Ferrari has announced that it will offering a very special car at the RM Auction due to be held this coming Sunday. The car, the very last F430 to leave the production line towards the end of this year, will be auctioned to raise funds for rebuilding in Abruzzo, central Italy, which was devastated by the earthquake on the 6th of April. Ferrari will liaise with the local authorities to ensure that the funds will go towards the most needy.

The F430 will feature a special two-tone livery which recalls the traditional colours of Aquila, the city most hit, and will be consigned with a certificate signed by Ferrari Chairman, Luca di Montezemolo, with a personalised dedication plate to commemorate the generous donation.

The client adjudicating the car will be invited to Maranello to choose the final specifications and Ferrari has also offered to equip the car with a number of options from its extensive Carrozzeria Scaglietti catalogue.

The F430

First launched in 2004, the F430 represents the peak of Ferrari's development of the mid-engined V8 berlinetta. Every inch of the car was inspired by the engineering research carried out at Ferrari's Gestione Sportiva F1 racing division. The result is a highly innovative car that offers outstanding performance thanks to cutting-edge technology, such as the electronic differential (E-Diff ), initially developed by Ferrari for its F1 single-seaters, and the manettino switch on the steering wheel which directly governs the vehicle's dynamic set-up.

Technical specifications

• Engine type 90° V8
• Total displacement 4308 cc
• Compression ratio 11.3:1
• Maximum power 360.3 kW** (490 CV) at 8500 rpm
• Maximum torque 465 Nm (343 lb/ft) at 5250 rpm
• Gearbox F1 paddle shift
• Kerb weight 1450 kg (3196 lbs)*
• Length 4512 mm (177.6 in)
• Width 1923 mm (75.7 in)
• Height 1214 mm (47.8 in)
• Wheelbase 2600 mm (102.4 in)
• Maximum speed over 315 km/h (196 mph)
• 0-100 km/h (62 mph) 4.0 s
• Fuel consumption 15.2 l/100 km* (combined cycle)
• CO2 emissions 345 g/km* (combined cycle)

* European market version*

* For reasons of homogeneity, engine power is expressed in kW, in accordance with the International System of Units (SI). The brake horse power (bhp) can be calculated as follows: 1 kW = 1.34 bhp

Ferrari is considering twin-turbo V8 power for its successor to the Enzo supercar--an admission sure to send shock waves through the ranks of V12 Enzo owners even though the new car isn't due until 2012.

Ferrari GT technical director Roberto Fedeli confirmed that the Italian sports-car maker is investigating both V12 and V8 options for its Enzo successor but insisted that Ferrari was no longer interested in power wars.

The decision to approve development of an all-new V8--the first such Ferrari supercar engine since the F40--will be a philosophical rather than an engineering one.

"For us, it's not just a question of power. We have to choose whether we maintain the shape of the weight-to-power curve of the Enzo with more power or with less weight," Fedeli said. "If we do a [2200-pound] car with the same weight-to-power ratio as the FXX, then you want to save the maximum weight. The best packaging for that kind of car is an eight-cylinder turbo. That would have to be an all-new V8."

It means Ferrari is running parallel V8 and V12 development programs on the next Enzo-style supercar, though neither has been allocated an official internal code number.

"The FXX is to test some innovations that we have in our minds [for the next car]," said Fedeli. "We have one to one and a half years to choose the solution before we start the car."

Italian carmaker Ferrari is suing a Danish funeral home that specially designed an urn in the shape of a Ferrari to fulfill the wishes of a young boy who died of cancer, the funeral home told AFP on Friday.

"Ferrari in Italy is claiming that we marketed the urn and that we are misusing the brand ... They are suing us for 250,000 kroner (46,000 dollars, 33,500 euros)," the owner of the Begravelses Service funeral home, Carzten Mark, told AFP.

"But we made one single piece of art," Mark said, insisting that his company did not market the urn.

"It has been seen by me, the family and Ferrari Import Denmark," he said.

The boy was a big fan of Ferrari sportscars. When he died in 2004, his parents asked the funeral home if it could make an urn in the shape of a Ferrari.

Mark said his company had written Ferrari Import Denmark for permission to design the urn and received a positive reply.

