When secretive rumbles begin about a new Ferrari, it’s hard not to get excited. When said rumbles involve three of the most storied letters in Scuderia lore—G, T, and O—well, it’s hard not to start having anticipatory seizures. And when the rumbles prove true, and Ferrari introduces something as wicked as this car, the 599GTO, it’s hard not to start knocking over banks and selling your relatives for the chance to own one. When you read the details, you’ll see what we mean.
About a year ago we drove the 599 HGTE, a handling package designed to dial some of the grand-touring-ness out of Ferrari’s range-topping 599 and impart more sporting personality. Then, just weeks ago, our own John Phillips was cut loose in the 599XX—a hard-core track-day special for the über-wealthy. The 599GTO is the next in the line of special 599s, a car the public will see for the first time at this year’s Beijing auto show.
As we said, the GTO name carries a lot of clout in the Ferrari world. GT, as you know, stands for Gran Turismo (Grand Touring). The O stands for Omologato (Homologated), meaning this car might be homologated for more racing than the private sessions seen by the 599XX. The GTO suffix was worn by the 250 in the early ’60s and the 288 in the mid-’80s, although only the 250 was officially raced, so the 599GTO may not lap in anger, after all. Appropriately, there will only be 599 examples of this latest GTO built.
Roadgoing 599XX?
Ferrari says the GTO is “the homologated road-going version of the 599XX,” but this new model lacks that hardest-core car’s nine-position manettino for selecting stability-control levels and settings for the magnetorheological shocks, making do with the regular 599’s five-position knob. The 599XX’s center-locking hubs are out, too, in favor of more traditional lug nuts, as are many of the XX’s various aerodynamic winglets and ducts. Also tossed are perhaps the 599XX’s coolest feature, the trunk-mounted electric fans that suck air from beneath the car and expel it through outlets in the rear fascia.
The 599GTO is powered by a 661-hp, 6.0-liter V-12 (49 more horses than the standard 599 but 59 short of the 599XX), and the car laps Ferrari’s Fiorano test track in 84 seconds. That’s about 2.5 seconds quicker than the 599, but far off the 599XX’s 76-second pace. Maximum horsepower is available at a screaming 8250 rpm, while the peak torque figure of 457 lb-ft comes online at 6500 rpm. Ferrari’s six-speed F1 automated manual gearbox is the only transmission; it is said to deliver the same 60-millisecond shift times as the 599XX’s. Zero to 62 mph is achieved in just 3.4 seconds, says Ferrari, but we tested the regular 599 to 60 mph in 3.3, and we believe the GTO is likely to be at least a tenth quicker to either mark. Ferrari calls the 599 GTO its “fastest-ever road car,” but with its stated top speed of 208-plus mph, it falls just a touch shy of the claimed 209-mph terminal velocity of the Enzo supercar.
Pulling Out the Pounds
The car will be based on the all-aluminum spaceframe of the regular 599, yet weighs almost 200 pounds less than the two-ton 599 GTB. That’s thanks to a weight-reduction program that includes thinner-gauge aluminum for the body and thinner glass for the greenhouse, and Ferrari says further weight was removed in the exhaust and carbon-ceramic braking system. The interior looks lighter, too. It features more carbon fiber than the normal 599’s, the seats look like those out of the 430 Scuderia, and the footwells trade their leather and Alcantara lining for spartan diamond plating.
Even with fewer wings, ducts, and aero protrusions, Ferrari still improved the GTO’s slipperiness. The road car’s aerodynamics were improved with a new lower splitter for the front spoiler, new underbody diffusers at the front and rear, new side sills, and the addition of F1-inspired discs between the wheels and brake rotors that funnel hot air from the wheelhouses along the side of the car for reduced drag. The GTO’s wheels measure 20 inches in diameter front and rear; the fronts are 9.5 inches wide and are wrapped in 285/30-series tires, while the 11.5-inch-wide rears wear 315/35 rubber. The tires were developed by Michelin, which is a departure for Ferrari, who usually fits its cars with Italian Pirellis.
Is this truly a roadgoing 599XX? Eh, probably not—we prefer to think of it more like a 599 Scuderia. But it is undeniably exciting, undeniably hard-core, and undeniably cool. It’s a new Ferrari, after all, and what’s better than that?
K.C. Colwell is Car and Driver's executive editor, who covers new cars and technology with a keen eye for automotive nonsense and with what he considers to be great car sense, which is a humblebrag. On his first day at C/D in 2004, he was given the keys to a Porsche 911 by someone who didn't even know if he had a driver's license. He also is one of the drivers who set fast laps at C/D's annual Lightning Lap track test.
