Ferrari F430

In November of 2004, Ferrari began selling left-handed drive Ferrari F430s as the successor to the Ferrari 360 in Europe. American right-hand drive models were not available for sale to Americans until summer of 2005. Though it shares the same chassis as the Ferrari 260, the F430 had some major changes in addition to the "Evoluzione" tag that was attached to it.


The "Evo," as it is known in the Ferrari factory, had been redesigned for aerodynamics with a curvaceous body. It features a 4.3 liter V8 that was a large step away from other Ferrari V8's, which were descendants of the "Dino" engines of the 1950s. The F430's engine put out a total of 483 horse power at 8,500 rpm and 343 lbf torque at 5,250 rpm.


The F430 featured a limited slip differential that is computer-controlled called the E-Diff. The E-Diff can vary the distribution of torque automatically according to acceleration and steering angle. It was also the first to have manettino steering wheel-mounted control knob which allows the driver to modify certain settings of the car's ESP (Electronic Stability Control) system. These settings include transmission behavior, electronic suspension, and throttle response as well as the E-Diff.


The Ferrari F430 is the third quickest that Ferrari ever manufactured, sitting right behind the Enzo and the Ferrari 599. It has a feature called launch control which allowed it to take off from a standstill at very high RPMs safely. This resulted in a 3.5 second time of 0-60 miles an hour recorded by Car and Driver magazine. The launch control was not made available to American F430 buyers due to liability issues.


In addition to the standard F430 Ferrari also plans on re-introducing the F430 in a reduced weight version called the F430 Challenge Stradale. In addition to being 100 kilograms lighter, it will have an increase in horsepower of up to 37 horse power, bringing it to 520. Ferrari also manufactures the F430 Pista, which is the track version of the F430 that is built specifically for the Ferrari Challenge series

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