Ferrari has announced that it will debut its first hybrid model at the Geneva Motor Show in March. “Ferrari first unveiled the Ferrari 599 GTB at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show, and since then rumors have often circulated that Ferrari would one day produce a hybrid version of its exotic sports car,” reports Left Lane News.
Details are scarce, but Autoblog speculates about Ferrari’s hybrid setup, noting “something similar in principle to the race-bred KERS [Kinetic Energy Recovery System] seems like a distinct possibility, and we know the automaker has been dabbling in all-wheel-drive hybrids as well. In any case, Ferrari promises a production hybrid vehicle in the near future.”
A KERS system recovers energy at one of the car’s axles, rather than in the brakes like most hybrids. As used in racing, it can actually be a performance enhancement, allowing drivers a temporary power boost for a burst of speed -- but there’s no word on whether Fererari would actually build a “boost button” into its green machine.
Top Speed says the hybrid system will increase “overall fuel consumption up from around 9 MPG all the way closer to 14 MPG with the battery being recharged while the 599 is decelerating.”
But is there really a market for a hybrid Ferrari? CNET isn’t so sure: “What remains to be seen is whether the prototype makes it to even limited production and whether Ferrari aficionados and buyers will find such a car blasphemous or forward-thinking.”
Green Car Reports is certainly head-over-heels about the possibility, even if it is a distant one: “Regardless of launch date and final drive system, we here at GreenCarReports.com are very excited at the prospect of finally having an excuse to road-test a Ferrari. Green. Ferrari. Green. Ferrari. Hmmmmmmm. That one works!”
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