I got to drive this 430 Scuderia

The cockpit of the Ferrari 430 Scuderia is simply stunning. And stripped out.

After the brief 458 Speciale ride together with Rajia Bibi I was really excited to experience what its predecessor, the 430 Scuderia, would be like. These cars were unquestionably not built to drive through a city like London, but they both handled traffic very well.

I met up with @slowrabit1, also the owner of the 599 HGTE GTB I had a ride in just before the Scuderia. We drove to his underground garage to store his 599 and switch to the 430 Scuderia. He actually threw me the keys of the car to move it away so he could park the 599 on the same parking spot. I think I asked him three times if he was being serious with me. ‘’Yes, sure go ahead!’’ he told me. Still being shocked of what just happened I got into the car which was already running. I gently put my foot down and parked the car somewhere else. You can say what you want, but I actually drove a Ferrari! Sadly, I had to hand over the keys over to @slowrabit1 again.

We drove out of the garage and were heading to London central. But not before some insanely high speed bumps were interrupting our drive. A Land Rover Defender drove behind us and at some point the driver was so fed up with us driving carefully he overtook us at a ridiculous speed, which was actually pretty funny. The first location of this shoot was at the entrance of the Royal Hospital Chelsea, an accommodation where they take care of British Army veterans.

The second location is often used for car photoshoots, but it’s too good to ignore. We parked up the car and some spotters asked if they could take some pictures as well. I obviously told them they could, because in my opinion these cars were created to share and without others you can’t enjoy them like they should be enjoyed. The 430 Scuderia is a real stripped out car, so there’s no radio, no carpets, no leather door panel (like the F430) and as a passenger you get a fire extinguisher in front of you. This thing literally takes up around 25% of leg space. These small touches make the 430 Scuderia without doubt one of my favorite Ferraris ever build.

So, what is the 430 Scuderia like compared to the 458 Speciale? The 430 is definitely more hardcore and stiffer than the 458 Speciale. The Speciale has got more power and you can certainly feel that when the driver put its foot down, but if you’re looking to buy a racer for the streets, the 430 is the perfect option.

The 430 Scuderia was unveiled by legendary racing driver Michael Schumacher in 2007 at the Frankfurt International Motor Show. As the successor of the Challenge Stradale the Scuderia had a hell of job to surpass it. As a matter of fact, the Challenge Stradale was developed from the 360 Challenge car while the Scuderia has been developed from the F430. I still have to experience a Challenge Stradale, but I can imagine it’s a true race car for the streets.

Massive thanks to @slowrabit1 for taking me out in two of his toys: the 599 HGTE GTB and the 430 Scuderia. Check out more pictures of this shoot over here.

Meet the California T replacement: Ferrari Portofino!

Ferrari loves improving their cars and they did a perfect job with their latest creation. It has a better name, it’s lighter, faster and more powerful compared to the California T.

Better name
There’s no problem by naming your product after one of the most beautiful scenery to drive through, but Ferrari wouldn’t be Ferrari without a subtle touch of Italian language. So they replaced the California badge with one saying ‘’Portofino’’. The car is named after this Italian village because of its picturesque landscape. The launch colour (seen on the press pictures) has also been named after this astonishing town: Rosso Portofino.

Better design
Because of the big amount of air intakes it really looks like a proper sport car and it’s not ‘’just a women’s Ferrari’’ anymore. The team that took care of the design really listened to all the feedback they received. One of the main parts they changed are the proportions. The lines are just a bit more elegant and the massive rear of the California and California T is been replaced by a smaller one.

Better specifications
I was really surprised when I saw the specifications of the car: almost 600 bhp, the 0-100 km/h (62 mph) is done is 3,5 seconds and the top speed will most likely be around 320 km/h (199 mph). The new chassis is stiffer than before and it also receives Ferrari’s E-Diff 3 electronic rear differential control. A whole mouthful but it basically means it should handle better than previous generations. Ferrari housed a 10.2’’ touchscreen in the centre console to handle the newest infotainment system. The newly designed front window will reduce the airflow into the car by 30%.

IAA reveal
The Ferrari Portofino will make its world debut at the Frankfurt International Motor Show in September. We’ll keep you updated about the car till then!

Exploring London in a Ferrari 599 GTB

The Ferrari 599 GTB is one of the classiest modern Ferraris, if you know what I mean?

