New Delhi: Select Cars, the official Ferrari Importer in New Delhi, introduced the 296 GTS, an evolution of Maranello’s mid-rear-engine two-seater SPIDER concept, at an exclusive reveal in Andaz Hotel on Saturday.
The 296 GTS introduces a new engine type to flank the marque’s 8- and 12-cylinder power units: a new 663 cv 120° V6 coupled with an electric motor capable of delivering a further 122 kW (167 cv). This is the first 6-cylinder engine installed on a road car sporting the Prancing Horse badge: it unleashes its massive 830 cv total power output to deliver previously unthinkable performance levels and an innovative, exhilarating, and unique soundtrack.
The car’s name, which combines its total displacement (2.992 l) and a number of cylinders with the GTS (Gran Turismo Spider) acronym, in the finest Ferrari tradition, was chosen to underscore this new engine’s epoch-changing importance to Maranello: it is not simply the living, beating heart of the 296 GTS but also ushers in a new V6 era that has its roots deep in Ferrari’s unparalleled 70-year-plus experience in motorsports.
The very first Ferrari V6, featured a 65° architecture and debuted on the 1957 1500 cc Dino 156 F2 single seater. This was followed in 1958 by bigger displacement versions on the front-engine sport prototypes – the 196 S and 296 S – and F1 cars, such as the 246 F1 which powered Mike Hawthorn to the F1 Drivers’ Championship title the same year.
The very first Ferrari to sport a mid-rear mounted V6 was the 246 SP in 1961, which won amongst others the Targa Florio both that same year and in 1962. Also in 1961, Ferrari secured its first Constructors’ title in the Formula 1 World Championship with the 156 F1, which was powered by a 120° V6. Ferrari first installed turbos between an engine’s cylinder banks on the 126 CK in 1981 and subsequently on the 126 C2 in 1982, which became the first turbocharged car to win the Formula 1 Constructors’ World Championship title. This was followed up with a second title in 1983 with the 126 C3. Lastly, V6 turbo hybrid architecture has been used on all Formula 1 single-seaters since 2014.
Priced at INR 6.24 cr with the recommended options, the 296 GTS’s plug-in hybrid (PHEV) system guarantees it is an incredibly usable car as well as cutting pedal response times to zero and delivering a 25km range in all-electric eDrive mode. The car’s compact dimensions and the introduction of innovative dynamic control systems as well as meticulously honed aero ensure that the driver will instantly experience its astonishing agility and responsiveness to commands. Its sporty, sinuous design and extremely compact dimensions also visually underscore its exceptional modernity, brilliantly referencing the likes of the 1963 250 LM, the perfect marriage of simplicity and functionality.
The RHT (Retractable Hard Top) inside the engine compartment inspired the Ferrari Styling Centre team, headed by Flavio Manzoni, to create a new tonneau cover design, the geometries of which have produced styling elements very different to the Ferrari Spiders of the recent past.
