It seems Ferrari is finding it tough to tame the upcoming 700bhp beast lurking under the 488 guise. The special series 488 will be the most hardcore iteration of the Italian supercar which is rumoured to wear the highly coveted GTO badge when it arrives. The technical specification of the same surfaced a few weeks back. And now, the image of the actual car has been snapped at a private showcase event and leaked on social media.
Whether Ferrari would use the GTO insignia or not is yet to be confirmed. Even if the moniker is too hallowed, the hardcore 488 can make do with other monikers from Ferrari’s rich heritage such as Stradale, Scuderia or even the Speciale. The caption of the leaked image and the earlier documents, however, used “Sport Special Series” name for the Performante rival.
As can be seen in the image, the mad 488 is wearing a massively curated aero kit for the front bumper. This special treatment is said to enhance the aerodynamics of the car by 20 per cent. That is important since the Huracan Performante ripped the Nurburgring lap time solely on its aerodynamic prowess. The fancy-yet-functional wing mirrors, double racing stripe and massive 20-inch Spyder-style wheels are also seen.
The leaked specification papers from earlier this month revealed a race-derived V8 powering the hardcore 488. If the rumoured power figure of 700bhp is confirmed it will make Ferrari’s 3.9-litre engine the most powerful V8 the company has ever produced. The documents also mentioned that the engine is 10 per cent lighter than the one used in 488 Challenge racecar. Extensive use of carbonfibre will help keep the weight in check further helped by more aero bits like the rear spoiler and active flaps to exploit the crazy output from the V8. The access to the Formula 1 wind tunnel will be apparent when Ferrari will reveal the aerodynamic figures to shame its rivals.
The hot 488 will be a successor to the 458 Speciale which was considered as the best driver-focused car from Maranello. It will be aiming to smother the Nurburgring lap records set by the Lamborghini Huracan Performante and the Porsche 911 GT2 RS when it arrives. The Geneva stage is the best bet now that the Prancing Horse is struggling to keep the hardcore 488 under covers.
