Naza Italia Sdn Bhd, the official importer and distributor of Ferrari in Malaysia, officially launched the Ferrari 458 Speciale at the Sepang International Circuit recently, in conjunction with the first ever Ferrari Racing Days event (see separate article soon).
Flanked in the Maranello marque’s range by the multi-award-winning 458 Italia and 458 Spider, the new mid-rear-engined V8 berlinetta was designed to boost both performance and driving emotion to unprecedented levels, yet simultaneously guarantee smooth, effortless control in all kinds of situations.
Powering the Ferrari 458 Speciale is a 4.5 litre naturally-aspirated V8 engine that makes an astounding 597hp at its 9,000 rpm peak and 540Nm of torque at 6,000 rpm. The 458 Speciale can sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in a mere 3.0 seconds and 0-200 km/h in 9.1 seconds. The Ferrari 458 Speciale also lapped Ferrari’s Fiorano test track in 1 minute 23.5 seconds, 1.5 seconds quicker than the Italia.
The increased power is made possible by a sky-high 14.0:1 compression ratio, revised combustion chambers, new pistons, shorter intake runners, reshaped intake ports, and higher lift on the exhaust and intake valves, along with a new carbon-fibre manifold and airbox.
One of the most innovative content of the 458 Speciale is the Side Slip angle Control system (SSC) which makes it easier to achieve car control on the limit, thereby greatly improving driving emotions. Thanks to the development of an accurate new algorithm SSC performs instant-to-instant analysis of the car’s side slip, comparing it with the target value and then optimising both torque management (via integration with F1-Trac traction control) and torque distribution between the two wheels (via integration with the E-Diff electronic differential).
The 458 Speciale is available to Malaysian customers at the introductory price of RM1,238,800.00. The price mentioned is the base price excluding duty and options.
