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In case you didn't know yet: we have relaunched our glossy magazine GTO, as a new AutoWeek Special! And the GTO App is available in the App stores as well.
For that reason, we have visited a lot of wonderful places, like this. Ferrari-HQ Maranello!
So I'd say: come with me as we visit Ferrari, the Fiorano circuit, the Ferrari Museum and - last but not least - we testdrive the new F12.
Let's go!
Ferrari-owners from all over the world send their precious automobiles to Ferrari Classiche...
the department responsible for certification, maintenance and restauration.
Ferrari still has a lot of the building reports and blueprints available of all the cars it has manufactured over the years...
that way, the company is able to build all-new engines from scratch and to restore the classics into mint condition all over again.
The heritage cherished here is not only mind-blowing, but also worth many, many millions of Dollars.
Visiting Maranello in the near future? Then you have to bring a visit to this wonderful museum!
At the moment, the Museo Ferrari features a special exhibition celebrating the launch of the all-new La Ferrari.
It shows you the various stages of the development of Ferraris new hypercar.
It even features several life-sized design studies, some of them several years old...
...as well as all of the LaFerrari's predecessors, going from the 288 GTO to the F40, the F50 and the Enzo.
Naturally the 'standard' collection of the Museo is visible as well, with more than enough attention for its history in F1. That, after all, was the reason Ferrari started to produce roadgoing cars.
Especially in the early years, the street legal cars were just a way for Ferrari to pay for its racing activities.
We've got it!
Right, we've finished the photo session for the magazine. It's been a long day with bad weather, but the pics are fantastic.
So now it's back to Maranello! We've got a half an hour to cover 21 kilometers so that's doable.
And it gives you a good opportunity to experience this car from the inside as well... Experience stuff like this! What a wonderful type of violence, unbelievable!
I've got the Manettino switched to 'wet' because we're driving in very tricky conditions, but even when you turn it to 'Sport' or 'Race'...
with the ESP acting less intrusive, the suspension a bit firmer and the gearshifts shortened...
even then, this car and its electronics feel incredibly refined. The software is not slowing you down as we see often in cars like this, but is actually helping you to push the limits of the car.
To go even faster. And faster!
The engine is fantastic, even so overwhelming that you almost forget how good the rest of this car is.
The way all components are working together in great harmony.
That's what sticks in my mind after a day of driving this F12. All of those individual parts, all the hightech components, are thrown in one big melting pot resulting in a fantastic homogenous driving machine.
And then there's the way you, being the driver, get involved in the whole process and - in a way - become one with the car.
Remember, this machine delivers 740 ps! But even after a short hour of getting used to it, the technology in this car enables you to throw it around like you've never done anything else in your life.
Even in circumstances and on rough roads like these, this F12 never feels like it is going to beat you. It makes you want to go even faster, wanting even more!
Right, that was our day in a Ferrari F12. I'll have to return the key now...
Well, yes. I'm a bit lost for words. If you would ask me if there's a nicer, prettier, better and more exciting car than this one, I wouldn't know the answer.
It could be this Ferrari has been beaten by its newer sibling, the LaFerrari, already. So to find that out, we'll have to come back some day and try that one...