Last week on Ferrari Friday we looked at seven magnificent Ferrari F430 GT2 racing cars this week were looking at the road car that the racer was based on. The F430 was launched at the Paris Motor Show in 2004.

This USD $225,000 vehicle came loaded with electronics including limited slip active differential which varies the distribution of torque from the engine to the rear wheels based on information on steering angle and lateral acceleration, Electronic Stability Control which detects and minimises skids, Skyhook electronic suspension and is fitted with little knobs on the steering wheel to adjust all of the above to ones personal preference. Unusually US authorities granted the F430 exemption from US airbag requirements.

These brake discs / rotors are cast from an iron molybdenum alloy developed in collaboration with Brembo and are claimed to be good for over 300 laps of the Ferrari Fiorano test track with out fading.

196 mph capability is afforded courtesy of a 483hp 4300 cc / 262 cui V8 a shared Ferrari / Maserati design that is a complete departure of all previous Ferrari V8’s that trace their ancestry and architecture back to the 1950’s Dino V6 racing programme.

Hope you have enjoyed today’s air bag exempt edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil psycho on tyres’ and that you will join me tomorrow for a look at a fast cat from Coventry. Don’t forget to come back now !