Chris Evans is a radio and TV producer, a fan of the colour white and the owner of one of the most complete Ferrari collections.

In his collection you’ll spot an Enzo, F40, California, 599 and many more not shown in these pictures. He also had a GT SWB Spyder California 250 in black and a white 250 GT SWB, which have been swapped in favour of his latest addition, the 250 GTO.

The cars are not just pieces of art put away in a museum. The cars are being driven regularly by friends and people he personally selected. The custom plates are a nice touch.

Adapted from GTSpirit

The Franschhoek Motor Museum (FMM), at L’Ormarins estate in the Western Cape, played host to a spectacular time trial and concours event this past weekend. Held over two days, the event featured a multitude of rare and exotic cars battling for top honours in their respective events. Apart from the attraction of the cars themselves, the museum is situated on the beautiful L’Ormarins estate, nestled below the peaks of the Groot Drakenstein mountains.

The event kicked off with the time trial runs on Saturday morning. The competitors were divided into three classes of cars, according to their speeds, and completed four runs of the specially-designed circuit. The drivers list read like a who’s-who of local and international motorsport legends, with the likes of Sarel van der Merwe, who piloted the museum’s Porsche Carrera GT, a Le Mans D Type Jaguar and a wild Chevelle SS; Ian Scheckter, who got behind the wheel of the museum’s Tyrell and March F1 cars; as well as Serge Damseaux, 10 times SA Rally Champion, who was reunited with his 1988 Class A Championship winning Toyota Conquest. Other well known personalities attacking the course, included young Schalk Burger in his modified BMW 135i and a Shelby Mustang 350, as well as L’Ormarins’ owner, Mr Johann Rupert, whose weapons of choice were a ‘63 Ferrari Lusso GT and Mercedes CLK DTM AMG.

Despite temperatures being well into the 30’s, spectators were well looked after with ample food and beverage available. The pit area was open to spectators and allowed the chance for close-up inspection of the competing cars. Various manufacturers also had their latest models on display, including Maserati with a GranTursimo S, Ferrari with their California and Porsche with a 911 GT3, 911 Turbo and a few Panameras.

Of course the museum itself opened its doors for the weekend. With over 220 cars in the collection, the museum boasts 2 700 m² of floor space with some 80 cars on display at any one time. An added bonus for those in attendance was being able to see the exhibits come to life when the Ferrari F50, McLaren F1 and Porsche Carrera GT took to the course – carrying the three winners of the lucky draw, who each won the ride of their lives.

The Concours d’Elegance took place on Sunday afternoon. Entries included, among others, a Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing, BMW M1, Aston Martin DBR, Ferrari Dino, Ferrari Daytona and Toyota 2000GT.

As with the Knysna Hillclimb we attended last year, we hope the FMM Time Trial & Concours event continues to grow from strength to strength. South Africa offers some of the most spectacular scenery in the world and successfully combining these scenes with rare and exotic machinery is certainly a trend we hope will catch on. With more events like these, spectators are given the opportunity to view motorsport in environments other than the racetrack, which adds variety to their motorsport calendar.

Time Trial Top 10 Fastest Times:

The countdown has begun in preparation for the 2010 World Car of the Year (WCOTY) and Performance Car of the Year (PCOTY) awards ceremony that will be taking place on April 1 at the 2010 New York Auto Show.

A total of 31 cars made up the original list of candidates for the 2010 World Car category, while 15 cars made up the list for the 2010 Performance Car category, but now these lists have been whittled down to just ten finalists.

Now in their seventh year, the World and Performance Car of the Year awards are an independent global accreditation to name the best new car on the market, as selected by a voter group made up of established automotive journalists from around the globe.

To be eligible, a car has to be in production and sold in at least five countries and on two continents, which meant many American manufactured cars didn’t make the list. The final winners will be picked by a team of 59 judges and announced during April’s New York event, however, the list will be whittled down even further to just three finalists in both categories at next month’s 2010 Geneva Motor Show.

Also running once again for this year’s event are the additional World Green Car and World Car Design of the Year awards. Last year, the Volkswagen Golf 6 drove off with the World Car title, while the mighty Nissan GT-R supercar took top honours in the Performance Car segment.

