Ferrari F430
The Ferrari F430 is a sports car produced by the Italian automaker Ferrari as a successor to the 360. It debuted at the 2004 Paris Motor Show. European left-hand drive sales began in November 2004, but right-hand drive sales did not start until Spring 2005, and the North American market did not get the F430 until Summer 2005.
The F430's chassis is heavily based on its predecessor, the 360. Internally, both cars are referred to with the same model number (F131), though the F430 has the "Evoluzione" tag attached to show that it features some major changes. Internally, the car is simply known as the "Evo." The MSRP for a Ferrari F430 is between $168,005-$227,000.
The body has been redesigned to be more curvaceous and aerodynamic for overall better performance. Although the drag coefficient remains the same, downforce has been greatly enhanced. Once can definitely see a great deal of Ferrari heritage in the Ferrari F430: at the rear, the Enzo's tail lights and interior vents have been added. The car's name has been etched into the Testarossa-styled driver's side mirror. The large oval openings in the front bumper are reminiscent of Ferrari racing models from the 1960s, specifically the 156 "sharknose" Formula One car and 250 TR61 Le Mans cars of Phil Hill.
Along with a restyled body, the F430 features a 4.3-liter V-8 gas engine derived from a shared Ferrari/Maserati design. This new powerplant is a significant departure for the F430's line: the engines of all previous V-8 Ferraris were descendants of the Dino racing program of the 1950s. This fifty-year development cycle comes to an end with the entirely new 4.3-liter, the architecture of which is expected to replace the Dino-derived V-12 in most other Ferrari cars. The engines outputs 483 horsepower at 8500 rpm and 343 lb.-ft. of torque at 5,250 rpm. The F430 reaches a top speed of 197 mph.
Car and Driver magazine found the car's performance worthy of the Ferrari heritage, and recorded a 3.5 second 0-60 mph acceleration run in the Ferrari F430. This makes it the third-quickest Ferrari road car ever made, following the Enzo and the 599 GTB.
The F430 comes in a 2-door convertible format called the Spider. The 430 Spider is Ferrari's 21st road-going convertible. The Spider is just like the coupé and actually quite similar in looks to the Ferrari 360. Despite the car's mid-mounted engine Ferrari's engineers found a way of creating a hood that automatically folds away inside the engine bay, thus ensuring purity of line. The striptease from a closed top to an open-air convertible is a two-stage folding-action. After a short to and fro, the entire top disappears into a closed storage area between the seating and the engine. The interior of the Spider is identical to that of the coupe.