Ferrari will offer both a folding soft top and a carbon fiber hardtop for the LaFerrari Convertible.
Even before its official unveiling, Ferrari says it has already sold out the fastest convertible it has ever come up with – even before it releases the official price tag, in fact. But that’s likely no surprise considering the incredible demand for the original LaFerrari coupe.
We’re expecting to hear more in the coming days, but what we’ve already learned is that the LaFerrari convertible has undergone “significant and extensive modifications” to maintain the hardtop’s rigidity and improve its aerodynamics.
The cabrio edition will also maintain the original LaFerrari powertrain, a 949 horsepower package using Formula One-derived KERS hybrid technology that will help it launch from 0 to 60 in just 2.4 seconds – on the way to a top speed of 217 mph.
Like the coupe, it will deliver what the maker calls, “the most extreme performance ever achieved by a Ferrari production car.”
The exclusive Italian brand, which was spun off from Fiat Chrysler last year, hasn’t officially announced a name for the new model. It is, for now, referring to it as “the open-top version of the LaFerrari,” adding that it is mean for those “who refuse to compromise on the joy of al fresco driving even when at the wheel of a supercar.”
The ragtop's hybrid drivetrain is expected to produce a total 950 horsepower.
(Click Here to check out the new, 261 mph Bugatti Chiron.)
The LaFerrari convertible’s drivetrain is expected to pair a 780-horsepower V-12 with a 120 kilowatt electric drive system to deliver a total system output of 950 horsepower.
We’ll have to wait for total mass and final power-to-weight ratio details. But, as with the original car, Ferrari has turned to ultra-light materials, primarily carbon fiber, for the cabriolet’s chassis and body. The LaFerrari convertible is expected to be delivered with both a folding soft top and a removable carbon fiber hard top.
Demand for so-called hypercars has been booming in recent years. The original LaFerrari went up against such competitors as the Porsche 918 and the McLaren P1. Aston Martin is set to weigh in shortly with its own extreme machine, the AM-RB 001, which it is developing as part of a partnership with Formula One’s Red Bull Racing.
And as impressive as it might be, the LaFerrari convertible will come nowhere close to the numbers promised for the all-new Bugatti Chiron. The successor to the Veyron is expected to punch out 1,500 horsepower, launch from 0 to 60 in less than 2.5 seconds, and top out at 261 mph.
The LaFerrari Convertible should hit 60 in 2.4 seconds, and deliver a top speed of 217 mph.
We’re expecting to see the Aston Martin AM-RB 001 prototype, the new Bugatti Chiron and the LaFerrari convertible all make their public debuts at the Paris Motor Show barely two months from now.
(Click Here to check out the new Aston AM-RB 001.)
We’re hoping to learn more about the Italian convertible before then, however — among other things, production numbers and pricing.
Ferrari built just 499 copies of the original LaFerrari coupe, and those were all sold out before the car made its official debut at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show.
It went for a cool $1.4 million back then – and the price tag has only risen since then for used, er, previously owned models. Don’t be surprised to see the LaFerrari cabriolet come in closer to $2 million, according to some sources.
(First-ever Shelby Cobra could set an all-time auction record. Click Here for more.)