The Ferrari 612 Scaglietti, brought in to replace the Ferrari 456M, is named after the famous Ferrari coachbuilder Sergio Scaglietti. Scaglietti was the coachbuilder who brought to life some of the most beautiful Ferrari models in the 1950s and 60s. The new 612 features scalloped sides that recall the famous 375 MM he created for Italian film director Roberto Rossellini as a gift to his then-wife movie-star, Ingrid Bergman.
The all-aluminum Ferrari 612 Scaglietti was designed to be a luxurious 4-seat grand-tourer. The overall layout – engine mounted behind the front axle, gearbox positioned with the differential at the rear – ensures an ideally balanced weight distribution (46% front, 54% rear), as well as permitting a lower centre of gravity.
All Ferrari 612 Scaglietti's are fitted with a six-speed mechanical gearbox, with a choice of manual, and F1-style paddle shifts. Newly developed for the 612, the electro-hydraulic system is known as the F1A. It is designed to deliver both fast and ultra-smooth gear changes.
The all-aluminium chassis of the 612 provided the basis of the Ferrari 599 GTB.
Back in the late 1990s, when Lamborghini were starting to realise they needed a replacement for the ageing Diablo, they started reviewing design proposals from various automotive design firms. Zagato’s offering was the Zagato L147 SuperDiablo, or as it was to be later known, the Lamborghini Canto. The Lamborghini Canto first appeared in 1998, it arrived only two years after another Zagato designed Lamborghini concept had been unveiled, the Diablo-based Raptor. The cars shared a number of similar features, including the wraparound windows, triangular lateral air intakes, and trademark double-bubble roof. However of the two, the earlier Raptor was probably the better looking. Clearly Ferdinand Piech – head of the Volkswagen Group – thought so too. After VW bought Lamborghini in 1999, one of his first decisions was to review the Canto’s development and redesign the concept. The car was re-engineered and the rear extensively restyled to include smaller air intakes. The engine was also up