Ferrari's new Enzo (2013) chassis details revealed

Ferrari has continued its teasing build up towards the reveal of its hybrid flagship supercar by showing off the car's advanced carbon tub chassis.

The chassis, which employs four different types of carbonfibre, will be the central component of the V12 model, which will employ an F1-style KERS system and over 800bhp with which to challenge the McLaren P1.

Ferrari shunned the usual method of resin transfer moulding for he new carbon chassis because the company reckoned the technique just wasn't up to scratch for their new flagship. Instead, Maranello opted to hand laminate the sections before curing them in an autoclave to set the structure.

The company claims that the know-how used is directly related to the process Ferrari uses when manufacturing chassis components for its Formula One racing cars, further enhacing the link between the new supercar and Scuderia Ferrari F1.

The new chassis is 20% lighter than the Enzo's, plus torsional rigidity is up 27% and beam stiffness by 22%. This is all despite having to do something the Enzo never did: encouraging a home for the hybrid gubbins.

Kevlar is used on the undertray to protect that car from road debris, and the carbon employed is strictly located to keep the car light and string. For example, weaves better at impact absorption are used around the doors, keeping occupants safe around the seams in the body.

It's interesting that Ferrari chose to show off the chassis just before Mclaren pulled the wraps off their new flagship and Ferrari's biggest rival: the P1. Ferrari has long argued McLaren is wrong to base all it's cars around carbon and instead uses aluminium, citing its ease and lower cost of repair, and greater knowledge about how the material ages and deals with long-term stress. However, the top-end limited edition Ferrari was always going to be made of the black weave, as with F40 and F50 beforehand.

It's going to be one hell of a twin test when the carbonfibre giants collide (metaphorically, we hope) later next year.

By Ollie Kew