At the
2009 Geneva Motor Show,
Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car in ...
unveiled the track-only iteration of the
599 GTB, dubbed the 599XX. Designed by Ferrari's Formula-one engineers, the car has many changes over the standard car in order to make it more nimble and responsive on a race track.
Specifications
Exterior enhancements included two winglets on the C-pillars for improved downforce, a vented bonnet for improved engine cooling, darkened
lexan
Polycarbonates (PC) are a group of thermoplastic polymers containing carbonate groups in their chemical structures. Polycarbonates used in engineering are strong, tough materials, and some grades are optically transparent. They are easily work ...
tail lamps, a carbon fibre 'ducktail' rear spoiler aiding further in downforce, a large rear diffuser for improved under body airflow, tow hooks at the front and rear, additional ducts for improved cooling, a minimalist race interior with racing bucket seats along with an LCD display behind the steering wheel replacing all analogue gauges equipped with a roll-cage and lexan sliding windows. The car also has two fans that were located in the trunk and worked to keep the car on the ground and stopped working at speeds up to , a speed at which the car needed no additional downforce. With all such components, the car was reported to generate of downforce at and of downforce at . The air conditioning system was retained for added driver comfort. The car had nine traction and stability control modes, all controlled from the
manettino dial
In automotive engineering, a manettino dial is a rotary switch part of some modern Ferrari cars first designed by Frank Stephenson, beginning with the Ferrari F430 in 2004. The adjustment dial is mounted on the steering wheel, usually just und ...
on the steering wheel. The car was equipped with F1 inspired carbon ceramic brakes with crossed drilled rotors and a new race exhaust system. The rev limiter was raised to 9,000 rpm, with the engine rated at at 9,000 rpm. Weight was reduced by reducing the weight of the engine components such as a new carbon fibre intake manifold and graphite coated pistons along with a lightweight crankshaft, as well as through the use of composite materials and the use of
carbon fibre
Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon compo ...
body parts. A new gearbox was introduced to cut overall gear change time to 60 milliseconds, holding the upward or downward shift paddle for longer resulted in multiple shifts that improved gearing time. The car also included 29/67 R19 front and 31/71 R19 rear racing slicks with 19 × 11J wheels at the front and 19 × 12J at the rear. The 599XX was capable of accelerating from in 2.9 seconds and attained a top speed of (redline limited top speed). The 599XX had a price of $1.5 million when it debuted.
Records
At the 2010 Beijing International Auto Show, Ferrari announced that the 599XX had completed the
Nordschleife circuit at the Nürburgring in a time of 6 minutes and 58.16 seconds – the fastest time ever recorded for a production-derived sports car.
This lap was later beaten by the
Pagani Zonda R
The Pagani Zonda R is a track day car developed and manufactured by Italian sports car manufacturer Pagani. It debuted at the 2007 Geneva Motor Show, using the 6.0-litre GT 112 engine sourced from the racing version of the Mercedes-Benz CLK-GT ...
in June 2010, which had set a lap time of 6 minutes and 47.50 seconds.
599XX Evo
On November 10, 2011, the first images of the 599XX Evo surfaced, which had a radically restyled aero and exhaust package as well as electronic upgrades and
Pirelli
Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is a multinational tyre manufacturer based in Milan, Italy. The company, which has been listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 1922, is the 6th-largest tyre manufacturer and is focused on the consumer production of tyre ...
racing slicks. On 1 December 2011, Ferrari confirmed details for the 599XX Evo in preparation for the 2011
Bologna Motor Show
The Bologna Motor Show (known as the "''Salone internazionale dell'auto e della moto di Bologna''" in Italian) was an auto show which was scheduled to be held annually in December, in Bologna, Italy.
The editions of 2009 and 2012 were the shor ...
.
The 599XX Evo weighed less than the standard 599XX and the engine had slightly improved peak power of and of torque. One of the key features of the Evo is its active rear wing which can adjust automatically to provide increased cornering performance.
References
External links
Ferrari 599XX Official WebsiteFerrari 599XX Evo Official Website
{{Ferrari
599 GTB
2010s cars
Rear-wheel-drive vehicles