2010 World Car of the Year top ten finalists:

• Audi Q5
• BMW X1
• Chevrolet Cruze
• Kia Soul
• Mazda3
• Mercedes-Benz E-Class
• Opel/Vauxhall Insignia / Buick Regal
• Porsche Panamera
• Toyota Prius
• Volkswagen Polo

2010 Performance Car of the Year top ten finalists:

• Aston Martin V12 Vantage
• Audi R8 V10
• Audi TT RS Coupé / Roadster
• BMW Z4
• Ferrari California
• Jaguar XFR
• Lotus Evora
• Mercedes-Ben z E 63 AMG
• Nissan 370 Z
• Porsche 911 GT3
• Porsche Boxster / Cayman

Adapted from MotorAuthority

It takes a German to make an Italian stallion this wild. Novitec Rosso, the arm of the high end tuning firm that specializes in all things from Maranello, has just released a new customisation package for the 343 kW V8 powered Ferrari California.

Novitec leaves no aspect of the brand new retractable hard top sports coupe untouched, making modifications both inside and out, and they weren’t worried about getting a little grease under their fingernails because they also changed out the suspension in search of better handling.

But what’s the benefit of looking good and being able to take corners a little faster if you can’t blow past other California drivers on the straights, so the German engineers gave the front engine Ferrari a more aggressive engine tune as well.

The outside benefits from healthy heap of carbon fibre, with elements like a new front spoiler, side skirts and a new diffuser incorporated into the rear apron. The German tuner is offering the package with their three piece Novitec Rosso NF3 wheels, sized either 21 or 22 inches in diameter depending on how much you want to feel the road. Don’t worry about wheel gap because the car comes down by 35 mm at all four corners not only to improve handling but to give the new California the perfect stance. The Ferrari’s engine management software has been reprogrammed with custom mapping that optimises both injection and ignition increasing output to an even 373 kW and 517 N.m of torque when combined with the new stainless steel exhaust that allows the California to be heard.

Adapted from TopSpeed

We’ve already shown you around the outside of Ferrari’s new 458 but here’s a closer look at the inside. Plus, we’ve found the first pictures of the fastest Ferrari ever on the move.

Debuting at Frankfurt in 3 weeks the pictures provides the most detailed look yet at the 458’s instrument layout. According to Ferrari the new layout represents a significant step forward in the concept of the ergonomic interface between driver and car.

Changes mean the 458 has eliminated all steering-column mounted controls, with the indicators, full beam, flash and windscreen wiper functions now being activated by buttons on the steering wheel. Behind the steering wheel lie a number of secondary functions, such as the stereo, while the gearbox paddles are now longer, making shifts even easier from any steering angle.

The right-hand section of the dashboard incorporates controls for the infotainment unit and sat-nav. While on the left-hand side you’ll find buttons for choosing the video setting of the TFT screen and the on-board computer interface.

Driver control of the Vehicle Dynamic Assistance (VDA) means you can control the operating parameters of the most important areas of the car – engine/gearbox, tyres and brakes. The driver is able to choose from three different VDA settings – Race, CT Off and CST Off – allowing the driver to correctly identify the best operating conditions for the car. There are also three status settings on display: WARM-UP (operating temperature too low), GO (ideal operating conditions) and OVER (one or more components are no longer at their optimum level and need cooling).

Of course, Ferrari already assured us the design and feel of the interior have been enhanced with the help of Michael Schumacher and the above described dashboard layout is “the direct result of racing practice.”

Adapted from 0-60Mag

Just the other day, Ferrari introduced the all-new 458 Italia to the world for the very first time. In true Ferrari fashion, the F430’s replacement was shown in the Italian firm’s signature red color. And even though your typical Prancing Horse fan wouldn’t have it any other way, we’re pretty sure that there are many customers out there that would prefer the 458 Italia in a different hue. The same thought passed through the mind of FerrariChat poster ‘JimF’ who decided to use his photoshop skills to create a gallery of images of the mid-engined supercar in numerous colors. Check them out below.

Source: CarScoop

Ferrari has unexpectedly released the first official photos and details for its latest model, the all-new Ferrari 458 Italia, which is set to replace the current F430 as the brand’s iconic mid-engined V8 sportscar.

This new model represents a dramatic leap forward in Ferrari design and innovation, marking a genuine departure from the current range – including the recently released California.

The Ferrari 458 Italia has been named not only by the traditional figure representing the displacement and number of cylinders but also for its homeland – combining a synthesis of style, creative flair, passion and cutting-edge technology, characteristics for which Italy as a nation is well-known.

