Prancing Unicorns: Reserved for the Eminent

We all find ourselves to be special and valuable in some way, but to be labelled special and valuable by Ferrari isn’t only a compliment;  it’s a passport to the gates of exclusivity in a world where only you and your desires matter.

Welcome to the world of Ferrari Unicorns. In order of latest:

Ferrari SP Arya

Imagine a life where money is no object or matter; welcome to the life of Cheerag Arya, a wealthy dubai-based Indian businessman who’s made his millions and now wants a car for himself- a one-off unicorn to be precise. Mr Arya decided to approach Ferrari and officially commissioned the SP Arya. Rumours suggest it has already been built and is sitting in his garage as we speak!

2013 release

F140FC 6.2-liter V12

509 lb-ft, 730hp

0-62 3.1 sec

211 mph (375 km/h)

Ferrari SP12 EC

The Ferrari SP12 EC was a car built for musician Eric Clapton, hence the ‘EC’. Eric decided he wanted a Ferrari that looked like his old 512 BB and successfully set Ferrari out to make it happen. It was based on the 458 Italia’s chassis and powertrain but totally redesigned from there on. The car costed £3M to make.

 

2012 release

F136FB 4.5-liter V8

498 lb-ft, 570 hp

199 mph (320 km/h)

7-speed dual-clutch gearbox

 

Ferrari P4/5

The Ferrari P4/5 was a one-off supercar made by Ferrari which was later redesigned by Pininfarina for movie director James Glickenhaus which costed a cool £2.5M.

 

2015 release

F140B 6-liter V12

485 lb-ft, 660hp

0-62 3.0 sec

233 mph (375 km/h)

Other Unicorns…

Ferrari SP1

P540 Superfast Aperta

Ferrari SuperAmerica

Watch A Ferrari F12 Echo Along French Hills

Ever wondered what it’s like to drive/be a passenger of a Ferrari F12 Berlinetta? Well wonder no more as YouTube user, Marchettino, provides us with a first person view of what it’s like to ride in the F12 around the roads of southern France. No matter what you like, whether it’s muscle, import or milk floats, just devour yourself with the accelerations, downshifts and revs of that Ferrari 730bhp V12 engine echoes throughout the French hills.

Ferrari Testing New LeMans Racer?

“I quite like the idea of racing at Le Mans in the highest category: who knows, maybe one day we can return and win, say thanks and come home. Maybe we should give it some serious consideration…”

Those are words from Ferrari CEO Luca Di Montezemolo. He has the dreams to compete in the LMP1 and they are coming closer as the first pictures showing a possible Ferrari prototype for Le Mans have emerged.
The pictures follow a recent video of a modified LaFerrari model racing around the Fiorano test track (shown below). Early speculation suggested that car would have been a new turbocharged V6 destined for Formula 1, however, it seems more likely now that it could have been a different powerplant destined for prototype racing at Le Mans. Something within the likes of a supercharged V8 hybrid suitable for racing at the 24 hours of Le Mans.

If Ferrari were to enter  the P1 prototype racing class at Le Mans it wouldn’t likely be until the 2016 season, though by then the field would be increasingly competitive. Along with the dominant Audi team, Toyota has been competing for the past several years and both automakers will be joined by Porsche this coming season. Di Montezemolo’s ambitions to race the P1 class at Le Mans don’t come out of the blues. Ferrari’s last win in this class was in 1965 with the Ferrari 250LM.

 

WS Awards 2013: Car of the Year

It’s getting nearer to 2014, and it’s now where we start to reflect and dwell on the past year. But it’s not all doom and gloom for 2013, it has been an amazing year for car nuts. The best part of 2013 has got to be the the debuts of all the hypercars at the Geneva Motor Show, it was a biblical scene.

However, this article is way more important than the most exciting debuts of 2013, it’s our very own Car of the Year award. It will be split up into 5 segments from Hypercars to Performance SUV & Saloons. Each nominee will receive an award for either 1st (gold), 2nd (silver) or 3rd place (bronze).

HYPERCAR OF THE YEAR

Hypercars. There’s many ways to describe them, barbarically fast, ridiculously expensive, incredibly lust-able, however you describe it though, just defies this segment of cars into one word: Mad. 2013 saw the most incredible Hypercar fight of all-time, this included the all-new McLaren P1, Ferrari LaFerrari, Porsche 918 Spyder, Koenigsegg Agera R and the Pagani Huayra. It was an incredible competition between all 5 automakers, but only 3 will come out on top for us.

1st: McLaren P1



The P1 is McLaren’s successor to the F1 from the 90′s. It was created to rival with the likes of the LaFerrari, Huayra, 918 and Agera R. The P1 boasts 903 horsepower, can hit 62 mph in less than three seconds, can hit 186 mph in less than 17 seconds, and will run into an electronic wall at 217 mph. It has also set a ‘sub-seven minute time at the Nurburgring. Why does it take first place? Well, the P1 is a massive step up from the F1, for a firm who didn’t make road cars for over 10 years to suddenly come out with a innovative super-sonic masterpiece like the P1, is truly incredible.

