Ferrari F430

Overview

The F430's chassis is heavily based on its predecessor, the 360. Internally, both cars are referred to with the same model number (F131), though the F430 has the Evoluzione tag attached to show that it features some major changes. Internally, the car is simply known as the "Evo".

The MSRP for a Ferrari F430 is between $168,005–$227,000 in the United States.[3] The F430 is sold starting at about £120,000[4] in the United Kingdom, approximately €175,000 in the European Union and $389,000 for the base model to $450,000 for the Spider F1 Sequential in Australia.


Design

The rear end of the F430
F430 Side MirrorThe body has been redesigned to be more curvaceous and aerodynamic. Although the drag coefficient remains the same, downforce has been greatly enhanced. A great deal of Ferrari heritage is found in the car: at the rear, the Enzo's tail lights and interior vents have been added. The car's name has been etched into the Testarossa-styled driver's side mirror. The large oval openings in the front bumper are reminiscent of Ferrari racing models from the 60s, specifically the 156"sharknose" Formula One car and 250 TR61 Le Mans cars of Phil Hill.


Engine

Along with a restyled body, the F430 features a 4.3 L V8 petrol engine derived from a shared Ferrari/Maserati design. This new powerplant is a significant departure for the F430's line: the engines of all previous V8 Ferraris were descendants of the Dino racing program of the 1950s. This fifty year development cycle comes to an end with the entirely new 4.3 L, the architecture of which is expected to replace the Dino-derived V12 in most other Ferrari cars. The engine's output specifications are: 360.4 kW (483 hp) at 8500 rpm and 465 N·m (343 lb·ft) of torque at 5250 rpm. The F430will reach a top speed of 197 mph (317 km/h).


Brakes

The brakes on the F430 were designed in close collaboration with Brembo. The result has been a new cast-iron alloy for the discs. The new alloy includes molybdenum which has better heat dissipation performance. Another option Ferrari is providing are Carbon fibre-reinforced Silicon Carbide (C/SiC) ceramic composite discs. Ceramics have much higher resistance to heat and brake fade than metals, the F430's brakes offer not only good performance but also a longer lifespan. Ferrari claims the brakes will not fade even after 300-360 laps at their test track.


Features

The F430 includes the E-Diff, a computer-controlled limited slip differential which can vary the distribution of torque based on inputs such as steering angle and lateral acceleration.

Other notable features include the first application of Ferrari's manettino steering wheel-mounted control knob[1]. Drivers can select from five different settings which modify the vehicle's ESP system, "Skyhook" electronic suspension, transmission behavior, throttle response, and E-Diff. The feature is similar to Land Rover's "Terrain Response" system.

The Ferrari F430 was also released with exclusive Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3 EMT tires. "A car with such performance needs to be equipped with the best tires on the market," said Jean Jacques Wiroth, European director of Original Equipment Sales and Marketing for Goodyear tires, adding "we are proud that Ferrari chose the Goodyear Eagle F1 with run-flat technology." The Eagle F1 GSD3 has a striking V-shaped tread design and OneTRED technology.


Performance

Car and Driver magazine found the car's performance worthy of the Ferrari heritage, and recorded a 3.5 sec 0-60 mph acceleration run in the F430[2] This makes it the third-quickest Ferrari road car ever made, following the Enzo and the 599 GTB. That being said, the 3.5 second 0-60 mph run was made on a European spec car, which has launch control, a feature designed to help launch the car from a standing start at high RPMs. Much like the E-Diff and the manettino, the launch control is a technology borrowed from Ferrari's Formula 1 racing program.[1] The launch control is unavailable in U.S.-spec F430s, presumably due to liability issues. The U.S.-spec F430 can do 0-60 mph in 3.6 seconds .

On the BBC Top Gear TV show, shown on the 17 July 2005, The Stig achieved a Power Lap time of 1:22.9. While the laptime was 0.89 seconds less than a Lamborghini Murciélago, the F430 was slower than the 360 Challenge Stradale at 1:22.3. The slower lap was blamed on the F430's Bridgestone tires supposedly having less grip than the Challenge Stradale's Pirellis.

Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson has commented on the F430's handling being absolutely brilliant, a marked improvement over the 360; he claimed that the Ferrari holds the road so well that "even the most butter-fingered, incapable driver could drive the F430 around their test track only one second slower than the most skilled test driver". He has in fact proclaimed, on more than one occasion, that the Ferrari F430 is "just about the best car I've ever driven", a status he previously attributed to the F355 (but never the 360).
The car develops about 300 kgf (2.9 kN/661.39 lbf) of downforce at top speed (without rear wing).


Special versions

F430 Spider

A Spider interiorThe F430 Spider is the convertible version based on the coupé. The 430 Spider is Ferrari's 21st roadgoing convertible. The Spider is - just like the coupé - quite similar in looks to the Ferrari 360.

Despite the car's mid-mounted engine Ferrari's engineers found a way of creating a hood that automatically folds away inside the engine bay, thus ensuring purity of line. The striptease from a closed top to an open-air convertible is a two-stage folding-action that has been dubbed "a stunning 20 second mechanical symphony". After a short to and fro, the entire top disappears into a closed storage area between the seating and the engine.

The interior of the Spider is identical to that of the coupé.


F430 GT2

Risi Competizione's Ferrari F430 GT2 at the American Le Mans Series' Generac 500.Built to replace the 360 GTC in 2006, the GT2 is a racing car designed to compete in international GT2 class competition, such as in the American Le Mans Series, Le Mans Series, and FIA GT Championship. F430 GT2s also compete at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. They are the fastest and most developed racing versions of the F430.

In FIA GT2 championship, in order to render the car performances more uniform, the cars are forced to run with a specific minimal weight and with an engine restrictor that depends on the engine displacement. Hence the 4.3 L V8 engine in GT2 races is destroked to 4.0 L in order to compete in the 3.8-4.0 L class, which is allowed to race with a mimimum weight of 1100 kg (2425 lb).Using the 4.3 L engine, the minimum weight of the F430 would increase by 50 kg (110 lb). In this race configuration, the engine produces somewhat less power, but this is compensated by the lower car weight, which yields a better weight/power ratio.

The F430 GT2s won their class championships in the ALMS and FIA GT, as well as scoring a class win at the 2007 12 Hours of Sebring.



430 Scuderia

Ferrari 430 Scuderia at 2008 NAIASServing as the successor onto the Challenge Stradale, the 430 Scuderia was unveiled by Michael Schumacher at the 2007 Frankfurt Auto Show. Aimed to compete with cars like the Porsche RS-models and the Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera, meaning super light weight, it is lighter (by 100 kg/220 lb) and more powerful (515 PS (508 hp/379 kW) at 8500 rpm.) than the standard F430. Thus the weight-to-power ratio is reduced from 2.96 kg/hp to 2.5 kg/hp. In addition to the weight saving measures, the Scuderia semi-automatic transmission gains improved 'Superfast', known as 'Superfast2', software for faster 60 millisecond shift-times. A new traction control system combines the F1-Trac traction and stability control with the E-Diff electronic differential. The Ferrari 430 Scuderia does 0-60 miles per hour (97 km/h) in 3.1 s[9] and 0-100 km/h (62 mph) in less than 3.6 seconds,[10] with a top speed of 198 miles per hour (319 km/h).[10]

The cosmetic differences between the 430 Scuderia and the F430 upon which it is based include a re-styled front fascia, modified side-skirts, twin exhaust tips, a revised rear diffuser design, 19" wheels designed specifically for the 430 Scuderia, carbon-fibre wing mirrors, carbon-fibre challenge grille, two racing stripes along the middle and the 430 Scuderia badge.