"They were very helpful and even sent us the logo and stickers to use and a written permission. I still have their email in my inbox," he said.

A Danish television station filmed a report on the funeral home's custom-made urns, mentioning the Ferrari receptacle but not showing it on film. It did however film another urn designed by the same artist bearing the Chanel logo, Mark said.

Ferrari Italy perceived the report as marketing for the funeral home, and sued the four-man company in 2005.

The case is to go to court in Denmark in October.

"I feel terrible about this. We tried to go the extra mile to help this family," Mark said.

As for his chances of winning the court case, Mark said: "I'm optimistic in many ways but you can never be sure."

After years of waiting and never seeing anything the Prancing Horse will finally appear in a Gran Turismo. Based on these newly-released shots, GT5 will feature at least the Ferrari F430. We should expect more vehicles from Ferrari given that the 430 is in.

Microsoft must be heart-broken that Project Gotham Racing 4 or Forza won’t be the only racers with Ferrari. This all makes sense, too, since the release boxart art for PGR4 does not feature a Ferrari on the cover. This is the time in the series’ history that a Ferrari doesn’t grace the packaging.

This is huge for Sony and Ferrari, too. Given that the GT series is about tuning vehicles, we expect to see similar tuning options to those that were in Forza for the Ferrari vehicles.

Ferrari's show-stopping appearance at this month's Goodwood Festival of Speed includes a display featuring an "iconic car" from each of the company's six decades, as well as the appearance of a 612 Scaglietti HGTS in one-off police livery.

Ferrari has been partying heavily in 2007 as it marks its 60th anniversary. The Goodwood event promises to be an emotional retrospective of the evolution of the Prancing Horse "from its debut in motor racing to today's state-of-the-art GT cars," the company said in a statement.

The 1950s will be represented by the 250 Testa Rossa, celebrated for winning the 12 Hours of Sebring, the 1,000-km in Buenos Aires and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1958. The 250 GTO will represent Ferrari in the 1960s, while the Daytona is the seminal car of the 1970s. The F40, created to celebrate Ferrari's 40th anniversary in 1987, marks the 1980s and the F50 celebrates the '90s. "The last decade of the 21st century is represented by the Enzo," Ferrari noted, saying the car "set a new benchmark for the development of engineering solutions and demonstrated the synergies between F1 and GT cars."

The cop-shop version of the 612 Scaglietti HGTS led the U.K. leg of the Ferrari worldwide relay tour earlier this year. It will be driven by a member of the Sussex Police Force and will be the center of the company's historical display. Attendees can also get a look at the Ferrari relay baton, along with a gallery of the 60 images that are enameled on it.

Ferrari GB will attempt to set a new Guinness World Record for the “Largest Parade of Ferraris” at the Ferrari Racing Days spectacular at Silverstone from 8-9-10 June 2007.  The attempt will take place on Saturday 9 June and will see the Silverstone circuit turned Rosso Corsa as Ferrari owners from all over the UK take to the track in an incredible display of Ferrari’s road car heritage. Ferrari owners interested in participating in this attempt to set a new Guinness World Record should contact Ferrari GB directly on 01753 878700 with details of their Ferrari and to register their interest.

In addition to the Guinness World Record attempt, the Ferrari Racing Days event will feature the UK round of the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli with over 60 equally matched Ferrari F430 Challenge cars jostling for position on one of the fastest F1 Grand Prix circuits, and the ultra-exclusive FXX which will be making its only official UK appearance. It will be an action-packed weekend of Ferrari festivities which will appeal to Ferrari clients and the ever-faithful Tifosi.

Ferrari Racing Days at Silverstone is the UK focus of Ferrari’s 60th Anniversary and, quite appropriately, will also feature the Ferrari Shell Historic Championship in which classic road and race Ferraris compete in three different categories to relive the golden era of motorsport. Ferrari’s customer motorsport division, Corse Clienti, are also supporting several Ferrari clients who will be demonstrating a range of famous and historic F1 cars from the company’s illustrious racing past.

