This is the question that we all secretly ask ourselves, hidden in the innards of our minds, and once awoken in a cold sweat, the thought ponders... Can Ferrari's swim? We know that horses do swim, and at times they do like a splash or two in the water. But how about Prancing Horses? Could a structure of aluminium, iron, metal, and carbon-fibre be more buoyant than flesh and blood? The short answer, is no. We now have definitive proof, caught in front of our eyes and by the lens of many cameras, that when Ferraris enter water, they drown... Horribly so.
On July 6th, 2020A.D., on a busy dual-carriage way of London's North Circular, a rather ordinary commute of Britons throughout the capital city was interrupted by a catastrophe of nearly Biblical proportions. In a prophecy that would at one time awaken Noah to rush into the shed in the dead of night, fumbling around for nails to finish his Ark, sections of the A406 near Brent was flooded with water. Though in reality, it wasn't a holy reckoning by the Gods, but caused by more mortal errors.
The First Of Its Kind.
Credits to: Earl Karanja - Twitter | Noooo... :-(
That gigantic, and sudden flash-flood was caused by the bursting of a 24-inch water-main pipe, gushing many gallons of H2O and turning the roads into a makeshift pond. At certain parts of the road, the water was nearly 0.5-metres (1.6-feet) high. Such depths would be easily traversable in say, a Land Rover. Unfortunately this caught many drivers off guard, as some tried to drive through the water, hoping that Moses would part ways for them. All the while, fingers remain crossed that the intakes of their hatchbacks and saloons wouldn't drown.
That includes one driver, who believed that his Ferrari FF could somehow wade through waters where BMW 7-series' and Mercedes C-Classes had floated around him. Alas, it also sank, as its hearty V12 engine coughed up what could be its last dying breath, bubbling away to the surface. There were a total of 8 cars that were stranded in the flood, as the London Fire Brigade worked hard to rescue those trapped inside. It seems, that the once $300,000 Ferrari FF was by far the most expensive one to have sank.
#Brent #A406
— London 999 Feed (@999London) July 6, 2020
Current scenes of the North Circular. pic.twitter.com/nY0Tvf8Xi0
Well well well looks like we need out swimwear to get to Brent cross today #a406 there is a Ferrari swimming through this madness #brentcross pic.twitter.com/qiYoRCuxz2
— Rhonda (@skysportsplus) July 6, 2020
Extraordinary on this Monday evening at 9pm as A406 North Circular Road is completely shut down from Finchley Road to the M1 Staples Corner on the Brent Cross flyover due to a busy water main. The smell is also not that pleasant here. @TfLTrafficNews @LBC @BBCLondonNews pic.twitter.com/JJSZdKWHCL
— James J. Marlow (@James_J_Marlow) July 6, 2020
Thankfully there were no injuries, though I can imagine the FF driver took more than a few hits to his ego, after all the comments made online. While I do question the thought process behind the decision-making, I'm devastated to see the FF suffer this fate. It doesn't look too deep, so hopefully the engine and the rest of the mechanical bits are at the very least salvageable. Yet, given how long it's sat in the water, it's probably safe to assume that the electrics are fried. The tried-and-tested rice-bowl technique isn't going to dry this one, I'm afraid.
Credits to: Ferrari FF (2012) - NetCarShow | What the FF would've looked, and sounded like before sinking.
Now, as we pray for the salvation of this poor FF - hopefully not needing to mourn its loss forever - let's look back into why I'm so heart-broken by this. Let's begin with its name, "FF". Quite literally, it's called the "Ferrari Ferrari-Four", with 'four' being clues to its unique-selling points among the Ferrari stable. First, it has a clever four-wheel drive system - or all-wheel drive, to be more precise - and it's the first production Ferrari to stake claim to that. Maybe the driver of the FF thought this was enough to crawl through that water?
Secondly, it's also got four-seats, and unlike the tiny rear-seats of say, the California, Portofino, or Roma, you can easily fit two adults in the rear of an FF. This makes it the most practical Ferrari in a long time, despite its sporting looks. It's more than enough to fit loads of passengers and luggage for a grand-tour across Europe, or perhaps to fit that new Ikea wardrobe set. Consequently, this also makes the FF the largest Ferrari in the line-up, with a total length to challenge some SUVs.
