Ferrari's latest hypercar is the most powerful road car it's ever made. It might also be the greenest. It's a plug-in hybrid Ferrari with all-wheel drive.
That last sentence might be tough to read for longtime Tifosi, but such is the way of the world. If you want to build ever more powerful sports cars while also working to meet ever-more stringent emissions regulations, you need to go hybrid. So why not go plug-in, and offer up some all-electric range when you're not in the mood to delight everyone else's ears.
And since this is a hybrid that manages 1,000 hp, the SF90 Stradale should be seriously quick. And it almost needs that all-wheel drive. With the extra traction, it can hit 0-100 km/h in just 2.5 seconds and reach 200 in just 6.7.
By itself, the 4.0L twin-turbo V8 muscles out 780 hp and 590 lb-ft of torque. That's the most powerful eight-cylinder that the company has ever put in a road car. The engine will rev to 8,000 rpm and sends all of that power to the rear wheels. The gearbox for the engine and rear motor is a new eight-speed dual-clutch box with a smaller clutch assembly letting them mount it lower for a lower center of gravity.
The rest of the power comes from three electric motors. Two on the electric-only front axle, and one on the rear. Ferrari refers to the rear one as MGUK (Motor Generator Unit, Kinetic) because they say it's derived from the Formula 1 car. The system uses a lithium battery that can give the car an all-electric range of 25 km.
You can pick between four drive modes. Electric only eDrive, Hybrid, Performance (which puts the priority on charging the battery over efficiency) and Qualify. Qualify is max power and meant for hot laps. But it'll drain the battery pack very quickly since it's programmed to put performance over charging.
Ferrari says that the SF90's new electric axle allows for more front grip and better use of the traction control system. The electronic Slide Slip Control dynamics system is better able to route power to the right wheel to optimize cornering.
The automaker says that the hybrid system adds 270 kg, but that the 220 hp make up for it. The car still weighs in at just 1,570 kg thanks to solutions like a carbon fibre bulkhead and the use of new aluminum alloys.
No word on when this latest Ferrari will start showing up in dealer corrals.
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