While we at TTAC aren’t big fans of the “anonymous source” reporting method, there are times when it’s that or nothing. Especially when we’re not reporting on “real” news of theoretical upcoming events (i.e. NY Times claiming that all major hurdles for the Chrysler-GM merger had been cleared a few weeks ago). So in this case, I have to cite an anonymous source. But I have it on very credible authority that Ferrari brass in Maranello have procured a ZR1 – not necessarily a purchase, possibly a car on loan from a Ferrari customer. The car is being shipped from New York out to Italy so they can have a look at Chevy’s $100,000 wondercar. Considering that it – at the very least – runs neck and neck with most of Ferrari’s finest cars, it seems like a wise choice. That being said, I’m not entirely sure what Ferrari hopes to learn from scoping out the ZR1. But hey, maybe Ferrari just wants to have one for collector purposes.
I’m not surprised. I figure all car companies, high and low end, buy each others’ cars for various reasons. I can’t imagine what Ferrari thinks they’ll learn from a Corvette, though. If anything, they’ll find their own engineering in a ‘vette. Or see if it goes around the nurburgring as fast as Chevy says it does.
@Areitu – Ferrari’s engineering in a ‘vette? More like the other way around. Ferrari has a few vehicles riding on magnetic suspension technology developed and licenced by GM (now Delphi)…
Truth of the matter is, the ZR1 is significantly superior to Ferrari. Especially taking into account the price differential.
Any number of companies could make what Ferrari makes for the prices it charges – the problem is that other companies don’t have the “legend” to charge what Ferrari can charge.
Honda made the monoque aluminum NSX when Ferrari was still making cars out of welded together steel tubes.
It’s quite possible Ferrari is hoping to advance its aluminum construction knowlege with the ZR1, or possibly they are looking into supercharging as part of their environmental initiative. tcwarnke is right about the magnaride.
Or maybe they just found out that a ‘vett makes ’em wet.
have to agree with the last few callers. Ferraris engineering could be charitably described as a ‘cottage industry’. In truth their show piece factory is positively primative.
As opined above, makers checking out other makers’ models is common. They test drive them, hook them up to strange implements, then take them apart. Actually, way back in Germany, car makers got upset paying full retail, had a little get-together and decided to create a little swap pool.
As far as Ferrari’s show piece factory goes, it is primitive by modern standards. So is Porsche Zuffenhausen btw. I remember showing the Zuffenhausen factory to some friends. The tour was arranged by a high ranking VW manager. The friends were suitably impressed. Manager and I snickered: “They make that stuff BY HAND?”
Heck, they might even learn how to build a car that doesn’t break or wear something out every 10,000 miles. Better yet, go more than 15,000 miles without insanely expensive maintenance. Cheers Ferrari cool-aid drinkers!
Areitu and Bertel Schmitt: this manufacturer pool to check each others cars out still exists and is actually a very sensible idea.
@tcwarnke: I believe most if not all ferraris have some form of computerized adjustable suspension now. However, I’ve only heard great reviews about Magnaride. An American coupe with Ferrari performance at 1/3 to 1/6th will get -anybody- wet. Even an import-loving rice boy like me. :)
@no_slushbox : Aren’t Ferrari monocoques outsourced to another company in Modena nowadays? As far as the NSX goes, you’re quite right. Apparently the late model NSX-R sold in Japan had performance on the level of the 360 Modena, a car 3 generations ahead of the 348 that was sold (I think) at the time of the NSX.
@Bertel Schmitt : “Assembly by hand,” I suspect, is part of the marketing scheme and branding of the car, as it harks to the romantic idea that a lovingly hand-crafted machine with the tiny bubbles and imperfections are there to prove they were hand crafted by the honest hard-working indigenous people of…wherever.
@onerareviper : Ferraris are priced at about $1 a mile. They don’t need to learn how to do that, people will put up with it because has a prancing horse, or they’ve leased the car and don’t need to care after 2 years.
Maybe they want to see how you can build such a high performance ride, and not have it randomly burst into flames and burn down to the frame (but its monocoque now!) like a couple of the first F430’s did.
Jokes aside, front-engine Ferraris look kind of like a Corvette these days. The 599 looks somewhat like a Corvette, especially in side profile.
