Normally there's a good supercar tussle to get excited about at a major motor show – who's going to have the more outrageous atomic doorstop, who's going to win the horsepower wars, that kind of thing. In Paris in 2016 though, there's only one entrant which wins by default – Ferrari.
With rivals such as Lamborghini and McLaren on the no-show list, and Porsche concentrating on showing off a plugin hybrid saloon (admittedly not exactly a boring one, it's the new Panamera 4 e-Hybrid) Ferrari has the field to itself in Paris.
The LaFerrari Aperta then is the default winner, but is hardly a disappointment. It keeps the 960hp V12 hybrid powertrain of its coupe sibling, but opens up the roof for maximum headroom and twelve cylinder surround sound. A carbon fibre removeable roof is standard, and a fabric stand-in an option.
A maximum speed of 350kmh and a 0-100kmh time of under 3secs should make it the most exciting convertible in the world, and Ferrari has subtly beefed up the car’s carbon fibre structure to make sure that it can be pushed on track as hard as the coupe without the body starting to flex. It’s also modified the aerodynamic package so that driving with the roof off means you don’t upset the drag co-efficient and there’s an angled wind-stop on top of the windscreen to stop a 350kmh wind from getting into the cabin. There’s a tiny increase in weight, but Ferrari says it doesn’t affect the car’s performance much.
Ferrari says that the styling is strongly influenced by the 1960s 330P4 Le Mans racer and that has more significance than you might expect. Next year is Ferrari’s 70th birthday and the Aperta kicks off a round of celebration models which nod deeply back to Ferrari’s past glories on the race track. A new badge, celebrating the 70th, will appear first on the LaFerrari Aperta, and then next year we’ll see a whole lineup of models based on the current Ferrari road-going range.
The F12berlinetta will have an editon called "The Stirling", inspired by the 250 GT Berlinetta SWB, winner of the 1961 Tourist Trophy with Stirling Moss: it sports Blu Scuro racing livery complete with Rob Walker Team-style horizontal white stripe and number roundel.
There will be a 488 GTB “The Schumacher”, an homage to the F2003-GA single-seater, winner of the F1 Drivers’ and Constructors’ World Championships in 2003, in which the legendary German driver took no fewer than six grand prix victories.
The California T will get a "The Steve McQueen" edition, inspired by the 1963 250 GT Berlinetta lusso, one of the most elegant Ferraris ever built, which was a gift to the American actor from his first wife, Neile Adams. It features brown body paintwork and a cabin in camel leather with elegant stitching and there will be a 488 Spider "The Green Jewel", sporting the signature bright green livery of the 365 P2 fielded by the British David Piper Racing team. Piper was a regular and very well-known Ferrari privateer and drove the car to victory in the Nine Hours of Kyalami in both 1965 and 1966 and, in 1966, in the prestigious Trophée d'Auvergne at Clermont-Ferrand.