When Ferrari presented the 599 GTB at the Geneva Motor Show in February 2006 the world was shocked. Its predecessor, the 575M Maranello, had a power output of just over 500 bhp, while this new V12-flagship car had 620 bhp. To this date, this is still one of the biggest improvements in the history of Ferrari!

The owner (@slowrabit1) picked me up at Sloane Street. I saw him heading towards me and I waved to him just like anyone else would to stop a taxi. Pretty funny to see all the weird faces while getting in the 599. You’re greeted by quite a big interior with an amazing view out of the front window of the massive hood where the powerful V12 is housed. I could easily store my bag and jacket behind the seats which would make it a great car to use on a roadtrip.

Driving through London with a supercar is a complete different experience than driving the same car through a country side. You get a lot of people pointing at the car and all the spotters are getting crazy just to get that perfect shot. One of my favorite things to witness were little boys looking at the car, shocked by what had just drove past. The 599 is finished in the famous Rosso Corsa paint so even non-car enthusiast can tell it’s a Ferrari.

This particular 599 GTB has got the HGTE package (Handling Gran Turismo Evoluzione). This package improves a lot of things compared to the standard car like the stiffer springs and a better sport mode with faster shifts. The car has also been lowered which resulted in better grip around corners. Compared to the standard 599, the HGTE is a lot richer in terms of carbon fibre, especially in the interior. The most obvious visual change are the standard wheels that came with the package. These are 20 inch wheels specially made for the 599 GTB HGTE. Around 900 cars were delivered with the HGTE package, making it a pretty rare car.

Thanks to @slowrabit1 I got to experience this front V12 grand tourer first hand. I’ve always been a fan of this set-up and like Enzo Ferrari once said: ‘’ I married the V12 engine, and I never divorced it.” Check out more pictures of this shoot over here.

Vettel and Räikkonen are the F1 drivers in 2018!

Scuderia Ferrari F1 team has confirmed Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Räikkonen as the drivers for 2018, both drivers will stay at the team for at least another year.

In early july there were some rumours about young talent Max Verstappen going to Ferrari, but the Dutchman will likely stay at Red Bull Racing for 2018.
This means Maurizio Arrivabene is happy with the current performance of the team, and why wouldn’t he? Last race in Hungary Ferrari scored a perfect 1 – 2 finish! However it has to be said that Kimi has scored much less points than Sebastian so far. 116 points compared to 202.

Maybe Kimi will take another victory at his beloved Spa Grand Prix this weekend?

FerrariPhotoPage will be present at the Belgium Grand Prix on Sunday, look for live pictures on the Instagram story!

Visiting HR Owen Ferrari in a 458 Speciale

The Ferrari 458 Speciale owned by my friend Rajia Bibi. How cool is her numberplate though..?!

HR Owen Ferrari has always been one of my favorite Ferrari dealers in the world. They have an incredible stock at any time in their showrooms around London. Rajia Bibi and I took her 458 Speciale to the showroom in South Kensington.

The actual plan of the day was to meet Rajia in her 488 Spider, but it had a flat battery. So, she picked me up in her black 458 Speciale. The car is finished in Nero Daytona with similar coloured wheels. All parts you can order in carbon, are indeed carbon and to make the car a bit more personal, Rajia added her own number plate DR13VEN. This particular example was built back in 2015 on behalf of Rajia herself, hence the plaque with her own name on it.

As we were driving towards HR Owen Ferrari, traffic started to get worse. At one time there were four busses blocking the road and you don’t want to be in a £250.000 supercar when that’s happening!

We arrived at HR Owen Ferrari and had a chat with salesman James. He told us there is going to be a new California launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. ‘’It’s still a convertible, but you can kind of compare it to some Aston Martins. The car will be more elegant than it ever was before.’’

Like I said before, HR Owen Ferrari always have an incredible stock with cars like the F40, a LaFerrari and the new GTC4Lusso T currently parked inside their South Kensington showroom. The main reason Rajia and I were visiting them at that exact moment was to meet with Helen Wakerley. She is the content creator/social media manager of HR Owen Ferrari. We got in touch around two years ago when HR Owen just started using Instagram.

