BERLIN: The trend now is for silver and grey, with bright custom colours and a growing number of matt choices, even at Ferrari.
The Italian company has customarily sprayed the vast majority of its cars in its signature “racing red”, Rosso Corsa, but the percentage is falling fast.
Ferrari has revealed the first pictures of its new hero car, the 488 Spider — presented in a light silvery blue instead of Rosso Corsa.
The first 488 coupe for Australia, the star turn at a giant party and then an exclusive driving event on a private road outside Sydney, is painted dark grey.
“We have seen a big shift to white and black, and there is also a large trend to specific matt colours,” says Ferrari Australia boss Herbert Appleroth.
“Red is still strong but not like it was. Rosso Corsa is now (the choice for) about 35 per cent of our cars. Traditionally the V8 sports cars have been very strong in red. The California was the first model that changed a lot, with metallics.
“Grey, or different tones of silver, are more popular in the V12 cars, the F12 and FF. People are going more conservative with the GT models and being a bit braver, and going away from red, in the sports cars.
“We’re now seeing 65 per cent of our cars in grey or silver.”
The waiting list for 488 coupes here is already more than 18 months and the preview of the open-air version is tipped to boost orders even further.
Appleroth believes the styling of the Spider, which has the same 3.9-litre V8 as the coupe with a 0-100km/h time of 3.0 seconds, will make it the more popular variant.
We’re now seeing 65 per cent of our cars in grey or silver
“We’ve already had some customers think they might prefer the Spider. And they aren’t previous Spider owners. The styling seems to lend itself much more to the Spider.”
The 488 Spider has a retractable hardtop roof and a three-position wind blocker behind the seats. Ferrari claims it’s the most aerodynamic car it has built, as well as being significantly quicker in all driving conditions than the previous 458 Spider.
Initial Spider deliveries are expected in the first quarter of next year and their arrival will not interrupt coupe deliveries. “It was always anticipated this way,” says Appleroth. “It was part of the product plan.”
