13 Sep 2007, 01:16 am
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#1 (permalink)
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Senior Tremekian
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: In A House
Posts: 1,631
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Ferrari 360 Modena stretch limo.
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This here is the world's first Ferrari 360 Modena converted to a gullwing stretch limo. It's 23 feet long, but with 400HP, goes zero to 60mph in about 6 seconds. These mods, and the extra 6 Recaro seats, cost £200k. Sounds like a deal to me. We've got one more photo of the gullwing in full splendor, but Gizmag, who broke the story, has a few more photos.
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Fastest limousine in the world hits the road - at 170mph
Last updated at 18:17pm on 6th September 2007
Comments Comments (5)
• The world's fastest limousine can go from 0 to 60mph in less than six seconds
• It is made from a Ferrari 360 Modena chopped in half and stretched by 9.5ft with a section of hand-built carbon fibre
• It has a top speed of around 166mph - just 17mph less than the standard 183mph Modena
• The 20ft long car - which only seats eight people - is set to claim two Guinness World Records as the fastest limousine and the longest Ferrari
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The world's fastest limousine is now available to rent - a stretch Ferrari with a top speed of nearly 170mph.
The 400bhp beast is made from a Ferrari 360 Modena which was chopped in half and stretched by 9.5ft with a section of hand-built carbon fibre.
It is now 20ft long and seats eight people - but has lost little of its performance because it weighs just 160kg more than the original 1390kg car.
The 3.6 litre V8 engine launches the car from 0 to 60mph in less than six seconds and has a top speed of around 166mph - just 17mph less than the standard 183mph car.
Passengers climb in through hydraulically powered 9ft long gull-wing doors and sit in carbon fibre racing seats equipped with full five-point harnesses.
The car is set to claim two Guinness World Records as the fastest limousine and the longest Ferrari.
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It was created by limo boss Dan Cawley and former McLaren carbon fibre expert Chris Wright - who will now rent it out for £700 an hour.
The total cost of the project is thought to be around £200,000.
Dan, 37, who runs Style Limousines in Cheadle, Manchester, said his creation was a "supercar for the masses".
He said: "Everyone always dreams about riding in a real Ferrari but very few people ever get the chance - but now they can, and bring friends along too.
"You won't find a mini-bar on here because it isn't that sort of limousine. It's about tasting a real driving experience, not just cruising past night clubs on Saturday night.
"In terms of performance it hardly feels any different from the original car on the road - you have to remind yourself how long it actually is when your going into a corner.
"And you can't beat the look on people's faces when you overtake them on the motorway, and the car just keeps on coming past." Dan and Chris struck upon the idea last November over a drink in a London bar.
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They decided to challenge the opinion of American limo builders that a stretch Ferrari was impossible to build because traditional conversions use steel beams, which would make it too heavy.
After consulting Ferrari engineers and drawing up detailed plans for a hi-tech carbon fibre conversion, a suitable donor car was found in January.
A £130,000 black 360 Modena with an F1 'paddle' gear box - where shift levers are mounted behind the steering wheel - was bought second-hand for £55,000.
The left-hand-drive '04 model, which had only covered 30,000 miles, was then delicately cut in half. Over the next eight months the carbon panels were designed and built.
Like the original car, the V8 engine is still visible through the rear glass window. Extra crash protection bars and carbon roll over hoops have been installed for safety.
The brakes and gear box are all standard but the suspension has been uprated to cope with the added weight and to automatically raise the body while tackling speed bumps.
Between each pair of seats is a 10-inch flat screen monitor which relays images from cameras mounted on the outside of the vehicle.
A six speaker surround sound system and slimline DVD have also been built in. Surprisingly, the car returns an average of 15mpg on the motorway and costs only £1,800 a year to comprehensively insure for passenger carrying duties.
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It will make its debut at the Limousine & Chauffeur Show 2007 at the Birmingham NEC from the 16th to 18th of September.
Dan and Chris hope to make a speed record attempt in April and representatives from Guinness World Records are set to confirm the length records in the coming weeks.
"It's a great feeling to prove it can be done and the hard work has paid off," said Dan.
"I know we can set the record and that's before we've even tuned the car. Next stop 200mph." Chris, 41, worked at McLaren's Woking HQ developing the carbon fibre body used on the Mercedes SLR.
He left 18 months ago to form Carbonyte UK, based in Bournemouth, Dorest, and has put over 1,000 man hours into the project.
"Perfecting the gull wing doors, which must be biggest of their kind ever made, was the hardest part as well as adding the extra crash protection while keeping the weight down.
"It could only ever be achieved with carbon fibre. It's much stronger than steel and much lighter.
"This has made the car very stiff, improving it's safety and handling but kept it light so we haven't lost the performance." The pair refuse to disclose how much the conversion cost, but similar extensions cost around £150,000 plus the cost of the original 'donor' car.
They have already received an offer of £200,000 from a wealthy businessman in Dubai.
But they are now eyeing up their next project - a stretch Lamborghini MurciC)lago with a twin rear axel.
Dan already owns Europe's longest stretch Hummer - the ten wheeled 'Terminator' - and a stretched Range Rover Sport and Porsche Cayenne after seven years in the trade.
He plans to run the Ferrari for a year as a show car before selling it to the proposed Ferrari museum in Dubai.
There are currently no Guinness Record holders for longest Ferrari or fastest limo.
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