Far more than a facelift or overhaul, the Ferrari 458 Italia is a completely new car from the ground up, boasting an all-new engine, design, aerodynamics, handling, instrumentation and ergonomics.

Its Pininfarina design is like no other Ferrari seen before, with a compact, aerodynamic shape, underscoring the concepts of simplicity, efficiency and lightness that inspired the project.

The radical bodywork is also functional, providing downforce of 140 kg at 200 km/h and includes small aeroelastic winglets which generate downforce and, as speed rises, deform to reduce the section of the radiator inlets and cut drag.

The new V8 engine boasts displacement of 4499 cc and is the first direct injection engine to be mid-rear mounted in a Ferrari.

The engine delivers peak power of 425 kW at 9000rpm, setting a new power per litre benchmark for not only Ferrari but also the entire market segment, along with maximum torque of 540 N.m at 6000 rpm.

This is mated to the new seven-speed dual-clutch transmission which sports new gear ratios to complement the power and torque curves of the new V8.

Perhaps the most amazing figure however is the consumption, with Ferrari paying specific attention to cutting emissions with the Ferrari 458 Italia producing just 320 g/km of CO2 and fuel consumption is 13,7 l/100km – the best in the entire segment.

The engineers also focused on weight reduction as means of improving both economy and performance, with the Ferrari 458 Italia boasting a dry weight of just 1380 kg – with 58 per cent of it residing over the rear axle.

This has resulted in exceptional performance with zero to 100km/h acceleration reduced to less than 3.4 seconds and a maximum speed in excess of 325 km/h.

The suspension features twin wishbones at the front and a multi-link set-up at the rear tuned for maximum roadholding and superlative handling.

The integration of the E-Diff and F1-Trac has been optimised to the point where longitudinal acceleration out of corners has been improved by 32 per cent compared to the previous model.

The braking system features a prefill function whereby the pistons in the callipers move the pads into contact with the discs on lift off to minimise delay in the brakes being applied – this combined with the ABS has cut the 100-0 km/h braking distance to a just 32.5 metres.

While the interior is being kept under wraps for now, Ferrari has promised an all new layout and revolutionary ergonomic interface where the main controls are all clustered on the steering wheel.

Adapted from CarAdvice

Supercar specialist Edo Competition is one of the first tuning firms to present a complete package with performance and styling accessories for Ferrari’s newest creation, the California Spider. Modifications to the 4,3-litre V8 engine include a recalibrated ECU and an optional newly-developed high performance exhaust system, featuring adjustable butterfly valves and custom designed high flow catalytic converters with a 200 cell per square inch metal core.

The result is an additional 29 kilowatt and 16 N.m for a total output of 367 kW and 500 N.m of torque at 5 200 rpm. The Edo Competition-prepped California Spider can accelerate from zero to 100 km/h in 3.9 seconds and achieve a top speed of 315 km/h (+5km/h compared to the factory model).

Customers can choose from a variety of newly-developed wheel and tyre sets in 20 and 21 inches, while the German tuner also offers a sport spring kit that lowers the Spider’s ride height by 35mm, as well as a sport suspension system with adjustable compression and rebound damping.

For the convertible’s appearance, Edo Competition provides an array of upgrades including special interiors and specific leather upholstery. The company says that it also fulfills individual requests.

Adapted from CarScoop

British sports car company Lotus has signed another ex-Ferrari executive to its ranks, securing Donato Coco as its new director of design.

Coco was replaced by Flavio Manzoni earlier this year and will join Lotus CEO and ex-Ferrari sales executive, Danny Bahar, from January 4.

“We have a very busy few years ahead of us as we are working on a new strategic business plan which will include the introduction of an all-new range of Lotus cars and expansion of our third party design work,” Bahar said.

Coco’s resume at Ferrari includes the 430 Scuderia coupe and Spider 16M, California, 599XX and the 458 Italia, while previous work as chief designer at Citroën saw him in charge of the Xsara, Picasso and C3 Pluriel among others.

The position of ‘director of design’ is a new one, overlooking the work of existing head of design, Russell Carr.

It is believed the two will collaborate on the new Elise and Exige models, as well as a convertible version of the Evora and a brand new Esprit.

Adapted from CarAdvice