There was a chill atmosphere in the showroom and they even let Rajia and me sit in their LaFerrari. It surprised me how comfortable the car was, although I can imagine changing these thoughts after a ride in one. The F40 parked next to the LaFerrari is a bit more special compared to other F40s. This particular example was displayed at the 1988 Earls Court Motor Show and was owned my Maranello Concessionaires as their official press car. It also went through the notorious Classiche certification. This was done by Tony Willis at their workshop in January 2013. There’s so much history of this F40 written down, it might be one of the most detailed ones around.

Thanks to thank Rajia Bibi, HR Owen Ferrari and Helen for their hospitality!

Showcasing 70 years of Ferrari at Autoworld Brussels

The legendary Ecurie Francorchamps Ferrari 250 GT SWB on display.

Autoworld Brussels is celebrating the 70th anniversary of Ferrari with a fabulous line up of cars, like the 250 GT SWB, Testarossa’s and of course an F40. The museum is located in a fantastic hall in the middle of the city which I enjoyed walking through with my friend David and our writer Maxim!

I could easily write an enormous article where I would describe all little details of some of the cars, but that would take me a couple of days to set up. That’s why I’ve picked a top 5 unique Ferraris present, randomly ordered.

70 Style Icons F12berlinetta
An outstanding blue paint job on this 70 Style Icons F12berlinetta. The cars’ livery is based on the 1956 250 GT Berlinetta Scaglietti with chassis #0557GT. This 250 was one of the few competition Berlinetta’s produced by Ferrari. The car used to belong to Marquis Alfonso de Portago, a Spanish racing driver who won the 1956 Tour de France endurance race. Ferrari launched this configuration, and 69 others at the Paris Motor Show in October 2016.

Ecurie Francorchamps 250 GT SWB
The SWB (Short Wheel Base) version of the notorious 250 series is pure art on wheels, a real museum piece. Especially this particular model, which was owned by the Belgian racing team Ecurie Francorchamps. The team was founded by racing driver Jacques Swaters in the early 1950s and even competed in the Formula One for two years. All their racing cars were in similar liveries; grey with yellow details, like the famous vertical yellow stripe. With so much history going on, this car is valued around €10.000.000!

328 Conciso One-Off
Something I had never seen before, a one-off based on a 1986 328 GTS. The Conciso is hand built by the German coach-builder Michalak Design and should be worth around €100.000. The current owner bought the car back in 1999 and it’s still in the original conditions. Michalak Design actually wanted to build a handful of examples but for some reason they only produced one. It must be a real occasion to drive this striking machine on some backroads and become one with all the elements!

Ferrari Sergio
You’ll either hate it or love it. The Ferrari Sergio is a limited production car inspired by the Sergio Pininfarina concept. The concept car was unveiled by Ferrari in 2013 as a tribute to Sergio Pininfarina who was one of the most important designers for Ferrari. Only six were made and it uses the magnificent V8 from the 458 Speciale. This yellow example (said to be the first one built) is currently for sale in The Netherlands for a whopping €4.300.000!

The three GTO’s
If I were to pick just one reason why you should visit this exhibition, than it’s this one. We casually walked to the upper floor and we were welcomed by all Gran Turismo Omologato’s; the 250 GTO, the 288 GTO and the 599 GTO. Something I’d never expected! It was actually the first 250 GTO I had ever laid eyes on and it’s just like the SWB, pure art on wheels. It’s hard to understand these cars were raced hard back in the days, because they look so fragile. The 599 GTO that was present is currently owned by the President of the Ferrari Club Belgio Nicola d’Aniello.

The show was definitely worth visiting. This exhibition is open for public till the 3rd of September.

This dealership is in the middle of Amsterdam

This Ferrari 275 GTB Shortnose is just one of many cool cars currently for sale at Real Art on Wheels.

Imaging strolling through the beautiful city of Amsterdam and coming across this place. As a car enthusiast, there’s no hesitation of entering the showroom. To name a few pinnacles they currently have: a 275 GTB Shortnose finished in the original Verde Pinot (green) and a non-restored 250 GTE Series 3 in the magnificent Oro Metallizzato (gold). We paid them a visit and had a chat with the owner of Real Art on Wheels, Bodie Hage!