The Ferrari Racing Days will also be the focus of the 40th Anniversary of the Ferrari Owners Club in the UK, with an incredible display of at least 40 examples of the iconic F40 supercar which remains one of Ferrari’s most memorable performance cars. With Ferrari owners from all over the UK invited to participate in the Ferrari Racing Days and the Ferrari Owners Club’s 40th Anniversary, it is expected that Silverstone will see the largest gathering of Ferraris in one place in 2007.

How long should the world's super-rich have to wait before they can buy a Ferrari? The answer has as much to do with how luxury-goods companies create an aura of exclusivity as it does with the global economy's shifting winds minting more millionaires in places like China, Russia and the Middle East.



For years, Ferrari SpA, a division of Italy's Fiat SpA, had a standard 12-month waiting list for a new car. That was long enough to make prospective Ferrari owners drool with anticipation, but not too long to drive them toward competitors such as Porsche AG or Volkswagen AG's Lamborghini, where waiting times are usually shorter.



The year-long waiting period also allowed Ferrari to achieve a rare feat in the automobile industry: the resale value of its cars, pushed up by loyal collectors and dealers, rarely depreciated. So confident was Ferrari Chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo of this system that in 1999 he boasted the company would never make more than 5,000 cars a year. At the time it was making slightly more than 4,000, and most of its customers were in three markets: North America, Italy and Germany.



Since then, however, the math and the market logic underlying Ferrari's approach have been thrown out the window. The escalating desire to own a Ferrari among the newly rich of Asia, the Middle East and Russia has yanked the company's clubby ways out of whack.



Ferrari made 5,700 cars last year, and the number this year will crest above 6,000. Even so, average waiting times in Hong Kong, the United States, Australia and England have soared to around 24 months or more. In Italy and Germany, the wait hovers around 18 months. (Ferraris currently retail from $190,000 for a F430 to $280,000 for a 599 GTB Fiorano.)



"We realized a few years ago that we needed to rethink this," says Andrea Bozzoli, Ferrari's commercial and marketing director. "We started to consider 18 months ideal, but now we can't even keep up with that." What changed, Ferrari executives say, was a surge in demand in emerging markets. The company now sells more than 100 cars annually in the United Arab Emirates and more than 150 in China -- two markets where sales were virtually nonexistent only a decade ago. Ferrari will ship 60 cars to Russia this year, only three years after opening its first dealership there.



Michael Mastrangelo, a Ferrari dealer in Spring Valley, N.Y., since the 1970s, says that in the New York area in recent years, the wait has averaged three years for a new Ferrari. Last year, when Wall Street bankers were earning record piles of cash, Mr. Mastrangelo couldn't reap the benefits. Since Ferrari's headquarters imposes strict limits on how many cars it ships to each dealer, Mr. Mastrangelo's suburban New York City dealership couldn't sate the demand -- especially as repeat customers always come first.



"It's very hard to come into a dealership right now and put in a new order if you are not already a customer," he says. "When I get a young person, what I say is, 'Let's start with a used car' . . . It's kind of like getting into a club."



Satisfying the desires of these wealthy new consumers goes beyond a hot set of wheels. High-end fashion and jewelry brands, such as Gucci Group NV and watchmaker Patek Philippe SA, are also retooling product lines and rethinking marketing. While in mature markets, the target consumers are women, men are heavier-spenders in many emerging markets, so fashion brands have adjusted their message.



Ferrari has always been skittish about making too many cars, afraid that even a modest boost in volume could damage its refined image and aspirational appeal. Even this year's increase of 10% above last year's 5,700 cars will strain its one factory. All of its cars are customized, and its specialized work force spends years in training before joining the assembly line. Porsche, by contrast, makes around 100,000 cars a year. For a customized car, customers must wait between three and six months, according to Ferrari.



Now, coping with the sudden demand from new quarters is proving awkward. "If you go to some Arab countries, where customers want a car, or more than one, immediately, it can get sticky," says Ferrari's Mr. Bozzoli. Ferrari, he says, tries to make special accommodations for members of royal families and tries to get used cars to tide over important customers until they can get a new one. Still, there is a "feeling of mistrust about the waiting list," says Mostyn Heard, the president of the Ferrari owners club of the United Arab Emirates



"People think that you might get moved up or down on the list depending on whether you are a V-VIP [Very-Very Important Person] or merely a successful manager," says Mr. Heard, who manages properties for the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and expects to wait three years before his new 599 model will be delivered.