The Ferrari Corvette debate is amusing. The definitive price/performance standard is the GTR.
Ferrari and GM should each buy one and have a corporate wailing and gnashing of teeth ceremony.
The sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
Perhaps Ferrari wants to assess the merits of the product in anticipation of tendering a bid for the Bowling Green Assembly Plant when GM’s assets are auctioned off.
@nudave:
That’s the only GM plant I’ve seen (and I’ve been in dozens) where the employees smile.
Maybe they will just sit and ponder it. And then, hopefully, have some sort of epiphany on designing a car that isn’t butt ugly for the first time in over 35 years.
nudave’s theory is the only one that holds water. The rest are wishful thinking… or envy. Even the Italian vultures are circling lazily above the thirsty cowboy stumbling toward that bailout-shaped mirage on the horizon.
–chuck
They probably just wanted to check out the cupholders.
And why wouldn’t Ferrari not check up on the ZR1?
If somebody wants a Ferrari, and has the money for it, that person will get a Ferrari. Regardless of how bad ass the ZR1 is.
Of course, if one of the Ferrari customers happens to get his doors blown off by somebody who is having just as much fun in his ZR1, which costs half as much… Well I imagine that a small volume manufacturer like Ferrari, would like to keep every one of its overpaying customers as loyal as possible. Just a thought.
If its from a customer’s collection, I wonder what the customer gets in return? Those waiting lists better get real short for this person.
Note to Ferrari: if you want to see a cheaper car clean yer clock on your home turf, just go all the way and buy a spec Miata with an LS1 swap. I’m sure you can afford the $8,000-$10,000 asking price.
If all things were equal in this world and the big boy automakers were all able to sell $200,000+ cars Ferraris would quickly be put into the proper perspective.
Trust me, if GM, Ford, Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Nissan, were to make sports cars that could and would sell for the equivalent of a current Ferrari we would see some cars that would actually boggle our minds.
There is NO engineering magic at Ferrari or even Porsche for that matter. These companies just have a different focus and play to a different part of the market. Those other much bigger automakers could R&D Ferrari or any other niche maker into the ground in short order.
Now ask the question again why Porsche is buying up as much of VW as possible?
Its amusing to see so many Ferrari bashers here. I mean what crovette has which makes it superior to Ferrari? Speed? Speed is not the only thing which buyers judge about the super cars.
No matter how fast corvette is, people will still buy a superior red hot Italian designed Formula 1 bred race car like Ferrari than a US built junk like corvette.
Maybe the Ferrari guys ordered one corvette so that they can laugh on it in their spare time?
I suspect we’re going to see a paradigm shift in spending patterns even in the Ferrari-buying stratosphere of tax brackets. Ferrari would be foolish not to benchmark the ZR1, GT-R, and GT, and ensure that their cars offer similar performance, at the very least, to the proletarian offerings. Poor timing on Ferrari’s part to further increase their pricing scheme though.
Ferrari wouldn’t be looking to buy chunks of GM. Rather that would be Fiat (Ferrari’s parent company) and even then, no. The only auto company in good enough shape to buy pieces of GM, like the Vette, when and if GM goes under would be a German company.
This is probably just yet another unfounded rumor, but if it is true, Ferrari would probably take a ZR1 to gain new ideas and new technologies (magnetic suspension anyone? Yes, that came from GM). The company is also at a loss of words to explain why the ZR1 shames all of their models (even the Enzo, which doesn’t have carpet or electronic windows) for less than a fraction of the price. You can tell by looking at a Ferrari fanboy (notice I used the term fanboy instead of fan. Fans are smart. Fanboys are not) when you mention the ZR1 and watch how angry they get (you can bet your ass Ferrari could add a heads up display to the dash board like the Corvette’s and Ferrari fanboys would be dumb enough to believe Ferrari invented the idea).
This is not an attack on European cars (for all those European car fans that get so easily offended when someone insults Ferrari). Rather, it’s just pointing out that Ferrari has become a decadent badge whore, and even though this is probably just a rumor, it wouldn’t surprise me if it’s true. Keep in mind, the Corvette is the antithesis of Ferrari (it’s actually a good car for one, it’s relatively cheap and doesn’t burst into flames after being driven for a couple hours on a Summer day).