Ferrari has launched its 2009 challenger at Maranello. The F60 is the first Formula 1 car for the new season to break cover.
More Ferrari F1 car pictures
Ferrari F60 launched at Mugello – pictures and video
2009 F1 season
Posted onAuthor information
Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...Read more about Keith Collantine, find all their articles and get in touch with them
Got a potential story, tip or enquiry? Find out more about RaceFans and contact us here.
Rob
12th January 2009, 9:23
It’s not a pretty one is it?
Tom
12th January 2009, 9:33
To me, it looks classy, clean corners, and I can’t wait to see what the other teams bring to the table.
Smitty
12th January 2009, 9:24
I’m pleasantly surprised by the looks of this car. It’s good to see the cars nice and smooth again. Especially the rear part of the car, makes you realise how tight the packaging really is.
Looking forward to seeing it out on the track.
diseased rat
12th January 2009, 9:25
It looks pretty good to me! Those 2009 spec wings are already looking less abnormal than might be expected. I think we’ll get so used to them by the mid season that when we see 2007/8 cars they’ll look a bit silly with all the extra aero and winglets.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
12th January 2009, 9:31
The front-to-rear wing proportion still looks odd, and the length of the rear endplates compared to the size of the wing is decidedly strange – this is all stuff forced by the regulations of course.
Apart from that it’s a Ferrari in a proper deep red, and they’ve not done anything silly with the Marlboro decals, so I like it. And I see Tata don’t get to have their logo in blue – that must cost extra!
Stephen Luick
20th March 2009, 22:59
I agree. The oddest part of the car is the front-to-rear wing proportion. Otherwise it looks great as usual.
Adrian
12th January 2009, 9:33
Still think the nose looks unusually long….
Chalky
12th January 2009, 9:36
No Anvil wing then. Were they banned?
Looks pretty good to me.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
12th January 2009, 9:38
Oh, and I’m surprised they’re allowed to have those deflectors in front of the sidepods. Thought the ’09 regs would have banned those.
Ronan
12th January 2009, 15:12
I think they count as mirrors and not deflectors. I was speculating that loophole might be open.
DG
12th January 2009, 9:46
F60? Not F2009 or ‘Schumacher’?. Is there a new guy in charge of naming then? :-)
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
12th January 2009, 9:51
Wasn’t F60 the pre-production designation of the road car that became the Enzo? The successor to the F40 and F50.
Alianora La Canta
12th January 2009, 9:49
The 2009 regulations seem to have been primarily aimed at stopping upper-bodywork bits and pieces. I can’t remember seeing any dimension requirements that ban what Ferrari has done with the deflector. How many designers do you think will see that and wonder why they hadn’t spotted the same loophole as the Ferrari brigade?
mani
12th January 2009, 10:01
I think there is still enough time for the rest to pick that point up from Ferrari (if they had not found it by themselves) :)
Alianora La Canta
12th January 2009, 9:50
DG, it wouldn’t surprise me if a new namer had been selected. It doesn’t chime with the 248 designation of last year…
Tim
12th January 2009, 10:04
If it is Ferrari cunningly exploiting a loophole why didn’t the boys at Maranello keep it a secret until the first race?
I quite like the F60 – it’s certainly a lot prettier and in proportion than the BMW Sauber test hack, but that was only to be expected. It still looks pretty awful from the front, especially at ground level. In profile it looks fine, rather elegant in fact.
The coke bottle shape at the rear of the car is very pronounced, much more so than I expected given the need to accommodate the bulky KERS system. Is this an indicator that the launch version of the F60 will be doing its initial running without the new system? Or just that Ferrari has done a superb job on packaging?
mani
12th January 2009, 9:57
The car looks beautiful considering the ugly hypes given, except for the odd wing dimensions.
mani
12th January 2009, 10:15
@Tim
I guess, F60 is KERS equipped. The official formula1 site reads
The F60’s design also takes into account two other major rule changes – the return of slick tyres and the option to use a Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS). Ferrari’s KERS has been designed in collaboration with Magneti Marelli and is centrally mounted on the engine under the rear part of the chassis.
