Precast: Ferrari Four Wheelin', I and I, Steering Clear of the M6, Bangle RIP?
A four wheel-drive Ferrari? On one hand, it sounds like a bald-faced betrayal of Ferrari's brand proposition: extreme rear wheel-drive performance cars prone to lurid oversteer slides into solid objects and/or mid-engined marvels that snap into gyroscopic spins that scrub off a bit of speed before sliding into a solid object. Ferrari claims their new system won't detract from their products' traditional balls-out driving dynamics. But one wonders if Ferrari buyers will soon be talking about "the good old days," when you had to be a "real man" to drive a Ferrari at speed. Remember: it took Porschehiles years to get over the fact that their ass-engined 911's were no longer magnetically attracted to the scenery. Still, as I pointed out to Mr. Spinelli in today's talkfest, it's in Ferrari's best interest to keep their customers alive. Besides, Vee Dub's Bugatti Veyron proved that putting power to all four wheels is an excellent way to make a 1000hp car go in the direction its driver intends. Does this mean the new four wheel-drive system will help Fezza make an even more monstrous car than the Enzo or, maybe, the big Bug? Count on it.
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WRX?
You know, listening to that again, it seems Spinelli is, well, sad. And listless. Am I the only one who got that impression?Is caffeine that powerful a drug? Wow.
Sometimes, even with four-wheel drive, the law of physics will apply and a Ferrari's driver will just loose it. Case in point is Stefan Eriksson, conman extraordinaire who cut his Ferrari Enzo in half with a telephone poll , whilst racing a Mercedes-Benz SLR MacLaren (as pictured). But that doesn't mean Ferrari shouldn't perhaps go with four-wheel-drive to compete with Lamborghini. Way back in the early Sixties, old Mr. Ferrari himself fought the inevitability of disc brakes by saying, "My cars are built to go, not to stop." Which indeed was true and might have led to a few deaths that wouldn't have been quite so premature if the old man wasn't such a twit. As for caffiene being a powerful drug, depends on how much you've had to eat with it, and how much caffiene. It can spike your blood sugar level and then induce its plummeting - especially if you are hypoglycemic. It's one reason that airlines would really rather their pilots have a full, substantial breakfast, before early flights. Some crashes have been attributed to pilots eating just a doughnut and coffee, then trying to fly 8 hours. Who knows, maybe that was also a factor in Mr. Eriksson's crash?
Robert -- do you re-listen to out podcasts, which I happily perform pre-7:00 am? I sound hungover -- even when I'm not!