Ferrari admits that there was at least one such case of waiting-list tampering but that this no longer occurs. There is another problem with multiyear waiting lists, though: They can foster a gray market in which a person who takes delivery of a new Ferrari immediately flips it to an even hungrier buyer for sometimes double the price. That weakens Ferrari's ability to control its pricing and resale value, and keep track of its coveted customers.



It's a similar problem that has plagued high-end fashion labels for years: Designs that hit stores in Paris or Milan first would be snapped up by dealers who resold them in boutiques in Asia. Big luxury-goods conglomerates from Gucci to LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA have since tightened their supply chains to ensure new lines hit their global store network at the same time and, when possible, at the same price. Of the roughly 20 Ferrari F430s circulating in the UAE, only about three were sold through the local dealership, estimates Mr. Heard. The rest were bought off mostly Europeans for what is often a substantial premium.



Ferrari is trying to stem the problem by policing waiting lists from dealers world-wide. Getting on the list usually requires fronting a portion of the car's sales price and providing proof of sufficient funds to cover the rest. Moreover, Ferrari tries to weed out duplicate names or people it thinks might be posing as a front for another buyer, says Amedeo Felisa, Ferrari's general manager.



Meanwhile, Ferrari is trying to keep up with the demands of its new consumers. At the Shanghai auto show in April, Ferrari served cocktails to a select group of prospective buyers atop a podium surrounded by a high glass wall while gawkers snapped photographs.



Among the potential clients was Mr. Liu, a 35-year-old financial entrepreneur who declined to provide his full name. Mr. Liu, who already owns a BMW 750 and a Land Rover, said he was willing to pay 4 million yuan ($520,000) for a Ferrari 612 Scaglietti, but he didn't want to be put on any waiting list.



When salespeople tried to steer him toward a lower-priced car that would be more readily available, Mr. Liu insisted on waiting for the 612 , snapping: "I want it as soon as possible."

This promises to be quite a weekend at Silverstone. Not only is Jaguar making its competitive comeback in the FIA GT race, but motorsport legend Nigel Mansell is also returning to the track in the same event.



The 1992 Formula One world champion is back behind the wheel of a Ferrari for the first time in 17 years, at the Northamptonshire scene of three of his greatest, and most emotional, grand prix victories.



He will be racing a 200mph 430 GT for Stewart Rodin’s Edinburgh-based Scuderia Ecosse squad in next Sunday’s two-hour Tourist Trophy showpiece, the second round of this year’s FIA GT Championship.



It will be Mansell’s first sportscar race, at the ripe old age of

53, and he’ll be sharing the driving duties with one of the team’s regular drivers, Andrew Kirkaldy or Chris Niarchos. Mansell, who won three grands prix for Ferrari during 1989 and 1990, explained: “Stewart runs a very good team and the cars are beautifully prepared. I hope to see everyone at Silverstone, as I think we are in for a great weekend of racing.”



Understandably, Rodin is equally thrilled to see such a megastar in one of his bright red cars. He said: “We are delighted that Nigel will be joining us at Silverstone. In terms of race victories, he is the most successful British F1 driver of all-time, which is an incredible achievement. For a team that is passionate about Ferrari, we are so happy that Nigel is joining us, and we will do everything we can to make sure that he has a successful weekend.”



Mansell has already tested the 450bhp 430 at Knockhill in Fife, and is confident of being competitive. He’s fully aware of the potential

pitfalls facing a high-profile star in such strange surroundings, too. “The Ferrari is fun to drive, but it remains to be seen how I will get on in a race situation, as ex-F1 drivers tend to go out with a target on their backs!” he admitted.



Whatever the final result when the dust finally settles on Sunday evening, FIA GT boss Stephane Ratel knows the presence of such a big name will have tremendous appeal.



“Nigel is a natural-born racer, and seeing him reunited with the Ferrari name at Silverstone will be an extremely special moment,” said Ratel. “He’s an incredible professional and an entertainer.”

