Riding the prancing horse
A day with not one but three Ferrari cars at the Formula One circuit near Delhi
“I’d like to consider a Ferrari a scaled-down version of God,” Jeremy Clarkson, host of Top Gear on BBC, once remarked. Before Friday, I would have thought that Clarkson — given his strong opinions — was exaggerating. After all, he was just talking about a car. Well, that was because until Friday I had never driven a Ferrari. And after driving not one but three of them, I’m convinced that Clarkson couldn’t be more on the money.
You see, a Ferrari is not just any car but an object of desire. On Friday, I was invited to be part of the Ferrari Esperienza at the Buddh International Circuit at Greater Noida. Ferrari is holding a seven-day event for its customers to get an experience of driving the car — for Rs 77,000 or Rs 11,000 per day. The event will take the customers through thorough practical and theoretical sessions on optimal driving lines, braking, cornering and much more.
Before getting started, Ferrari experts briefed us about the basic handling of the car — how to brake on the track at high speed, what is the ideal sitting position behind the wheel and so on.
The first task at hand was to drive the Ferrari FF on the road. The FF — a four-seater Ferrari — is a spacious car. Sitting behind the wheel is a bit overwhelming. The steering control is effortless, brakes are pretty effective and the manual gearbox on the steering is easy to work with.
The next task was the one which everyone was looking forward to the most — driving the 458 Italia on the Formula One track. We did a demo lap with one member of the Ferrari crew and that experience itself was exhilarating. Touching a top speed of 250 kmph on the track even in the passenger seat is a memorable experience. With the demo lap done, the instructor swapped seats with us and asked “Have you ever driven a Ferrari before?” The answer was negative. He nodded, smiled and said, “You’re in for one hell of an experience.”
It truly was an out-of-the world experience. The 458 Italia is one of the most powerful Ferrari cars and comes fitted with a V8 engine, 450 hp and seven-speed gearbox. On the track, the car is a dream to drive on. I drove the first lap on automatic mode just to get the feel of the car. On a straight, the car easily touched 230 kmph. Braking at the speed of 160 kmph and turning on the track, you feel in total control. The second lap was on manual transmission and this is where I felt the power of the car. Shifting gears at high speeds, the car makes incredible noise which is really music to the ears. At a speed of 170, when you suddenly put the car in the top gear, it flies. In a matter of seconds I reached 250 kmph. The instructor now appeared a bit nervous. But his nerves disappeared as I braked on reaching the corner and the car slowed down beautifully. On the third lap, with more confidence to drive the 458, I asked the instructor if we could drive in the CST mode. He laughed, “Believe me, the sport mode is more than enough.” And truly it was.
The next and final task was called the “skid pad”, where we slalomed the California on wet roads. The California here shows its true colours. The traction of the car and the ease with which it skids on the track shows the exceptional handling of the car.
As we were walking off, I asked one of the crew members how long he had he been working for Ferrari. “Nineteen years and not once have I cribbed in my life about my job,” he replied. Having driven three Ferraris, it was impossible not to believe him.