Credits to: Ferrari FF (2012) - NetCarShow | Cruising at 208mph with the whole family.
More wonderfully, adding to both the practicality and its sexy looks, the FF was designed as a shooting-brake - which in the car world is a (usually) two-door, sporty estate/wagon. The name originated from old horse-drawn carriages that are conceived specifically to carry around shooting parties, their guns and ammunition, with the game they'd eventually bring home. It's design is also inspired by the old, and legendary Ferrari 250 GT SWB (short-wheelbase) "Breadvan".
Under Enzo Ferrari, it was built by the engineering talent of Giotto Bizzarrini, and penned by the artistic Piero Drogo. It had a fairly successful career in racing, and its unique design led the French to call it the "La Camionnette", or 'little truck', but more memorably, Brits called it the "Breadvan". It's shooting-brake design was meant to follow the Kamm-tail aerodynamic concept - calling for a sharp cut-off at the rear-end to minimise aerodynamic drag. This decreases air-turbulence, this increasing high-speed performance, and improving fuel-efficiency - which also means loads of time saved from fuel stops.
A Dying Breed.
Credits to: Ferrari 250 GT Breadvan - FavCars | Notice the transparent bonnet, and those trumpets.
Much has changed in over half-a-century, though as they say, "the more things change, the more they stay the same". The FF still has an old-fashioned, and monstrously huge 6.3-litre naturally-aspirated V12. It's volcanic powerplant outputs a whopping 650hp, though the FF also weighs double that of the old baker's express. Still, Ferrari's clever engineering meant that the FF's all-wheel drive weighs 50% less than conventional setups.
Quite amazing, and it has not one, but two gearboxes. It's 7-speed dual-clutch transmission is mostly rear-wheel drive, and it sends needed traction to the front-wheels when called for. It was a bit of a funky system to work with at first, but Ferrari's has since made some refinements in its successor - the rather unattractively named - GTC4Lusso. However, while these are the first production Ferraris with all-wheel drive, don't assume this was their first time toying with the idea.
Credits to: Ferrari GTC4Lusso - TopGear | Subtle refinements, beautifully crafted.
In fact, the system used in both the FF and GTC4Lusso was first developed in the 1980s, patented by Ferrari in an experiment called the 408 "4RM". Connecting the dots between past and present, the FF's drivetrain is also called the 4RM, meaning "4 Ruote Motrici", or literally four-wheel drive. The 4RM was hydraulically-actuated, and it was clever in its time, though Ferrari only fitted it to 2 prototypes. More on the car itself, following the old Ferrari naming scheme, 408 is to denote that it had a 4.0-litre, V8 engine.
Simple enough, and its full form makes it look like a Honda NSX, or an early prototype of the Testarossa. The engine is capable of outputting 300hp, and 275-lb-ft of torque, making it a relatively powerful sports-car back then. Coincidentally or not, this was made by Ferrari around the same time that Nissan released their own experimental concept, the MID4. So called because it had a mid-mounted engine, and four-wheel drive, this is the Nissan that I most wished had gone into production.
Credits to: Ferrari 408 4RM | The forgotten Ferrari.
Still, at least its high-tech drivetrain would later be put in the now-legendary Skyline GT-R. Just as well, the 4RM finds its way into a road-going Ferrari over 20 years later, and it might not be the last time we see it, either. As do all carmakers succumbing to the trend, Ferrari will soon make its own SUVs - times are a-Changin' - and it'll likely feature some iteration of this same drivetrain. The future is an exciting one to look at, but for those looking for fun and practicality the old-fashioned way, Ferrari's shooting-brakes are tough to beat.
Nevertheless, it cannot escape my mind that the fate of this poor FF is still unknown to this day. Somewhere in that flooded engine bay, is a wonderful V12 engine, perhaps among the last of its kind. Somewhere in the depths of that murky water, is a magical all-wheel drive system that lets you speed through sand, snow, dirt, mud, or smooth tarmac. This is the last hurrah of a dying breed, always loved, and once gone, it will forever be missed. Given their endangered status, it would be wise to consider not drowning them next time, eh?
:-(
Credits to: Coachbuild.com | The baker's express... Perfect!
@zacknorman97