Being an automotive journalist has its occasional perks and getting to drive a bunch of Ferraris at an F1 track is one of those perks. Driving a Ferrari 458 at BIC was an incredible experience
Back
in 2012, I had an opportunity to be a part of ‘Esperienza Ferrari,’ which was
held at Buddh International Circuit, where I got to drive various Ferraris.
Driving not just one but three Ferraris, all in one day, on an F1 circuit?!
Yes, as you might imagine, it was a dream come true for a Ferrari fanboy like
me. Here's the article I wrote for Man’s World magazine, about the entire experience.
I have no other way of starting this, so let me say it right away – I love Ferrari cars more than any other. Having spent more than a decade writing about cars, I’ve had the good fortune of driving high-performance cars from almost every manufacturer. But even then, Ferraris remain something exceptional, something truly special. The ‘Ferrari’ name conjures up images of glorious, low-slung, sexy supercars, all painted red. Cars like the 250 GTO, 308, 328, Testarossa, 348, 288 GTO, F40, F50, F355, F430 and the 458 Italia. As a schoolboy, I grew up staring wistfully at posters of Ferraris from the 1970s-80s, which were plastered all over the walls of my room. For many, many years, I always wondered what it might be like to actually drive a one of those Italian beauties.
I had my first go at driving a Ferrari – a 308 GTSi – in the early-2000s, when I was working for Business Standard Motoring. It was only a brief drive, but the sight of that early-1980s supercar, the sound of its raucous 3.0-litre V8 revving loudly, and sheer thrill of driving a Ferrari for the very first time – it’s one of the best memories of my career in motoring journalism. A decade after that (in fact, just a month or two before this Esperienza Ferrari event), I got my second chance of having a go in a Ferrari when I got to drive a brand-new 458 Italia for a story I did for Motoring magazine. Again, it was a tremendous experience, especially since I got to spend 3-4 hours with the car, with no restrictions placed on how far or how fast I could drive that 458. Of course I took the car out on the Noida-Agra Expressway and of course I did speeds that are best not mentioned in polite company.
Like the old GTSi, the 458 floored me completely and my only regret, when they finally pulled me away from the car, was that I’d probably never get a chance to drive a 458 again. But here I was again, with yet another opportunity to drive some of Maranello’s finest, and this time on an F1 circuit! Ferrari India were taking over Buddh International Circuit for a week, to hold Esperienza and Pilota driving programs for Ferrari owners and potential customers. One day had also been allocated to the media, with about two dozen very lucky journalists lining up to have a go in the Ferrari 458, the California and the FF. As part of the Esperienza program, the plan was to first spend some time in the ‘classroom,’ where Ferrari’s driving instructors would tell us about a bit about the cars and the technology that goes into them, after which we’d get to have a go in the cars.
I have no other way of starting this, so let me say it right away – I love Ferrari cars more than any other. Having spent more than a decade writing about cars, I’ve had the good fortune of driving high-performance cars from almost every manufacturer. But even then, Ferraris remain something exceptional, something truly special. The ‘Ferrari’ name conjures up images of glorious, low-slung, sexy supercars, all painted red. Cars like the 250 GTO, 308, 328, Testarossa, 348, 288 GTO, F40, F50, F355, F430 and the 458 Italia. As a schoolboy, I grew up staring wistfully at posters of Ferraris from the 1970s-80s, which were plastered all over the walls of my room. For many, many years, I always wondered what it might be like to actually drive a one of those Italian beauties.
I had my first go at driving a Ferrari – a 308 GTSi – in the early-2000s, when I was working for Business Standard Motoring. It was only a brief drive, but the sight of that early-1980s supercar, the sound of its raucous 3.0-litre V8 revving loudly, and sheer thrill of driving a Ferrari for the very first time – it’s one of the best memories of my career in motoring journalism. A decade after that (in fact, just a month or two before this Esperienza Ferrari event), I got my second chance of having a go in a Ferrari when I got to drive a brand-new 458 Italia for a story I did for Motoring magazine. Again, it was a tremendous experience, especially since I got to spend 3-4 hours with the car, with no restrictions placed on how far or how fast I could drive that 458. Of course I took the car out on the Noida-Agra Expressway and of course I did speeds that are best not mentioned in polite company.
Like the old GTSi, the 458 floored me completely and my only regret, when they finally pulled me away from the car, was that I’d probably never get a chance to drive a 458 again. But here I was again, with yet another opportunity to drive some of Maranello’s finest, and this time on an F1 circuit! Ferrari India were taking over Buddh International Circuit for a week, to hold Esperienza and Pilota driving programs for Ferrari owners and potential customers. One day had also been allocated to the media, with about two dozen very lucky journalists lining up to have a go in the Ferrari 458, the California and the FF. As part of the Esperienza program, the plan was to first spend some time in the ‘classroom,’ where Ferrari’s driving instructors would tell us about a bit about the cars and the technology that goes into them, after which we’d get to have a go in the cars.
The instructors were all very earnest,
describing their cars and the high-tech electronic wizardry that’s such an
integral part of all modern Ferraris these days. And right after that, it was
time to get out on the track for the driving sessions. With my ‘Pilot no.1’
badge that had been given to me for the day, I was the first to go out on the
track in a bright red 458. Having worked at Buddh International for close to
two years, I was already quite familiar with the circuit, but the ebullient
Ferrari instructor insisted that I do the familiarization lap with him, after
which I’d have my chance to drive the car. Oh well, sure, why not. So after one
lap where my instructor explained the 458’s controls to me and talked me
through each of the circuit’s 16 corners, it was finally my turn to drive.