Keith, do you have any info about the KERS in F60?
John
12th January 2009, 15:29
Ive heard from other sites that the F60 designation comes from 60 years of GP racing. I’m not really sure about the name.
Stealthman
12th January 2009, 10:22
I like it. I really do. The shark-nose front looks ice-cool. :D
Still, it’s a shame about the rear wing. :(
Dougie
12th January 2009, 10:22
Kinda concur with mani. I was surprised, considering the ugly hypes, to find that I found the car very elegant and classy. I think it is all to do with the clean lines and lack of a million appendages. The front wing still looks odd, the back is fine, but I guess we’ll soon get used to that.
However, what a waste of money by TATA. Took me ages to find their logo, and I doubt I will ever see it again during the race coverage.
IDR
12th January 2009, 13:25
In fact TATA is not sponsoring Ferrari.
Is TATA Consultancy Services who is official supplier of Ferrari; at least this is what you see in their web page: http://f60.ferrariworld.com/
grumpyoldmansell
12th January 2009, 10:26
The front shot looks great – I thought we’d be watching combine harvester races this year, but the wings are a welcome throwback to the ’89-’90 cars.
Shame they’ve kept the Americas Cup fin on the engine cover – it would look a lot sleeker if smaller bodywork was allowed.
And it looks like a bird’s crapped on it – how many people know the barcode means “Marlboro” any more?
mani
12th January 2009, 10:43
As long as Marlboro pays, why should they care about it? It is Marlboro who should think about it :)
For me, Ferrari had never seemed to be a team who care for their livery (but just being red makes me feel good, they made it a tradition to look so). I was not expecting any livery changes from Ferrari, but let’s see how the rest of the single seaters get dressed this year :)
Lustigson
12th January 2009, 10:37
I like it. The F60 — like the name, by the way. I had had enough of the F200X series — looks very sleek. And the dimensions of front and rear wings are already growing on me.
Tom
12th January 2009, 10:45
I think it’s a shame that the front and rear wings are so out of proportion because we could have had some very good looking cars otherwise.
Loki
12th January 2009, 10:54
Still not too hot on the front elevation, but the top and side elevations are quite elegant. A much more smooth and curvy design than we’ve seen so far. It is quite clean design, having been quite a fan of the appendages of recent years I’m already getting used to this look.
That tata logo, as mentioned before, is hard to find, I only found it because I didn’t know who 111R(?) and SKF are.
I love those protruding exhaust pipes, that’s like older F1 cars, although odds are that it’s there to prevent the car setting fire to itself again.
Hope it’s the winner! :)
Mussolini's pet cat
12th January 2009, 10:58
Don’t often feel sorry for F1 Drivers, but with that incredibly slender nose, it’s going to be a real tight fit. Looks like they’ll be sitting almost horizontal too! Hope Kimi has been off the pies over Xmas…..
Jan
12th January 2009, 10:58
I think it looks pretty neat after all, I was prepared for much worse looks to be honest. The front and rear wings are still quite big, I have to admit, but the long nose bit compensates it so they aren’t so much over the top.
Alastair
12th January 2009, 11:36
Unlikely to be a lot of oversteer with that massive front wing, is there, especially when the drivers can adjust the angle of attack, so Kimi should be OK… as long as he doesn’t catch that thing on anyone’s car at the start, or when trying to overtake.
LOL, watch there be even LESS overtaking, with drivers too afraid of losing their front wing to follow the car in front close enough!
mani
12th January 2009, 11:42
Good point, drivers may have to ensure enough room / gap before attempting a pass!
sumedh
12th January 2009, 11:45
Looks much better than the BMW. The nose isn’t too long. The pillars joining the wing and nose are thrown backward, thus it seems long. (The BMW’s pillars are pretty vertical).
Also; no bloated sidepods like BMW.
But I am surprised to see the sidepod deflectors and nose wings ( the small black ones, close to the front wing). Aren’t they banned?
sumedh
12th January 2009, 12:08
Here’s a comparison of the F2008 and F60.
The nose is just about an inch longer than the F2008.
The mirrors are still mounted on the deflectors; which are banned.
