Bloomberg Businessweek - USA (2019-09-30)

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It’s comforting toknowthatsomethingsneverchange.Markets

maycrumble,socialmediamaydemolishcivilsociety,but

freshpasta,goodwine,andthecourtesyofItaliandriverswho

moveoverontheA1whenthey’vegota Ferrariontheirtail—

these things prevailacrossgenerations.

They’re like theColosseum.OrtheV-8turboengine.That’s

the throbbing heartinsideFerrariNV’s 2020 F8Tributo,a new

offering from the70-year-oldcompany.Asthenamesuggests,

the $270,530 coupepaystributetothealmost-sacredengines

that have poweredtheautomaker’smostsuccessfulcarssince

its first mid-engineV-8,inthe 1975 Ferrari 308 GTB.

The F8 Tributois whereI foundmyselfinearlySeptember—

yes, on a sunnysectionoftheA1thatrunsfromModenato

Milanandcaterstothemostimpatientofsightseers.Witha

3.9-liter,711-horsepowerengine,a seven-speeddual-clutch

gearbox,and 568 pound-feetoftorque,it’smorepowerful

andefficientthanitspredecessor,the 488 GTB.Turbolag

simplydoesn’texisthere.

I lookedforit,too.ButasI navigatedtheon-rampat 30 mph

andpushedthroughfifth,sixth,andseventhgearsonmyway

to 120mph, the F8Tributoacceleratedwithouthesitationand

CARS BloombergPursuits September 30, 2019

withabsolutecontrol.(Topspeedis 211mph.)Climbinginto

thecraggyApenninemountainsoutsideModena,powering

aroundnarrowsingle-laneroads,thecarhandledwithlaserlike

finesse.Mydrivewasincrementallysmoother,moreagile,and

morerefinedinallkindsofturnsthanwhatI’dexperienced

withitspredecessors.Andwitha zeroto 62 mphsprinttimeof

2.9seconds,thecaris lethallyquick.A newenginenotesings

a cheerycantataratherthanthegrowlsorburpsorwheezes

ofothercarsinitsclass;theF8Tributomademefeellikea

maestroconductingItaly’sgrandestorchestra.

Themethodbehindthemusic,asit were,is theF8Tributo’s

weight.Atjust2,932pounds,thecaris 48poundslighterthan

the 488 GTB.AdvancedcomponentsderivedfromFormula 1

technologyhaveshavedoffmass:A novelexhaustmanifold

saves 22 pounds;titaniumconnectingrodsknockoffanother17.

I pulledofftotakesomephotosatonepoint,andwithin

secondsanelderlywomanemergedfromherbleached-stone

home,windowshutterslacedwitholdItalianroses.Inher

skirtandstockings—thisis,afterall,theoldcountry—she ges-

ticulated energetically. At first, I thought she was yelling at

me for parking in front of her home. Then I caught the word

DrawingonhistorytoshapetheF8Tributo,designers

made the most beautiful Ferrari in a decade

By Hannah Elliott Photographs by Federico Ciamei

A Ferrari in Full

From left: The completely

redesigned dash; new

air intakes flanking the

bumper;theItalianleather

interior;theV-8turbo

engine, whichhitsa smooth

note at highspeeds