2016 Ferrari FF spied undergoing cold weather testing
This actually makes some sense, unlike the bizarre "coupe" rumors. More power is always good, and a carbon roof would also be cool. We will see.
Is it facelift or full model replacement? Seems like a facelift to me. Also - do I understand correctly that its intended for MY 2017? If its facelift I would very much doubt they will do major upgrades to 4WD. Does not make sense to do it.
Here is the vid https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlwhtINjY0g As usual there is much rumor, speculation and opinion, and little if any knowledge.
Carbon roof is cool, but not as cool as my skylight roof!!! haha From the way they taped up the car, the rear will be untouched. And why do it, it's the signature of the FF. All those intricate curves are just sexy now that i spent more time looking at it. The upgrade to the 4wd system I believe will be better software tuning, same with the traction control, to account for the extra power.
I think there's more to not touching the rear than it just being part of the FF signature. If it's a mid-way facelift M type deal, there are simply limits as to how much they can do. Making a new rear, would mean making an entirely new car. That rear shape, is part of what makes it a true four seater. If they wanted to make it more "sleek" or coupé like, but keep the headroom, it would need one heck of rear end re-mold, and the car would perhaps need to be quite a bit longer. There are simply physical limitations to what they can do with the current platform, if they want to stick with the four seat theme - which I'm very sure they will. Just my 2
Every owner of FF wishes that rear will be untouched. If Ferrari make serious changes on rear (in positive way), current FF prices will drop like crazy!
I don't know what one means by "change the rear." If it means changing the roof line and hatch so as to make it look like "other Ferraris," it will lose its utility for people who use it to carry people and stuff. If it means diddle with the details of the design (like the 458 to the Speciale), there is a strong likelihood that they will not make it better.
Ferrari made awesome job with California T, so I expect same level of "facelift" on FF + I am sure they will tweak roof line.
The roof line is dictated by the interior packaging, if they change it then the rear seats will have less room and less cargo space. Or the car will be even longer to preserve that human and cargo room. They might change the lines around the rear lights and stuff, but why lose all those intricate details just for the sake of change? The FF is not for everyone, Ferrari already stated that it is targeting a very specific group of people. unlike the California which needs to please a much bigger target group.
Whoopsy all facts that you are mentioning are absolutely legit, but there is one trick Modern Ferrari brand is built around usability packed in aesthetically pleasing form. Those values are followed by high performance and intoxicating sound. Every single Ferrari is targeted to specific group of people, but from visual point of view, every Ferrari model needs to attract attention and admiration from wide audience (from obvious reasons we all know). My points are proven by insane price drops on FF. That is just one of the reasons Ferrari is probably preparing serious FF face-lift. If you want, I can post selling results of FF. Numbers are devastating and small company like Ferrari cant afford that kind of luxury to keep visually unpleasing model, with insanely low selling numbers and massive price drops on pre-owned market. People expect from company like Ferrari to pack usability in amazing shape, just like they did with F12 Berlinetta. Otherwise, Ferrari existence on market could be questionable. FF is more like Toyota Prius in Ferrari family - its is usable but ugly as f*ck: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/%22_12_-_ITALY_-_Ferrari_FF_Bologna_shooting_brake_03.jpg
The former is what I was talking about them not doing at this time. The problem is, as you point out, that there is a problem with fundamentally changing the design. If they want to make it more coupé-like, but keep it as roomy and usable as the current FF, they would need to extent the car, so they could keep the roof line high enough for the rear seats, but slope it down to make it less hatchback and more fastback, coupé or what ever we may call it, while keeping the big boot. I don't think they will do that, as that would mean changing the car completely, and not only facelift it. I think they will do a facelift similar to the Cali T.
Yes.. there are serious constraints if you want to have usable car for 4 with cargo. We will see what they come up with.
The depreciation on the FF is actually quite normal. 4 seater Ferraris always drop like a stone, V12 Ferraris are also not a good value keeper, then there is the high milage Ferrari factor that also pushes the price down. FF is checked every box lol. Most FF owners goes into it knowing fully what the consequences are, maybe that's why they drive the **** out of the car. I actually consider the FF Ferrari's pet project. Kind of like Steve Job's Apple TV. Making insane profit on the car is not the top priority, but filling a tiny niche for their customers is. As they say in the original FF introduction, most Ferrari owners have a winter car, so why not make a Ferrari winter car to keep those in the 'family'.
Your last words made me smile So we could expect one nice SUV from Ferrari to fill next small niche. I can see a lot of Porsche business model - filling every single niche no matter is it suitable for brand or not... Since Sergio is now in charge I wouldnt be surprised to see next (ugly) project from Ferrari in form of SUV