And; the wheelbase is a good 10-15 inches shorter than in 2008.
http://files.myopera.com/JWRPayne/files/newfez.jpg
http://files.myopera.com/JWRPayne/files/newfez2.jpg
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
12th January 2009, 12:40
Very useful thanks Sumedh! It looks like the total length is greater but the wheelbase is shorter, assuming the images are kept in proportion.
ajokay
12th January 2009, 12:11
I see they’ve gotten round the regulations by turning the wing-mirror stalks into sidepod wings.
I hope the FIA pull them up on that and they are forced to remove them. Once again, Ferrari going against the grain.
Other than that, I think the car looks beautiful. The nose is sleak and long, and it’s so pinched at the back. I’ve never seen so much floor be shown on an F1 car before.
I like the black carbon fibre on the bottom half of the car too, harks back to the late 80’s when they left the bottom of the cars unpainted.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
12th January 2009, 12:39
Yes I used to like the black front and rear wings on Ferraris.
Arthur 954
13th January 2009, 23:56
Instead of black, I would have prefered those parts in silver, if you take a look at the old 512, 312 Le Mans type racers , you will see that the use of red plus silver is a Ferrari tradition
Adrian
12th January 2009, 12:40
@sumedh aren’t the small black wings you’re referring to the camera housing and dummy camera housing?
sumedh
12th January 2009, 16:43
Oh; They seemed like deflectors when seen in the side view. May be they serve dual purpose. Just like the mirrors.
IDR
12th January 2009, 12:54
Great pictures!!!! (Keith and Sumedh) Thanks a lot for the side of the pics.
I don’t like front wing, it is not proportioned with the rest of the design; I hope gives the cars efficency despite the aesthetic.
In any case, I think in few races we all will be used with the look of this new designs.
Rob R.
12th January 2009, 12:57
At least the front wing isn’t 50 feet off the ground like it was in the last few seasons.
ajokay
12th January 2009, 14:20
I agree, this is one thing from the past few years that I haven’t liked about the cars. It’s nice to have the front wings back down within scraping distance of the tarmac.
DG
12th January 2009, 13:14
I just hope the new regulations aren’t so restrictive that all the cars do look similar, through no fault of the designers…..
Keith – I see where you are coming from with the name – perhaps this is Ferrari getting to know its Road-Car side again….
Nick
12th January 2009, 13:18
hmm, I like it. Kimi should put it to good use.
Chaz
12th January 2009, 13:18
Look good but this new design is taking some getting used too. I’m surprised to still see Marlboro as a sponsor as I thought 2008 was their last year with Ferrari.
Mr Soap
12th January 2009, 13:22
Pleasantly surprising, but I don’t like the mirror stalks.
I do wonder how fragile they’d be during a race.
Phil
12th January 2009, 14:32
And the mirrors will be useless for looking in, as they’ll vibrate or flap about at speed. But then nobody is allowed to overtake them anyway, so it won’t matter. Hadn’t realised how narrow the rear tyres are this year, if KERS gives you a boost in acceleration and there’s no traction control it could get quite tricky.
PJA
12th January 2009, 13:41
The front and rear wings still look the wrong size to me, but as other have said we will have to get used to them.
Those sidepod deflectors that the mirrors are mounted on spoils the look of the car for me. Although I did like some of the areo pieces that have been banned for this year I never liked those sidepod deflectors and was looking forward to them going.
As regards to the name, personally I like the Williams and McLaren way of naming the cars FW.. and MP4/.., as they follow on from the last model and you can trace them all the way back.
D Winn
12th January 2009, 13:49
According to a number of other sites, F60 refers to the number of Championships in which Ferrari have participated.
Carl
12th January 2009, 14:54
I can get used to the Front wing.. but the rear wing doesnt look good from any angle.
Why didn’t Kimi get to Drive the new car? They propably didnt want to Spoil the whole Launch Party and was afraid he might put it into a wall?
