line, and not bad on the twisties. The interior is, um, not impressive, although it's improved on the new C7 versions. You're sitting in a plastic car that's fantastic value for money and a lot of fun.

The 458 (Italia version, as I can't speak for the Speciale or Spider) is a luxury exotic. It's an "event" to drive it, and the dynamics, sound and overall experience strictly dominate the Corvette. But the Corvette (the 427 at least) is only $80k, and a moderately specced Italia is over $300k: every one is highly customized for the buyer by the factory, and every option is, um, fully priced, e.g. $32k for special paint, $n,000 for every bit of carbon, etc. For getting from one place to another, the Ferrari isn't worth 4 times the Corvette's price. For sheer fun and excitement, "worth" is in the mind of the buyer.

Re:202 mph

[Kozar_The_Malignant]

It isn't the straight line top speed that matters. You could always get 200+ mph out of big block American V8s. It's speed and stability around corners that matters. This Ferrari seewms just the ticket for that off-camber, diminishing radius turn with a pothole at the apex.

Re:202 mph

[doctor woot]

I really pity whoever needs to fork out 2 million for a chance at getting laid.