ferrari - why no all wheel drive ?

Why does ferrari not make an all wheel drive car ? Given the direction that these type of cars are going, and the expectations that people now have as far as modern and high tech equipment, why is there not a all-wheel-drive ferrari ?

I can get a wonderful AWD system on a 40k audi, or a 30k subaru ... and the competition (gallardo) now has a great AWD system ...

Is there any real reason why the next low-end ferrari (355, 360, XXX) will not be AWD ?

the always present downside to awd is the weight increase, and lately ferrari seems to be more focused on keeping down on the pounds (all aluminum 12cyl in the scaglietti for example)

I definitely understand the weight issue, but .... at some point AWD is going to (or already has) become a must have feature on cars like this ...

I am not saying I am buying a 360 or a gallardo this year, but ... it is a distinct possibility, and there is no way I am going to invest that much money in something that does not have a technological feature that every audi and subaru and jeep have for 1/4-1/6 the price.

Has there ever been any whispers from ferrari, or any other discussion on boards like this that at some point, AWD becomes a no-brainer feature ?

thanks.

yes, weight will always be an issue. i hope that if ferrari does get an all-wheel drive system that it just has it as an option cuz that would slow a car way down. thats the reason a gallardo isnt as fast as it could be cuz of its all-wheel system.

all wheel drive will get you a quicker start, but once you are going what good is it compared to an addition in weight?

all wheel drive will get you a quicker start, but once you are going what good is it compared to an addition in weight?
Exactly what he said. Why would Ferrari make an AWD system when it's just going to slow the car down around the track?

all wheel drive will get you a quicker start, but once you are going what good is it compared to an addition in weight?

actually, some drivers have a hard time launching awd cars. since they have grip at all four corners, they cant get the right amount of tire squeal to get the best launch.

lets say an awd car redlines at 7000, to get it to launch its best, the rpms have to be at 5000, once you get full traction, you rpms, have to go all the way down to 3500 and then go back up.

now, take the same car except without awd and now the rpms only have to be at 4000 for the best launch, after you get traction, you engine really doesnt have to slow back down and go back up. so you save time.

correct me if im wrong on any of this scenerio.

All wheel drive is by no means superior or more advanced than rear wheel drive. It is better for weather hands down, and for more intense sports cars can be safer.

However, it does have a handling characteristic that is not so desirable ontop of being heavier, and that is understeer. These are a couple of the reasons why most all race cars are rear wheel drive. Even the racing versions of Lamborghini's are converted to rear wheel drive. And racing happens to be Ferrari's backround.

And another thing on taking off. With more powerful awd cars, there can be too much grip, making it so you have to ease on the throttle or else the clutch will get roasted.

The reason why Ferrari has maintained its RWD cars is because it builds sports cars. There cars are bassed onprevious models and try to capture what it is like to drive a race car.

Manufacturers like Audi and Subaru are selling there systems as more of a safety thing. Not really a performance standpoint. And neither Audi or Subaru makes a "sports car".

As for porsche. Well they made AWD for the soal purpose to make there cars easier and safer to drive on the road.

For instance, put a 911 Turbo and a 360 Modena on a track and the Modena will win. (I have amny articals to back this up). But in day to day driveing the Porsche would be a much better car.

I dont think Ferrari will make a AWD car anytime in the future. There cars have always been sports cars to the puriest form. And i dought they will change any time soon.

my .02

Manufacturers like Audi and Subaru are selling there systems as more of a safety thing. Not really a performance standpoint. And neither Audi or Subaru makes a "sports car."
I'd say that phrase is incorrect. While Audi and Subaru may be after safety, the WRX STi is as good as any 4-door sports car I've ever seen. And the Audi RS-6 can tie a Corvette or a 360 Spider in a drag race. I guess you could classify these as sports sedans though.

On that note, it is not necessary to upgrade to AWD. Like stated earlier by many, AWD helps off-the-line accerlation and a little bit with handling in sitcky situations. But the weight only keeps it down when it comes to the quarter-mile and actual F1 or LeMans racing.

actually, i would say that companies such as audi and subaru make 4wd drive cars as an extension of their current/previous rallying history.

audi do it because they more or less invented it (give or take the odd rare example) and subaru produce 4wd cars because of homologation purposes for wrc (which incidentally is why audi made road cars with 4wd in the first place...)

generally, you are right though.
ferrari makes cars that conform to a different set of rules to audi and subaru.

whilst the prices and figures for the gallardo and 360 seem to put them in the same group, i would say that the gallardo is more about thrashing the pants off it safely whereas the 360 is about pushing the car slowly towards the edge.

it isn't about safety or technology.
it's about character.

RWD has more supercar elegance, 4wd or AWD isnt the same. Drive a RWD, a 4wd and a AWD you'll see what I mean. RWD also gives the driver a much better feeling, there is nothing like the feeling when being pushed. For example no F1 car is AWD (or 4WD) they are only RWD its not that its faster its the way it drives and handles. If you know how to drive properly RWD is much better on turns and is more controllable then AWD (sounds stupid and wrong but any professional can show you that when leaving a turn in a RWD car there is more control). Also leaving out a 4WD or AWD system saves alot of weight. Remember that the you have to have 2 separte differentials and the transmisson is bigger. Ferrari, Koenigsegg, McLaren all are RWD and are considered the fastest cars. Lamborgini AWD is very good but doesnt beat Ferrari's RWD. Ferrari knows what there doing they win all the awards and races all the time.

hmm, a bit short-sighted and simplistic.

rear wheel drive does not mean a better handling car, especially if you are talking low power figures.
on the other hand rear wheel drive can be a handful if the numbers are high (see TreVoRs).

here's a little something to 'counter' the F1 comment.

british touring car.
the audi A4 touring car was eventually banned because, despite being much heavier and hence a much lower power/weight ratio, it won everything.

again, with the audi.
on one of their demonstrations of the quattro system, the audi engineers doctored one car so that it was 100% rear drive.
the resulting car was slower, and less controlable but it was undeniably more fun.

is rear wheel drive better?
well, as alfa have shown front wheel drive can be just as good with 250bhp.
anything more and the chassis starts to have problems and that is kinda where rear drive has a clear advantage; it can handle more power.

I would say there is no AWD because many Ferrari drivers don't need it. I'd just learn to handle the RWD.