With its 4.5-litre, 562-horsepower V8, seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox and rear-wheel setup, the mid-engined 458 Italia is currently the best supercar in the world. Yes, it is better than every single Porsche and Lamborghini currently in production and no, I’m not just saying this because I’m a Ferrari fanboy. Even Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond – yes, all three of them – agree that the Ferrari is the best, so it must be true. In any case, I have driven every single high-performance car available in the country around Buddh International Circuit (BIC), and I sincerely believe nothing comes close to the 458 when it comes to cutting the fastest lap possible. With major changes in elevation and a mix of corners that are fast and sweeping, and slower and more technical, BIC is a proper test of even the best of cars, but the 458 was well up to the challenge.
The Italia’s V8 is mostly relentless, delivering its 562 horsepower with unabated savagery. And the seven-speed gearbox, which you operate via flappy paddles mounted behind the steering wheel, lets you extract every last ounce of performance from the engine. And last, but definitely not the least, the car’s advanced and very high-tech electronics – traction control and other wizardry – let even an average driver like me look good, braking impressively late and hurling the car around corners at speeds that would see me sitting in a ditch in lesser cars. I got to do four laps of the circuit in the 458 and that was enough to make me fall deeply in love with the car all over again.
Later, I also got to sample the front-engined California convertible, which is fitted with a 4.3-litre, 460bhp V8, and the FF, which comes with a 6.3-litre, 650bhp V12 and, for the first time in a production Ferrari, four-wheel-drive. The curvy little California was nice enough but the FF was truly, deeply impressive, with its mighty V12 engine sounding like it could easily polish off half a dozen SUVs for breakfast and then munch its way through a garage-full of Porsches for lunch. It looks unconventional by Ferrari standards but with seating space for four adults, comfortable ergonomics and very high quality interiors, the FF is perhaps the best ‘family supercar,’ if there can be such a thing.
“Most of our customers have been waiting for an opportunity like this, where they can experience the high performance and capabilities of a Ferrari in total safety, under the guidance of professional instructors. The response to both Corse Pilota and Esperienza has been very good and we are hopeful of hosting similar events again in the near future,” said Ashish Chordia, Chairman - Shreyans, exclusive Ferrari dealers in India who have their Ferrari showroom in Janpath in New Delhi. Well, I’m sure those who’re lucky enough to own a Ferrari would have certainly loved the experience of driving the 458 around BIC, where they would have an opportunity to do 300km/h down the back straight if they so wish. It was also a godsend opportunity for salivating journalists like me, who get to drive the best performance cars in the world and get to tell their friends/girlfriends, “Look, I drove a Ferrari today!” For those who love fast cars, things don’t get much better than this. As for me, it may be futile, but I’ll continue to dream of the day when I can finally buy a 458 Italia so I can look at it, and drive it, every single day of my life.
Note: I wrote this article in 2012, for Man’s World magazine
With its 4.5-litre, 562-horsepower V8, seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox and rear-wheel setup, the mid-engined 458 Italia is currently the best supercar in the world. Yes, it is better than every single Porsche and Lamborghini currently in production and no, I’m not just saying this because I’m a Ferrari fanboy. Even Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond – yes, all three of them – agree that the Ferrari is the best, so it must be true. In any case, I have driven every single high-performance car available in the country around Buddh International Circuit (BIC), and I sincerely believe nothing comes close to the 458 when it comes to cutting the fastest lap possible. With major changes in elevation and a mix of corners that are fast and sweeping, and slower and more technical, BIC is a proper test of even the best of cars, but the 458 was well up to the challenge.
The Italia’s V8 is mostly relentless, delivering its 562 horsepower with unabated savagery. And the seven-speed gearbox, which you operate via flappy paddles mounted behind the steering wheel, lets you extract every last ounce of performance from the engine. And last, but definitely not the least, the car’s advanced and very high-tech electronics – traction control and other wizardry – let even an average driver like me look good, braking impressively late and hurling the car around corners at speeds that would see me sitting in a ditch in lesser cars. I got to do four laps of the circuit in the 458 and that was enough to make me fall deeply in love with the car all over again.
Later, I also got to sample the front-engined California convertible, which is fitted with a 4.3-litre, 460bhp V8, and the FF, which comes with a 6.3-litre, 650bhp V12 and, for the first time in a production Ferrari, four-wheel-drive. The curvy little California was nice enough but the FF was truly, deeply impressive, with its mighty V12 engine sounding like it could easily polish off half a dozen SUVs for breakfast and then munch its way through a garage-full of Porsches for lunch. It looks unconventional by Ferrari standards but with seating space for four adults, comfortable ergonomics and very high quality interiors, the FF is perhaps the best ‘family supercar,’ if there can be such a thing.
“Most of our customers have been waiting for an opportunity like this, where they can experience the high performance and capabilities of a Ferrari in total safety, under the guidance of professional instructors. The response to both Corse Pilota and Esperienza has been very good and we are hopeful of hosting similar events again in the near future,” said Ashish Chordia, Chairman - Shreyans, exclusive Ferrari dealers in India who have their Ferrari showroom in Janpath in New Delhi. Well, I’m sure those who’re lucky enough to own a Ferrari would have certainly loved the experience of driving the 458 around BIC, where they would have an opportunity to do 300km/h down the back straight if they so wish. It was also a godsend opportunity for salivating journalists like me, who get to drive the best performance cars in the world and get to tell their friends/girlfriends, “Look, I drove a Ferrari today!” For those who love fast cars, things don’t get much better than this. As for me, it may be futile, but I’ll continue to dream of the day when I can finally buy a 458 Italia so I can look at it, and drive it, every single day of my life.
Note: I wrote this article in 2012, for Man’s World magazine
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