2nd: Porsche 918 Spyder



The Porsche 918 Spyder is a direct successor to the 2003 Porsche Carrera GT. Costing a whopping £720,420 (with Weissach pack), the 918 must pack a punch. It does. The 918 features a 4.6-litre V8 which produces 875bhp, hits 0-62mph in 2.8 seconds, a combined economy figure of 85.6mpg, a top speed of 211. On top of all that, it’s a hybrid, it has an electric motor which runs on lithium-ion batteries. The electric motor produces 154bhp alone. Solely on electricity, it can go 18 miles at a top speed of 93 mph. The 918 is a technological step forward in the automotive world, many automakers will learn from the 918. Porsche proved you can still go stupendously fast, whilst keeping your wallet happy. 

3rd: Ferrari LaFerrari



After the Enzo, Ferrari had to decide where to go next, and this is it, the Ferrari LaFerrari. Forget about its odd name for a second and just look at it, it’s nothing short of bloody awesome. It is definitely a bed-room pin-up poster. The LaFerrari packs the same 6.3-liter V12 as the front-engined Ferrari F12, but it’s been reworked for the LaFerrari’s mid-engined layout. This means the power has been upped to a mind boggling 789bhp produced at a crazy 9000rpm. And the V12 will keep revving to 9250rpm. Peak torque is 516lb ft at 6750rpm.

SUPERCAR OF THE YEAR

Think of supercars as toned-down versions of hypercars. They are mad, but quite subtle compared. Supercars are focused, road going batshit-fast-mobiles, that can make you look immensely cool on the road whilst obliterating everything at the lights.

Porsche 991 GT3



The 991 GT3 is a direct successor to the 997 GT3. The new GT3 features a naturally-aspirated 3.8-liter flat-six engine which develops 475 hp and has a rev limit of 9,000rpm. This power is sent to the road via a seven-speed PDK double-clutch transmission with unique steering wheel paddle-shift. The GT3 also features innovative active rear-wheel steering which increases cornering agility and enhances high speed stability. Combined, the 991 GT3 will accelerate from naught to 62 mph in 3.5 and will reach a top speed of 196 mph.

Honourable Mentions

Ferrari F12 Berlinetta
Lamborghini Aventador Roadster
McLaren 12C

 

SPORTSCAR OF THE YEAR

The definition of fun, adequate performance, just enough to allow you to throw it around a corner and come out the other side completely unscathed, the sportscar.

Jaguar F-Type V6 S



The F-Type. Nothing short of amazing. As a car we’ve driven and tested, it was one of our all-time favourites. The V6 was lacking the specialty and the potential to what the F-Type could offer, the V8 was just a mental patient hiding in a car’s engine bay, but the V6 S is the sweet spot of the bunch, not too harsh, not too less, just perfect. Incredible handing, incredible performance and a truly biblical sound. It wins our Sportscar of the year award.

Honourable Mentions

Porsche Boxster S
Porsche Cayman S
Toyota GT86

HOT-HATCHBACK OF THE YEAR

Little pocket rockets. Using 100% of the power all of the time, whether it’s in town, or on a country road, hot hatches dominate corners, yet they retain being practical for the weekly shop as well! The perfect segment of car? Well, that’s for you to decide.

Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG



Mercedes-Benz totally revolutionized the hot-hatch market when they revealed the A45 AMG. The A45 is faster than its rivals in a straight line and around a track. Some incredible engineering has gone into this car by cramming a record thrashing 355bhp into a little 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine which gave its engine the title of the most powerful 4-cylinder engine ever made. It’s an absolute hoot to drive, it crackles on upshifts, it wants to oversteer even though it has a very good all-wheel-drive system and handles wonderfully. It wins our hot-hatchback of the year award.

Honourable Mentions

BMW M135i
Audi S3
Ford Fiesta ST

 

PERFORMANCE SALOON OF THE YEAR

You’ve settled down now with kids, a stable job, a loving wife, but no car. You need a family car, but you’re a race-car driver, and you want a family race-car.

Jaguar XFR-S


Before you chant “why not the M5, E63 or RS6?!” Well, specialty, exclusivity and brutality is what fun means these days. The XFR-S is not just unique, it’s rare, with only 20 entering the UK and 100 going to the US, it’s an epic unicorn. The XFR-S is Jaguar’s attempt to take on ‘Benz, BMW and Audi. It may not be faster in a straight line, nor it may not be faster around a track, but this car is just such an awesome creation by Jaguar, it turns heads, it makes a sweet noise and is still bloody quick.

Honourable Mentions

Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG S Model
BMW M5 F10
Audi RS6

 

PERFORMANCE SUV OF THE YEAR

Need more space, power, and practicality? Well look no further, performance SUV’s might just be for you!

Porsche Cayenne Turbo S



When it comes cars that are heavy and tall, taking it on a track seems totally hopeless. However, it seems Porsche has totally defied physics by making this car feel like a sports car on the road. No idea how they’ve done it, but those clever engineers at Porsche deserve a pat on the back for the Turbo S, it’s immensely quick in a straight line and can do four-wheel-doughnuts all day long, what more could you want? Oh, it can take the kids to school and do the weekly shop.

