The Ferrari Scuderia. The car is named after Ferrari’s legendary formula one racing team. The word, “Scuderia” means “stable,” as in the stable of race cars that the company keeps. The Scuderia, however, is not a racing car.
You may think that this stripped-down F430 is a race-car, with its minimal curb weight and its 510 base horse power. You may be more convinced of its racing genes when you see the big, crude welds in the tight cockpit and the diamond-plate metal floors, sans carpeting. The switches are big and industrial – easier to access with your racing gloves on. And speed? The Scuderia makes 196 mph at the top end, which might further convince you that you are driving a race-car.
But is the Scuderia a race-car? No. This is 2954 pounds of Italian art. Just as surely as La Giocond, this is an Italian masterpiece created by the modern master – this time a master of automotive design: Ferrari. It is immersive art. Ferrari did not use the harsh welds as an oversight. They are part of the experience. Like the switches and the floor plates they are big, harsh assaults on your senses, bringing home the idea that you are in a magnificent racing machine. When Porsche and Lamborgini make extra-light, superfast versions of their cars, they artfully disguise the shortcomings. With the Scuderia, Ferrari went the opposite direction, making the Spartan nature of the vehicle part of its intoxicating appeal. They started with the already fast F430 and they stripped out all the amenities including carpeting, navigation system and stereo system. In the standard F430, Ferrari packs a fine stereo and GPS unit – in the Scuderia, for which you will pay significantly more, there is a huge blank space in the middle of the dash. For the Spider they have thoughtfully given you an ounce of luxury weight in the form of a docking port for your iPod.
Immediately under that austere surface, however, you will find things that no racing car would ever have: Computers. Not just the normal computer that controls fuel injection, but computers that adjust the suspension and the torque and computers that adjust the handling characteristics. In lieu of a manual gearbox the Scuderia has paddle shifters that can change gears in 60 milliseconds – faster than you can blink. All these things make the Scuderia a very civilized and well-handling, very aggressive sports car. To commemorate Ferrari’s victory in the Formula One Constructor’s World Championship 2008, Ferrari has created 499 soft-top Spiders for 2010. If you are one of the very fortunate few, this may very well be the car for you.
Statistics:
Layout: Mid-engine, rear wheel drive
Engine: Naturally aspirated mid-rear 90° V-8
Horsepower: 510 Base Horsepower at 8500 RPM
Curb Weight: 3175 pounds (176 pounds lighter than the standard F430 Spider)
0-60 MPH: 3.7 seconds
Top Speed: 196 MPH
Beginning in spring of 2009 the Ferrari F430 Scuderia Spider will be available in very limited quantities in the U.S. Order yours now.
