| 2001 Ferrari
550 Maranello |
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| written and submitted by:
an unknown contributor...please email
us if you wrote this article so we can slear up any confusion |
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The ultimate gran turismo
car
The 550 Maranello. Just the
name can set hearts racing and adrenaline pumping. Seeing
one can raise the hairs on the back of your neck like nothing
else can. Sitting just inches off the pavement, the 550
barely rises to mid torso (and I'm 6 feet tall), its strong
yet sleek lines hinting at what is under the hood. The wide
rear end of the car adds to that effect, plus the shining
chrome stallion and those precisely machined and spaced
words on the boot: FERRARI
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ACT I: The introduction
It was a sunny saturday morning, not a cloud in the sky. I was
sitting here playing NFS: Porshe Unleashed at about 2:00 in the
afternoon when the fateful call came. My friend rings me up and
offers me the chance to drive the ultimate front engined european
supercar. Who wouldn't accept? Half an hour later, I am behind
the wheel of the Ferrari 550 Maranello. Now I keep hearing that
people say this car is not comfortable, the seats are not giving
enough, yadda yadda, but, my friends, this car is comfortable
like you would not believe.
The smell of Italian leather hits you as soon as you open the
door, that sweet smell that only a Ferrari has. As you slide one
foot in under the low steering wheel, your stomach starts to get
the butterflies. Down your posterior goes into the bucket seats
which instantly gobble you up and hug you tighter than your dearest
love. In fact, the only seats that I have sat in that have a feeling
like it is actually the sports seats in the Honda S2000. You don't
feel like you're sitting on a seat in a big bad red piece of Italian
art, you are *part* of that art, sculpted directly into the car;
you feel so perfect that you literally are the car. The steering
wheel, with that glorious yellow Ferrari emblem smack dab in the
middle adjusts nicely to the perfect driving position. The other
foot comes into the car, you reach out, close the door, and you
immediately know that this car is something special. Even the
click of the door latch sounds awesome. It's not a "thud"
like most cars, but a good, solid, fast "kaCHUNK" that
lets you know that you are surrounded by power and refinement.
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But then you turn
the key in the little slot, and 480 absolutely pissed off
horses are let loose. In my relatively short experience with
cars, the sound of that engine, that primal grunt of power
then the roar of italian fury released, sent the biggest shiver
up my spine that I have ever had. Frankly, it scared me. I
was afraid of what that engine could do at full chat. Then,
almost as quickly as it roars to life, the engine calms down
to a subtle purr of a kitten. |
Now, you have two choices. You
can be the mature, modern driver (yeah, right) and gently depress
the gas for a lil' more purring, or you can be a maniac (namely
me) and rev that baby like it was a Aprilia world championship
superbike going down the front straight at Monza. At full bore
revs, this thing is LOUD!!! And I am not talking just a little
roar, I am talking this thing could wake up your grandma thirty
miles away. I had the door open and the exhaust pointing into
the garage and OH MY GOD this car can make a sound that somehow,
somewhere, snaps a string in your heart and sends a tear down
your cheek.
ROAAAAaaaaarrrrrppppurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....
ACT II: The Drive
As this was not my car, I was a little timid at first, but when
that polished shifter entered the palm of my hand, there was only
one thing to do. Clutch in, rev once, shift into first, up on
the clutch, down on the gas, and explode forward. This is not
your regular honda civic four-banger, ladies and gentlemen. This
is a hand built italian v12 screaming at you to give it more,
more, more and belieeeeve me, you will want to give it every single
little tick on the tachometer. The car takes off with the screech
of tires and the sudden push back into your seat, the padding
in the seats depressing under what must have been 1 g or more
of acceleration. Quick shift into second, take the corner deep
and open her up again. I was hooked from the get go.
Unfortunately, on Saturdays, the roads do get kind of blocked
up with people going to the local Saturday events, ie taking the
kids swimming, going for a drive to the park. This actually revealed
a strength of this Italian wonder. It is perfectly happy to just
trot about at low speed, low revs in second gear without so much
as whimper. Even though this engine is derived from Formula One
technology, it is certainly made for the street.
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And then... then came the
highway, leading out of town for the mountains. Where there
are mountains, twisty back roads are sure to exist. It was
2 hours or so to the first really good mountain, and believe
me, when Ferrari said that the 550 is the ultimate touring
car, they were not lying. This car is pure joy, hands down
the *BEST EVER* car I have had to travel over 200 kilometers
in. Comfort, driver amenities, smooth suspension, wonderful
sustainability of the engine revs. It all just clicks together
so well, that you will arrive at your destination and want
to lap the block a couple of times before parking.
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Once we reached the mountains,
I was set free to explore the handling characteristics of this
car. Three words: ho. lee. cow.
If you thought that your car (unless it is a Ferrari) handled
like nothing else, go drive a 550 Maranello at 70 kph through
twists and turns.. This car doesn't have wheels, it has claws,
and these claws will not let you down. It is possible to slide
the back end out, as I did a couple of times, by applying sudden
power to create a drift, but otherwise this car would make even
Michael Shumacher feel like he's driving a perfect car (and for
reference, he owns a 550 and a 360 modena. Go figure). I do not
know how to put the effect this car has into words. Built with
love, tuned with love, and tested with a passion, the Ferrari
550 Maranello is a Gran Turismo car that will most likely not
see an equal for many years. Steering response: perfection. You
breathe on the wheel, the car turns. Throttle response: Instantaneous.
Normally aspirated engines with nearly 500 horses can do that,
you know. Brakes: Superb. The 550 has ABS brakes which will grab
you and haul you down from speed at a frightening pace. Fuel economy:
what, you buy one of these cars and you're worried about fuel
economy????
Then the sad part happened... we had to drive back to the city.
So we drove at a very illegal speed down the highway, as other
drivers waved at us as we ripped by. As I said before, this car
launches, even at speed. And this car loves speed. That big front
chin spoiler is there for a reason, not just cosmetics, because
when you get some air flowing into the engine compartment and
into the famous ferrari double intakes, this car growls and lets
you know what it is capable of. Thankfully, the RCMP and highway
patrol were not out in force that day, and, surprisingly, we didn't
see one cop car the entire time out. But I do think getting chased
by the police at 150 kph is a good thing.
All in all, this review can come down to one paragraph, which
is as follows:
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If you have the
money, if you have the dream, if you have even a smidgen of
sense in you and you are a rich person, you will buy a Ferrari
550 Maranello. I have driven a Ferrari 355 Spyder, a Toyota
Celica street modified, and a Honda S2000, and out of all
of them, only the 550 had my heart pumping as fast as it was,
timed perfectly with cylinder one of the twelve that brought
me so much joy. This is a Ferrari. Drive it like it is meant
to be driven. Put your foot down, row those perfectly spaced
gears, accelerate like a bullet out of a gun, and then enjoy
the ride. It's a Ferrari. Drive proud. |
One last note: the horn on this
thing is, amazingly, very very cute. As Scott so precisely put
it in his 355 Berlinetta review: toot
toot ^_^
SPECIFICATIONS:
Price (USD): $225,000
Engine: 5.5L 48-valve V-12 DOHC
Power: 485hp @ 7000 rpm
Torque: 419 lb-ft @ 5000 rpm
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Redline: 7500 rpm, maximum 1,500 rpm past redline
Curb: 3726 lbs
Front/Rear weight distribution: 52.5%/47.5%
Zero-100 kph: 4.2
Top speed: 320.25 kph
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