In honor of the founder's son Alfredino “Dino” Ferrari who died of muscular dystrophy in 1956, the Dino brand name represented mid-engine rear-wheel-drive models with less than 12 cylinders which were produced by Ferrari between 1968 and 1976.
Groomed to be the successor of Ferrari, Dino was credited for designing the first Ferrari built V6 engine which was first used in motorsports and then later produced in the Fiat Dino in 1966 to help Ferrari homologate the engine for use in Formula 2 racing.
Then in 1968 Ferrari produced their own Dino 206 which was their first mid-engined vehicle. The Dino 206 is widely considered one of the best Ferrari's ever made.
Now Ferrari is reviving the Dino name with their most “affordable” entry level 400hp V8 model which is expected to open Ferrari up to a whole new market. The Dino is rumored to be produced at the Maserati plant in Modena and is expected to start at EUR 100,000 with a potential 4000 units per year which doubles Ferrari's current production. The Dino is expected for 2009 launch with a spider version following.
Now Ferrari is reviving the Dino name with their most “affordable” entry level 400hp V8 model which is expected to open Ferrari up to a whole new market. The Dino is rumored to be produced at the Maserati plant in Modena and is expected to start at EUR 100,000 with a potential 4000 units per year which doubles Ferrari's current production. The Dino is expected for 2009 launch with a spider version following.
This new ferrari is very modern and have qualities as facinitating as the people of 21st century was desiring.The car that's set to become the new Dino originally was half of a two-car Maserati program that used a shortened Quattroporte platform. The first is a two-plus-two that debuts at Geneva and will replace the GranSport coupe later in 2007. (The next Maserati Spyder, however, won't arrive until 2010 and is based on new four-wheel-drive components borrowed from the next-generation Alfa Romeo 166 sedan.)
The second car in the program is a smaller, lighter two-seater. And despite the official denials, Ferrari is a logical home for it, particularly when you learn that both cars need to go into production if the $50 million investment is ever to be recovered and that the next F430 (due in 2009) will move up significantly in base price from today's $175,000 to more than $200,000. That makes room for a lower-priced model, and by going the Dino route, there's no danger of diluting the Ferrari brand image.
The Maserati connection would define the car's key ingredients. They include a front-mounted engine, a control-arm suspension with electronic damper control, Brembo brakes with optional carbon-ceramic discs, and a body structure that uses plenty of aluminum and carbon fiber. What powers the new Dino? A high-revving 4.0-liter V-8 rated at 430 hp is a realistic starting point--not bad considering the car's target weight of 3500 pounds.
Priced at about $170,000, this car will be positioned against the Aston Martin V8 Vantage, the Porsche 911 Turbo, and the Audi R8. Boasting a Ferrari-shared V-8, a rear transaxle (like that from the 599GTB), a retractable hard top with an optional glass roof panel, and a steering wheel complete with the manettino drive-mode selector, it has plenty of Ferrari DNA.
It also picks up interesting historical threads. Not only does it resurrect the Dino concept, but it would be the first front-engine, eight-cylinder Ferrari in a half-century. Two sports racers with that configuration--powered by tiny 75-hp, 1.5-liter units--were built in 1940, but they wore Auto Avio Costruzioni 815 badges. Why? Because Enzo Ferrari, who had left Alfa Romeo to found his own company, agreed on a four-year grace period before he would start putting his name on his firm's cars.
This model came into being in order to celebrate the company's 50th aniversory.it was from the initials models of ferrari taht was built for the Sultan of Brunei in 1995.
