Over the past three years, as manufacturers explore the very limits of automobile niches, Ferrari has been quietly plying its trade in the traditional sense, producing supercars and proper sports models like the California and 458 Italia, and not venturing out into the unknown…or has it?
Well, the answer is clearly no, because while everyone else’s backs were turned with the arrival of the California, the Maranello-based automaker’s engineers have been developing a replacement for the 612 Scaglietti – except that there’s a bit of a twist this time, with the promise of useable room behind the front seats for two adults and… Ferrari’s first production four-wheel drive system.
The Italian marque did have a four-wheel drive concept in the pipeline in the late eighties, the 408RM (a mid-mounted engine that drove all four wheels through a transfer case at the rear, and to the front via a front differential), but the car never got the go-ahead and was ultimately shelved. Until now, that is.
Ferrari has blown the dust off its old concept and refined it, and then some – because the new 4RM system is claimed to weigh 50 per cent less than a conventional all-wheel drive system. It essentially leaves the rear wheels unassisted, only sending torque to the front when needed.
Powered by a big 6,3-litre V12 with direct injection, the FF boasts figures upward of 480 kW at 8 000 r/min and 680 N.m of torque at 6 000 r/min. It’s also lighter than the 612 by as much as 50 kg (tiping the scales at 1 790 kg), which is pretty impressive considering that there’s an all-wheel drive system under that Pininfarina designed shape.
Using the full extent of the firm’s motorsport expertise the FF will sprint to 100 km/h from rest in just 3,7 seconds with a top speed on the other side of 300 km/h through the aid of a dual-clutch transmission, while the sophisticated electronically-altered suspension set-up and carbon-ceramic brakes keep the handling sharp.
Even though it has two doors we feel this is a direct assault on the likes of the Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide – what with Ferrari claiming the best interior room and boot space in its class, including traditional four-door saloons. Time will tell.