Behold the F76, Ferrari's first 'digital hypercar'
Thought Non Fungible Tokens were already yesterday's tech news? Ferrari's Le Mans celebration says otherwise
It’s been a while since we’ve discussed NFTs, on Non-Fungible Tokens, have been a subject of discussion. Previously it was linked to Alfa Romeo service history, ensuring the data was securely stored in the vehicle. This is a rather more interesting NFT: it’s called the Ferrari F76, Maranello’s first car ‘created exclusively for the digital world’, and a celebration of all that it’s achieved at Le Mans - now including three consecutive outright wins with the 499P.
It’s called F76 to mark 76 years since the first Ferrari win at La Sarthe, with Luigi Chinnetti and Lord Selsdon (they really don’t make racing drivers like they used to) piloting a Touring-bodied 166MM to victory. But that’s the end of any kind of historic influence, bar a hint of 288 GTO to the front end; this is nothing less than a ‘design manifesto which aims to prefigure the shapes of Ferraris of the future.’ Ferrari has for a long time fully embraced the opportunities of technology (the mannettino is 20 years old now, the F1 gearbox almost 30), so where previously a design vision might have been represented by a motor show concept or track car, now it’s a digital creation - fully configurable, of course - for Ferrari’s Hyperclub members. It was a new one for us, too. Presumably you have to have more than a Roma Spider to get into the Hyperclub.
As for describing what the F76 actually looks like, it really is like nothing we’ve ever seen; perhaps not immediately identifiable as a Ferrari, and all the more interesting for it. The double fuselage design with lateral louvres brings the drama (and benefits air flow, of course); while there’s some F80 influence down the flanks, the F76 is noticeably more extreme, pinched between the axles to make the arches look… well, quite boxy actually. Another discussion point, at least.
Expect the rear of the F76 to inspire future Ferraris as well, retaining traditional cues (four taillights, a trademark for decades), albeit in a far more dramatic fashion than previously seen. Width is exaggerated by the vertical features. Ferraris says ‘the upper wing acts as a lintel, highlighting the central channel as a conceptual “portal” to the new design language.’ Which is obviously a bit of press release fluff, though there is more to it in the case of the F76. That’s because the two passengers sit in individual cells (in the digital world), separated by a central tunnel that further boosts ground effect. Air flows all the way along the central channel to the rear diffuser, which the wing at the back then boosts the efficiency of.
And while separate passenger compartments seem unlikely for upcoming cars, additional drive-by-wire features - as seen in this Ferrari - appear more likely. For the F76, the tech means synchronising the steering wheel, the pedals, everything that makes up the driving experience, for both passenger cells; Ferrari says it elevates ‘both the emotional and technical participation in the driving experience.’ A passenger display is old news, seemingly; it won’t be long before they’re behind the wheel as well.
Alright, so it’s all quite a lot for a Monday morning: Non-Fungible tokens, biomimetics, generative algorithms, the desire to ‘redefine the boundaries of automotive design through a parametric approach where form, function and performance merge as a single organism.’ But rest assured we’ll be seeing more of the F76’s features in upcoming models; there’s a bit of F80 to the front end as well as the side, so it isn’t like this is some far-flung vision of the future. And we all know how quick model cycles can be at Ferrari. For those fortunate enough to both understand what a digital hypercar is and be in the Hyperclub, the allocated F76s are set to ‘drop’ like they’re expensive trainer launches over the next three years or so. By which time we’ll probably have seen just how much of this car will make it to actual production models.
ferrari's vision gt is here -> https://www.ferrari.com/en-EN/corporate/articles/f...
They really haven't thought this through...
Only a complete fool would miss a digital service and render their virtual hypercar even more uselss.
3rd party digital service centres cannot be used, of course.
t combined with peak enforced scarcity to appeal to folks that have run out of things to buy. If it was anyone other than Ferrari, would anybody even read it?
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