Car Throttle

2012 is shaping up to be one hell of a busy year for the boys and girls in Maranello, with such a smorgasbord of new Ferrari models muted to be on the way. There's the Challenge/Scuderia hardcore version of the 458 to come, a 700bhp 599 replacement, and even a possible first look at the Enzo successor. Now, reports are suggesting that the entry-level prancing horse will also be receiving some nip/tuck attention to keep it bang up to date. The California, launched in 2008 as Ferrari's first folding hard top, and first front-engined V8, is likely to go on a diet and grow some more muscles for its 2012 update. Rather than being a racier add-on pack, like the HGTE option for the 599 and now-defunct

Drifting. In the snow. In a bright red Ferrari California. Sound like fun? Oh yes. Ferrari agrees, and the prancing horse served up this video of the California doing just that. While the retractable hardtop California probably conjures up images of driving in the California sun, Ferrari thinks otherwise. The company organized an event in the freezing climate of St Moritz, Switzerland to demonstrate the fun to be had. It is a trend for Ferrari: the FF (four-seat four-wheel drive) was pictured in the snow for a lot of its press photography, a bit out of place for a Ferrari we might say. We've driven rear-wheel drive sports cars with far less power in the snow (such as the Nissan 370Z) and they were quite

Here's a new acronym for you: HELE. Since it's attached to the back of a Ferrari, you'd think it was something sexy and slightly dangerous.  "Highly Effective Laser Emulsifier?"  "Hella Easy Lovin' Extractor?"  "Hope Esprits Lose Easily?"  Sadly, I must remind you that it's 2010, and not even Ferrari is immune from the greenwashing overtaking the industry.  Meet the California HELE, which stands for "High Emotion Low Emission."  Isn't that a load of crap? The idea is "still fun to drive, but not killing the environment quite as rapidly."  Ferrari says it's an idea that's going to spread to the rest of the prancing horse lineup, and I can feel my lunch coming back up already. HELE centers around reduction of CO2 emissions, while not diluting the

We know the Ferrari California doesn't get much love in the automotive blogosphere for its styling, but we still love it. First of all, its a Ferrari, how can you not? Second, the name is great (in this writer's opinion, anyway). Novitec thinks so too, giving us even more to love from the California with its new tuning package for it. For starters, the performance is boosted - literally. The 4.3-liter V-8 in the California gets a 166-horsepower bump through supercharging. Torque grows by 93 pound feet to 445 lb-feet, from 358. Those changes are good for a top speed of 202 mph and a 0-60 time of 3.8 seconds (!). There is a water-to-air intercooler, bigger fuel injectors, new intake manifold, and a Novitec mechanism on the

For fans of supercar destruction, the Bugatti Veyron crashing into a lake provided a lot of fodder this week. Pretty crazy to say the least. We've always covered that kind of stuff at CarThrottle, like the recent test of an armored Rolls-Royce Phantom. This particular video is in Sofia, Bulgaria and shows two red Ferrari Californias driving through the streets of town. Coming around the corner, one of them hits into construction equipment. The video is pretty shaky and it doesn't show everything in detail. No word on the driver, but thankfully it wasn't a particularly severe crash. As always, here is the disclaimer though - if you hate seeing high-end exotic machinery destroyed, look away. httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z31HGWxRXDE

Oh dear, it looks like not even Ferrari is immune from the "green revolution". The company wisely didn't do anything to compromise it's heritage like build an SUV. I applaud them for that. Recent patents and public pronouncements from Ferrari have indicated the company is looking to make less of an environmental footprint. While it does seem anti-Ferrari (Just a tad....) that isn't neccessarily a bad thing. How they get there though definitely could be. I could see maybe greener plant that is more efficient or employing solar panels for instance. Or even in vehicles, things like lowering weight in the vehicles and attempting to make engines more efficient while not compromising power. But a hybrid? Regardless, Ferrari is forging ahead with one. Luca Cordero di Montezemolo confirmed at the Geneva Auto Show that they were working

With the Enzo's small run done and over with, it's absence leaves Ferarri without a range-topping supercar. Lamborghini just had one if it's own with the super-exclusive Reventon and it looks like a successor to the Enzo might be in the works. Leftlane News is offering up an idea of what that might look like. It's interesting though that Leftlane is refering to the vehicle as the Enzo II. I doubt Ferrari will choose to call it that, or even Enzo again. Ferrari doesn't really do successive model names. They change them with every generation. For instance 360 Modena, to F430 Scuderia. That's not how Ferrari thinks, and certainly not with vehicles like the original Enzo. They are short run vehicles, not a long-term product line that