All New 2011 Ferrari 599GTO Review

This month I have a new Ferrari for you. Now Ferrari doesn’t need a mention. 2011 Ferrari 599GTO raises its street performance again with DOHC 48-valve V-12(engine type), aluminum block and heads, port fuel injection and 6-speed automated manual transmission. Its actually a new face in Maranello and is powerful, more sophisticated, more agile, and even faster. Ferrari calls it “the most extreme sports car” it has ever produced. At a company where fabulous is the starting point for pretty much every new project, that’s saying something.

Now you might ask is it even hotter than Enzo? Then let me tell you yes……it is!

Ferrari’s 599GTB Fiorano, as it is called, is visually much same as the GTB, just additional aero elements at the front, aggressive rear air diffusers, and other various airflow management touches that add up to double the high-speed downforce of the “regular” 599. Just go in some detail.

• Dimentions

1. Wheelbase: 108.3 in Length: 185.4 in
2. Width: 77.2 in Height: 52.2 in
3. Curb weight: 3850 lb

• Performance: (C/D EST)

1. Zero to 60 mph: 3.1 sec
2. Zero to 100 mph: 6.5 sec
3. Standing 1/4-mile: 11.0 sec
4. Top speed (redline limited): 208 mph

• Split-Second Defined

With a manettino setting of Race or higher, the single-clutch mechanical manual takes just 60 milliseconds to go from one gear to the next, according to Ferrari. That’s about twice as fast as the gearbox response in the GTB Fiorano, and beyond the hand speed of any human operating a traditional manual. The gigantic shift paddles make actuating cog changes a pure joy- at the top end of sixth, flat out, the GTO will be traveling at just over 208 mph, so maybe there are enough gears after all. Ferrari forecasts a 0-to-62-mph time of 3.35 seconds, quicker than the Enzo.

• Power Mining

The GTO’s power increase over the GTB was achieved largely by improved intake and exhaust flow, the latter carefully tuned to emit sounds that are both louder and noticeably more nourishing to the tifosi spirit. Other elements of the GTO V-12 include a new 180-degree (flat) crankshaft design with throws designed to twirl more freely, extensive friction-reducing measures that Ferrari says make it 12 percent more efficient than the GTB’s V-12, and improved digital control of the ignition system, which monitors and adjusts every combustion event.

• The Benign Rocket

Worth mention is how enthusiastically and forgivingly this latest GTO applies that power and speed to a given stretch of straights and curves. The fundamental mechanical elements of the dynamic upgrade versus the standard 599GTB Fiorano and the more belligerent Handling Gran Turismo Evoluzione (HGTE) version are stiffer spring rates and a heftier rear anti-roll bar. There’s also more grip; Ferrari estimates about 1.25 g, thanks to bigger contact patches from 285/30 front and 315/35 rear Michelin rubber made from a new compound; these Pilot Super Sports are a little stickier than the very sticky Pilot Sport Cups.

• Manettino Magic

As with the 599GTB, a set of auto-adjusting magneto rheological shock absorbers provide wonderfully precise damping, as well as astoundingly comfortable ride quality on public roads. But the element that gives this supercar an outstanding degree of user-friendliness is how well the GTO takes care of its driver at high speeds via the five settings offered by the manettino (it means “little hand”), that small dial mounted on the lower right corner of the steering-wheel center.

Tags: air diffusers, aluminum block, cog, curb weight, downforce, exhaust flow, extreme sports, ferrari, gtb fiorano, manual transmission, new face, port fuel injection, pure joy, split second, street performance