Bodie has always been fascinated by cars, especially classic cars. When he was just 15-years-old he happened to read an article about a very successful taxi-company. The owner also happened to own more than 200 classic cars. Bodie got in touch and you can easily state his career in the car industry started here. He went from ‘’the cleaning boy’’ to joining at auctions very fast. The owner sadly passed away in 2007 but that didn’t stopped Bodie from chasing his dreams. Bodie continued the business until he finished his accountancy study. He got rid of the taxi-company and started focusing on the classic cars more and more.

This resulted in Real Art on Wheels. They currently have two showrooms, one in Amsterdam and one in Alphen aan den Rijn. Bodie is also a licensed appraiser which makes it a lot easier for him to close deals on certain cars. The mission of Bodie is to buy and sell cars with a story rather than cars without one. If he finds an interesting car without a known story he’s researching the car till he finds out every little detail.

Two cars that really caught my eye were the 275 GTB Shortnose and a full black 575M Maranello. This 275 GTB was originally delivered by the official Ferrari supplier Rugico in Madrid and it received Swiss plates in 1966, just two years after the reveal at the Paris Motor Show. Then, in the late 80s a Spanish businessman bought the 275 and the car went back to Spain. He owned it for over 20 years when he sold it. It’s now the pinnacle of the Real Art on Wheels showroom. If you were to buy this amazing piece of history you’d get a Verde Pinot with beige leather interior combination, including the notorious Ferrari Classiche certificate.

Next up is this blacked out 575M Maranello. The car was originally delivered in Japan hence the Japanese stickers you can find on the car. It received a complete service by Dutch Ferrari specialist Forza Service at 16.393 km (10,525 miles) in June 2017. The interior of the car is full black with little yellow details like the stitching. The full history is known, just like all the books are available.

Real Art on Wheels recently started their Instagram account, click here to follow them! I want to thank Bodie for his hospitality and for the opportunity to collaborate with such an amazing company!

A tough race in Belgium!

After the test a couple of weeks ago, the parade on Wednesday in the city Spa, a lot of autographs and a long practice session, the 24 hours of Spa could really get underway.

On Thursday evening qualifying started. Ferrari got poleposition in the Am Cup and had two cars placed in the top 20 wich meant they could battle for poleposition during Superpole. The #50 Ferrari was the first of the two 488 GT3’s to put a lap in. It wasn’t enough for pole and the car had to settle for 15th place. The Kaspersky Motorsport Ferrari then had a go for poleposition and with a fantastic lap put in by James Calado the 488 GT3 secured 1st place on the grid.

Pro
The Pro class got well underway for Ferrrari with the #55 Kaspersky Motorsport staying in the lead from the start. The #50 also had a position inside the top 20, but the car crashed on top of Eau Rouge. Luckily Pasin Lathouras emerged unharmed from the car but the crash meant the race was over for the #50 team. Then around the three hour mark the SMP Racing Ferrari suffered hydraulic problems. The car was fixed by the AF Corse mechanics but with 18 laps behind the leader their race was practically over. The Kaspersky Motorsport Ferrari from then on was the only 488 GT3 fighting for a good finish. They held onto the lead really long and even in the night they were almost every moment in the lead. And with a great drive from Giancarlo Fisichella during the night, when he was driving with slick tyres on a wet track, they gained a lot of time on their opponents. In the early morning at the beautiful Spa track disaster stroke for the #55. The car was trying to unlap itself into La Source when it got hit by a Mercedes only to crash at the top of the next corner, Eau Rouge, with a broken steering arm.

Pro-Am Cup
In the Pro-Am Cup, Ferrari picked up a podium and a good fourth place. Demirdjian, Vilander, Rizzo and Minassian put in a great overnight performance to climb from sixth to third, which they would never have relinquished had it not been for the pit stops, when the position went to the crew of the AF Corse 488 GT3 driven by Olivier Beretta, Motoaki Ishikawa, Francesco Castellacci and Lorenzo Bontempelli, who ended up fourth under the chequered flag.

Am Cup
In the Am Cup there was never any doubt the 488 GT3 was the car to beat. The Kessel Racing team took the lead from the beginning with only the Rinaldi Racing Ferrari able to keep up with them. The only thing that made the Rinaldi Racing 488 GT3 struggle were tyreproblems. First they had a puncture and later on in the race they had issues with some other sets of tyres. All this meant they had to settle for second place and the Kessel Racing team could bring their car home in first place.