The Ferrari brand is synonymous with desirability and exclusiveness, a combination that leaves buyers often waiting close to 18 months just to take delivery of their purchase. Execs at Maranello are well aware of the problem and is increasing production of its cars by 5% in an effort to reduce waiting lists, especially for the countries that have the greatest potential such as China.



Ferrari will focus on meeting demand from new markets such as China, without effecting the supply of its cars to important markets such as Japan and the US. “China will be very important in the future for Ferrari”, explains Andrea Bozzoli, commercial director and of marketing of the Italian mark, adding “it is one market in which proportionally we are going to invest more money for the coming years.”



The US remains Ferrari’s single largest market, followed by Germany, the UK, Italy, Japan, Switzerland and France. Last year, sales for Ferrari totaled 5,671 vehicles with the greatest levels of growth in the Asia-Pacific region. Ferrari’s policy for the future is to maintain growth in its established markets but heavily promote the brand in the emerging regions. For China, Ferrari will build a new a technical center complete with a high-performance driving school for new customers.

The Enzo Ferrari has been unveiled as the world's most iconic supercar.



The legendary £425,000 model, of which only a few hundred were ever built, topped a definitive list of the 100 most iconic contemporary cars that money can buy.



The Zurich Iconic Car Index, created by Motoring Research which was founded by former Top Gear presenter, Peter Burgess, was based on a sophisticated formula which weighted factors including price, performance, engine power and marque.



Developed for Zurich Private Clients, it also pooled the opinions of a panel of the UK's top motoring writers who judged brand status and style. The cars had to cost more than £50,000 to be considered.



Ferrari built only a few hundred Enzos, but had to keep upping the quota to keep loyal customers happy. Even at £425,000 you can’t buy a new one now while used cars fetch even more.



Second in the list was the Porsche Carrera GT which was first unveiled at the Paris motor show four years ago. The super car, with a purpose-built V10 engine, comes with a heady £315,000 price tag.



Ferrari also sealed third spot with its very latest model, the Ferrari F599. Costing a cool £157,000, the 2006 F599 has received accolades from everyone who has driven it.



The highest place British built super car was the Aston Martin Vanquish S. The oldest Aston Martin in the current line up combines high technology engineering with a composite bodywork.



To own a car at the top of the list, it pays to be seriously wealthy. The most expensive car on the list the Bugatti Veyron - driven by the likes of Hollywood A-lister Tom Cruise - is priced at £840,000.



The second most expensive is the Enzo at £425,000, with owners including Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. The late Pope, John Paul II, even had one after he was given the 400th Ferrari to be manufactured by the prestigious factory. Those on a smaller budget can look instead to the Bentley Continental, at £115,000, or the Ferrari F599 at £157,000.



Zurich, a leading insurer for the extremely wealthy, has seen a change in the investment habits of millionaires over recent years with traditional high value purchases, like art and sculpture, now being joined by iconic cars.



The insurance company developed the Iconic Car Index to better understand what type of cars millionaires are putting top of their shopping list.



Nick Brabham, boss of Zurich Private Clients, said: "The Iconic Car Index provides a fascinating insight into what the world’s most affluent people may consider buying if they’re after the ultimate drive.



"The panel of independent motoring experts we spoke to concluded that a model from the Ferrari family is the best that we should aspire to own, with three places in the top 10.



"At Zurich Private Clients, we have seen an increase in the number of customers wanting to cover these sorts of vehicles, and we’ve responded to that change by providing the insurance cover and claims service they deserve to protect these valuable assets."



He added: "The new car market is constantly evolving as technology, design and manufacturing processes continue to improve. But it is these iconic cars that are often supported by powerful brand heritage, which can help them hold their value and therefore present not only the drive of a lifetime but a good investment opportunity as well."



Zurich Iconic Car Index Top 10:



1. Ferrari Enzo £425,000

2. Porsche Carrera GT £315,000

3. Ferrari F599 £157,000

4. Aston Martin Vanquish S £177,000

5. Mercedes-Benz SLR £317,000

6. Bugatti Veyron £840,000

7. Ferrari 612 Scaglietti £175,000

8. Lamborghini Murcielago £175,000

9. Bentley Continental GT £115,00

10. Pagani Zonda £380,000