Ferrari 458 Challenge revealed

Ferrari 458 Challenge

Ferrari 458 Challenge, a hardcore, light weight knife-edge racer from Maranello will be competing in Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli race series starting in 2011. Based on the 458 Italia this mid-engined track car has the same direct-injection, 4.5-litre V8 powerplant as the regular car, producing 562bhp at 9000rpm.

Major changes that make it a full-on track car include, revised gear ratios and recalibration of the 458′s F1 gearbox. In order to make the 458 as light as possible, Ferrari has reduced the thickness of the body panels. Exotic, super light weight materials like Carbonfibre and Lexan have been used. However, Ferrari has not disclosed the weight figure.

A track car need to handle the bends and for this purpose, the Ferrari 458 Challenge gets stiffer springs, single-rate dampers, 19in racing wheels, larger Pirelli slick tyres and a lower ride height (down by 30mm). It also has Brembo CCM2 brakes, as seen on the 599XX. Ferrari’s E-Diff electronic differential and F1-Trac, its traction control system have been used for the first time in its track cars

The Ferrari 458 Challenge laps the Fiorano circuit in 1m 16.5sec beating the old F430 Challenge’s time by 2 sec.

News and image courtesy: autocar

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