Cant wait to see how the McLarens Looks compare in a weeks time.
anirudh
12th January 2009, 15:14
guys, a little off topic… new force India calender featuring fisichella & “Co.” is out.. It also shows Force India in a new livery similar to Flag of India… think its sign of things to come????
http://club.forceindiaf1.com/forceindiaf1/gallery/view_gallery.one?gal_id=2098578
Chris Johnson
12th January 2009, 16:05
Best part of the day for me was Massa’s helmet camera. Very cool and a little higher point of view than DC’s at Interlagos.
Paul F
12th January 2009, 16:05
I thought tobacco sponsorship was banned, however Ferrari still have their Marlboro barcode thing…
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
12th January 2009, 16:37
Tobacco sponsorship hasn’t been banned, but displaying tobacco adverts has. What Ferrari has on the car isn’t recognised as an advert for Marlboro, even though F1 fans like us all know it is.
Chaz
12th January 2009, 16:55
It’s interesting to note that Marlboro is not mentioned on Ferrari’s website whether that be as a partner, sponsor, official supplier, supplier etc…
Chaz
12th January 2009, 16:06
I like the way they have mounted the mirrors…
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
12th January 2009, 16:41
The official FIA entry list suggests Raikkonen is number three.
Chaz
12th January 2009, 16:49
I wonder why they did that. Does this change that Massa’s car should be supporting the red inlet top (as opposed to yellow) as he was the top point scorer in the team.
Chaz
12th January 2009, 16:45
I suspect teams will be taking even more front wings to the races as we will probably see many being knocked off…
sumedh
12th January 2009, 17:04
I am surprised no one noticed this. Even I noticed it just now. Why is the black camera housing above the cockpit only on the left-side ? ? It only on the left side in all the pictures. Even the testing ones. Why will Ferrari make such rookie errors ! !
mani
13th January 2009, 9:16
In my opinion, it can’t be a mistake… rather I see it as something (though minor) done on purpose to improve the aero balance of the car!
matthew
12th January 2009, 17:19
It looks terrible, distended and hastily slapped together. It’s also interesting to see that the vestigal bridge wings are permitted by the new regs. That said, it looks way better than the BMW.
It’s like if they had grand prix cars in Blade Runner.
Welcome to the weird dystopian future of Fomula 1!
jayb
12th January 2009, 17:38
it looks like it was designed by a seven year old.
good god that rear wing is horrible!!!!
Patrick
12th January 2009, 17:41
wow. 2009 could start off any worse. These cars are truly a pathetic sight. Maybe I could get used to the front wing, but the rear wing height looks beyond idiotic. The shot from above Massa with slicks on is the only time I can say I even think its nice. A profile shot, or front on shot shows how truly moronic these new rules are.
If these cars were developed into being this ugly 5 years ago, Max would have banned them even if they were faster, just purely based on looks(read: Monaco X wings).
Honestly, I love Formula 1, but it has jumped the shark for me, and everything seems downhill from here.
Jess
12th January 2009, 18:08
I think it is a great looking car.
Rob ijbema
12th January 2009, 18:19
i like the clean lines
the wings look stupid
those mirror stream liners should not be allowed
they will grow and grow…do the rule makers ever learn!!!
and i can’t believe marlboro is still on the car DICUSTING!!
Sush
12th January 2009, 18:20
No F60 would denote the car was built for 2007, even though the F50 was released in 1995 (and it was faster then the F1 car at the time) the Enzo was comissioned by Luca to celebrate Ferrari winning the constructors championship after a 20 year drought, hence the chassis name being FXX for the Enzo (XX roman numerals for 20),and the following stripped down Enzo for use as a real world test bed of aerodyninamics such as cross winds and different driving style. It wasn’t comissioned to be the 60 year anniversary car like the F40 before it.
If you want a good looking Ferrari check out the Ferrari p4/55 by piniferina!, sexy!
anyway!, I think the F60 looks tasty!, I wasn’t expecting much but i like it alot, I’m looking forward to the renault.
Wesley
13th January 2009, 23:39
Sush beat me to the small education on the Ferrari street cars…..I was hoping for the chance to show some supercar knowledge….and I have to agree that the P 4/5 Pininfarina is the sexiest car ever built.It is a one off built from an Enzo but is lighter,faster.
As far as the new F60 F1 car,I like everything except the rear wing,it looks totally out of place.