Honourable Mentions

Range Rover Sport 5.0
Mercedes-Benz ML63 AMG
BMW X5M

 
That wraps it up for this year, see you on the other side in 2014! Happy new year from us at Wild Speed.

Top 5 Car Debuts Of 2013

We’re nearing the end of 2013, and it’s around this time where we start to reflect on the whole year, specifically the year of automobiles. 2012 had some pretty cool debuts such as the BMW M5 and even fast sports-utility-vehicles like the ML63 AMG.

However, 2013 was less about thje ‘normal car turned fast’ and more about cars that were built to be fast in the first place. Below we have listed our top 5 car debuts of 2013. This list is in no particular order.

McLaren P1

The P1 is McLaren’s successor to the F1 from the 90’s. It was created to rival with the likes of the LaFerrari, Huayra, 918 and Agera R. The P1 boasts 903 horsepower, can hit 62 mph in less than three seconds, can hit 186 mph in less than 17 seconds, and will run into an electronic wall at 217 mph.

Porsche 991 GT3

The 991 GT3 is a direct successor to the 997 GT3. The new GT3 features a naturally-aspirated 3.8-liter flat-six engine which develops 475 hp and has a rev limit of 9,000rpm. This power is sent to the road via a seven-speed PDK double-clutch transmission with unique steering wheel paddle-shift. The GT3 also features innovative active rear-wheel steering which increases cornering agility and enhances high speed stability. Combined, the 991 GT3 will accelerate from naught to 62 mpg in 3.5 and will reach a top speed of 196 mph.

Ferrari 458 Speciale

–

Being the successor to the legendary F430 Scuderia, the Speciale had a lot to live up to, and it did. The 4.5-liter V8 in the Speciale makes 597 horsepower at a 9000-rpm peak unlike the regular 458’s 562 horsepower. This is made possible by a14.0:1 compression ratio, revised combustion chambers, new pistons, shorter intake runners, reshaped intake ports, and higher lift on the exhaust and intake valves, along with a new carbon-fiber manifold and airbox.

Jaguar F-Type R Coupe

After the success of the F-Type Roadster, Jaguar gave the Coupe variant a green light and with its unveiling came the ‘R’ version which packs 550PS 5.0-litre supercharged V8 engine enabling acceleration from 0-60 mph in 4.0-seconds, and a top speed of 186 mph (limited)

Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG

Although not appealing to many, it appeals to the family man who wants the perfect blend between luxury and performance. The S63 AMG features AMG’s M157 5.5-liter biturbo engine which produces 585 horsepower and a mad 900 newton meters of torque.

Ferrari 458 Monte Carlo

Check out the renderings here!

12345

These are the first photographs of Ferrari testing the new hardcore 458. Due  for the International Autoshow Frankfurt in september this year.

The Ferrari 458 is getting the treatment we’ve been waiting for. Going by the project name of Monte Carlo, this lightweight 458 will drive in the tracks of the Ferrari F430 Scuderia, probably at a faster pace. Aggressive looks,  aero-upgrades, larger intakes and wider air vents to cool that powerful V8 which will be delivering up to 600 horsepower courtesy of an ECU remap and some engine upgrades.

Via Autogespot

 

F430 Scuderia vs. 458 Italia

Let’s see how the normal 458 compares to the F430 Scuderia in a straight line. video by M5board.com

 

 

Ferrari To Debut 458 Scuderia At Frankfurt

Following this years Geneva Motor Show, it seems Ferrari is on quite a roll! First it was LaFerrari, a ridiculously fast hypercar and next will be this- the Ferrari 458 ‘Scuderia’ (or whatever it will be called, Monte Carlo has been rumored). The ‘Scuderia’ will essentially be a hardcore 458 Italia which will come with aero-upgrades, larger intakes and wider air vents to cool that powerful V8 which will be delivering up to 600 horsepower courtesy of an ECU remap and some other engine upgrades. Did we mention that there’ll be an upgraded exhaust system too?

The other main point of the 458 Scuderia apart from out-right power, is lightness. The F430 Scuderia was 100 kg lighter than a stock F430; expect around the same kg figure for the 458 Scuderia.

Lady Ferrari Owned By Single Egg

Well it’s not entirely new about what is happening in London; all the owners of beautiful supercars are being hated on by London residents because they are apparently causing too much havoc on the streets and disturbing all the residents from normal day-to-day living. For anyone who doesn’t know what we’re on about, watch the ‘Millionaire Boy Racers’ documentary.

With this video, it’s absolutely no surprise, this video was shot on Sloanne Street in London which is a hotspot for supercar spotters, oh and for angry residents! It seems someone watching from above saw this lovely yellow Ferrari 458 Italia Spider coming a mile off and decided to get an egg ready hopefully aiming for the womans’ head but instead, it ends up hitting the windscreen frame, scaring the living daylights out of the driver.