The Blancpain Endurance Cup will conclude on 1 October in Barcelona.

Testing at the Hungaroring!

After the succesful Hungarian GP last weekend for Ferrari the Hungaroring this time hosted the inseason test. Ferrari had a succesful test with 98 laps on the first day, 100 laps on the second and topping both days on the timingscreens.

Day 1
On the first day of testing Ferrari junior driver Charles Leclerc took driving duties of the SF-70h. The driver is seen as one of the biggest talents in the racingworld and he proved that on his day of testing. He topped the session and with 98 laps on the clock it certainly wasn’t a bad day of testing for him.

His reaction afterwards: “Driving a Ferrari is never a normal experience, it’s a great honour. I have been accorded and I thank Ferrari with all my heart for this opportunity. I am pleased with the work I did and I hope the team is too. It was the first time that I’ve driven a Formula 1 car with the wider tyres and this level of aerodynamic downforce and it was an incredible feeling. To set the fastest time is nice, but, in testing, its importance is only relative. I can now go on holiday in a happy mood, before concentrating on the second part of the F2 season. For the moment, Formula 1 is just a dream. I still have work to do and I know that: one step at a time.”

Day 2
On the second day of testing Vettel drove for the first two hours of the day before handing over the car to Raikkonen. Vettel drove 40 laps and set the fastest time of the day. The Scuderia were testing a new diffuser and some other things you couldn’t see on the car. They were focussing on Spa and the last races of the season. It was difficult to test for Monza with the Italian track being a low downforce circuit and the Hungaroring being the absolute opposite. Raikkonen drove 60 laps and posted the third quickest time of the day.

Vettel afterwards: “It was a good opportunity to try a couple of things and get a feeling from the car. Obviously, in such a brief test you are not expecting to turn the world upside down, but it will be useful for the next races and for a better understanding of the car. I think this year we’ve been strong pretty much everywhere, of course there have been races in which we did not perform at our best but the purpose of all the work we do is to be in a good shape for the rest of the season. We’ve picked up momentum with the win in Hungary, now it’s up to us to keep it going, but I am confident that we have the right people and are going in the right direction.”

Raikkonen’s reaction: “We had a very good result, as a team, here in Hungary, but we always try to improve further. Today was a normal testing day, but obviously here you have more time and tires available than you have during a race weekend, so we try to get the best out of it. In the last few races, my feeling with the car has improved consistently, which shows that the new things we’ve brought have helped me drive better and better. Also, I am happy that I could help Charles Leclerc prepare for his test, but then it’s fair to say that all the team supported him.”

Hungarian GP: Perfect weekend for Ferrari!

The best possible result for Scuderia Ferrari as the team takes its second 1-2 finish of the year. Sebastian Vettel starts his summer break on top of the World Championship. Plenty of drama behind the red leaders.

The Scuderia reserved the front row of the grid on saturday, giving the team a perfect place to start the race. It was a pleasure to see so many Ferrari fans around the Hungaroring, a small and tight track, bathing in the hot sunlight on raceday.

The race
Both Kimi and Seb took a great launch and quickly disappeared into the distance. Grosjean and Hulkenberg touched in the first corner and Verstappen made a mistake in turn 2. Unfortunately his team mate Ricciardo was on the outside and received a hit to his side, damaging the suspension and forcing him to retire. This caused a short safety car. Verstappen got a 10 second penalty and pushed on to finish 5th.

Back to green flag and the Ferraris stayed out in front, but Vettel was struggling with a steering problem. He still managed to push very fast lap times, but told us afterwards that it was really hard.

An interesting moment between Hulkenberg and Magnussen: the Hulk was much faster and placed an overtake on the outside of turn 2, Kmag then pushed him off the track. When Hulkenberg confronted him about his unsporty driving after the race, he replied “Suck my balls mate”. Magnussen received only 5 seconds penalty. Fernando Alonso was a lot faster than usual, finishing P6 and taking home the fastest lap of the race!

In the final laps, Hamilton tried to overtake Räikkönen but did not succeed. Ferrari on top, Mercedes following in 3rd and 4th. Vettel can enjoy the summer break leading the championship by 14 points over Hamilton.

Next up: the mythical Spa Francorchamps!