James B
12th January 2009, 18:38
I really like it :D
It’s only looking straight-on from the front where the car looks a bit weird.
But from any other angle, it looks (dare I say it) stunning
Amarjit Singh
12th January 2009, 19:21
I think it’s classy; it’s a very clean, sleek design. F1 has finally gone back to basics; it’s very reminiscient of a 2000 car.
Speed Demon
12th January 2009, 20:03
Oh god, how depressing. I’m sorry, it really doesn’t matter how elegant the main body shape is, those wings make modern Formula One cars are just plain ugly. Like a super-powered shopping trolley, in fact. What with the P1 cars at Le Mans sporting similarly downsized rear wings, 2009 sure looks to be the season of the ug. Seriously guys, these have to be the stupidest looking formula cars of all time. Makes the old A1GP look like a thing of beauty…
JamesH
13th January 2009, 7:55
I think it’s gorgeous! Especially from the front, I think the front wing looks great. The rear wing still looks a little strange, but I think we’ll get used to it alot quicker than we got used to seeing all the winglets. I love the clean nose, reminds me of the cars from the mid-late 90’s.
Roger Carballo AKA Architrion
13th January 2009, 9:29
I hope you read this one, Keith.
F60 looks ugly, while the latest F2008 seems so beatiful… It makes me think about that item I sent you about the link between form and function. Engineers are beginning to understand how the new regulations can be exploited to obtain the maximum performance…. And the first approach seem scary, tough, boxed, out of scale. It’s not a matter of the time needed to get used to the new forms. It’s a perception that there is something wrong on how these forms reflect the function they serve.
On the other side, the old F2008 was the pinnacle of the understanding of aerodynamics under latest regulations. And it was worked on a form that was beautiful, because each part of it was pure functionalism. You could read what was each part for. You could touch the air flowing around each corner, aleiron, flap, spoiler, etc.
What I’m expecting is to engineers walking the new road that is opened in front of them, working on how to obtain the very maximum of performance. And while their understanding of aerodynamics under this new environment is better, so it will be the beauty of their cars. Let’s see. It will be very interesting to find out if this is true, because outside, in my architectural world, we are working just the opposite way……….
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
13th January 2009, 23:27
I read every comment! I just can’t commit to replying to them all because there’s too many…
I think it’s ugly as well, I think we’re going to be stuck with an ugly field this year. Maybe I’ll get used to them, but those wings are so out of proportion I’m not sure.
I’ve been watching the IRL for years and I like it but their cars are still ugly.
anirudh
13th January 2009, 16:28
did i see grooved tyres on that video????
ajokay
13th January 2009, 19:29
Nope, you saw inters on that video.
Arthur 954
14th January 2009, 0:01
I propose a signature retro look for the Ferrari pit crews : the mechanics dressed in light blue overalls, with a straw hat and a cigarette hanging from their mouth.
Take a look at old 50s and 60s photos ……
CD
14th January 2009, 6:33
Everybody,
The sport/game isn’t won by the beauty of the car. This is not a beauty contest. They are not designing the car for looks and for your eyes. They are designed to meet the regulations and reach the optimum performance. Let them show you how they run. The beauty of the car comes last.
Adam
14th January 2009, 22:38
Ugly ugly ugly. A huge step backwards in my opinion. The F2008 and 2007 car was absolutely stunning. Every angle was like staring at a machine from the future, and standing close to one would give me goose bumps. This just looks terrible. I know i know, aero packages and cost cutting blah blah blah…. Im just disapointed after ending last season on such a high.
Obviously we’ll still watch but its kinda cringe worthy isnt it?
Its like watching 20 Janet Street Porters on Strictly Come Dancing- Not good enough.
CJ
21st January 2009, 7:23
personally I like the new ferrari, i was expecting something alot worse, so it was a pleasant suprise to finally see it. I will admit it took me about an hour of lookin at it from different angles to get used to it. Good job ferrari! looks way better than the rest of the teams. the mclaren car looks horrible and dont even start me on the BMW and renault HAHAHA what a joke they are! Kimi 2009 world champion!!!!