Frankfurt 2013: Faster, leaner Ferrari 458 Scuderia to debut

By Stephen Edelstein May 22, 2013

Ferrari will unleash a hardcore, high performance version of its 458 Italia at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show. The car will be a successor to the F430-based 430 Scuderia.

Like the Scuderia, and the 355 and 360 Challenge models that preceded it, the new 458 variant will be a sharp scalpel of a track car. It will likely ditch many of the stock 458’s luxuries, and feature more performance hardware.

Official details will have to wait until the car’s Frankfurt debut, but it seems likely that Ferrari will round up the 458 Italia’s 562 horsepower output to at least 600 hp.

According to Car and Driver, the 458 Scuderia will retain the stock 458’s 4.5-liter V8, but will get a freer-flowing exhaust system and other modifications.

The transformation will be holistic, with the brakes, suspension, transmission, and aerodynamics getting upgrades to separate the Scuderia from lesser 458 models.

A signature feature of Ferrari’s past hardcore models has also been lightening through jettisoning any deadweight. Like Porsche with its RS models, and Lamborghini with its Superleggeras, Ferrari feels customers who want the fastest car around can do without tech and luxuries. The 430 Scuderia didn’t even have carpets.

Why bother with a high performance version of one of the world’s most sensational supercars? Because Ferrari is schizophrenic.

Ferrari likes to emphasize the race-bred nature of its cars, funneling technology from Formula One to make them as fast as possible. However, it also has customers that want their Ferraris to be civilized, and offer the convenience items a sane person would expect in cars that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Some might even say that these people make up the majority of Ferrari’s clientele.

In contrast, Ferrari will build the Scuderia for people who believe all of that F1 imagery is more than just marketing hype. Some customers drive their Ferraris like, well, Ferraris, and every once in awhile, Maranello makes sure to give them a shout out.

The 458 Scuderia (or whatever Ferrari ends up calling it) will debut at Frankfurt in September, and should go on sale shortly after that.

Stephen Edelstein

Contributing Editor

Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…

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