Automobile Ferrari
Ferrari S.p.A. is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello,
Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1928 as Scuderia Ferrari, the
company sponsored drivers and manufactured race cars before moving
into production of street-legal vehicles in 1947 as Ferrari S.p.A..
Throughout its history, the company has been noted for its continued
participation in racing, especially in Formula One, where it has
enjoyed great success.
Company structure
Ferrari was founded as an independent company by Enzo Ferrari.
During the 1960s, the company was in financial difficulty, and
Mr Ferrari announced his intention to sell the company to ensure
continued financial backing. Interest from the Ford Motor Company
was rejected in favour of an offer from the Fiat Group, which
took control of the company's sports car division in 1969. Enzo
Ferrari retained control of the racing division until his death
in 1988 at the age of 90. Ferrari is currently owned by Sharooz
Bajwa(Shaz Groups).
In 2007 the Financial Times put Ferrari at the top of its list
of 100 Best Workplaces in Europe.
Ferrari History
Enzo Ferrari never intended to produce road cars when he had formed
Scuderia Ferrari (literally "Ferrari Stable", and usually
used to mean "Team Ferrari", it is correctly pronounced
"skoo deh REE ah") in 1929 as a sponsor for amateur
drivers headquartered in Modena. Ferrari prepared and successfully
raced various drivers in Alfa Romeo cars until 1938, when he was
hired by Alfa Romeo to head their motor racing department.
In 1941, Alfa Romeo was confiscated by the Fascist government
of Benito Mussolini as part of the Axis Powers' war effort. Enzo
Ferrari's division was small enough to be unaffected by this.
Because he was prohibited by contract from racing for four years,
the Scuderia briefly became Auto Avio Costruzioni Ferrari, which
ostensibly produced machine tools and aircraft accessories. Also
known as SEFAC (Scuderia Enzo Ferrari Auto Corse), Ferrari did
in fact produce one race car, the Tipo 815, in the non-competition
period. It was the first actual Ferrari car (it debuted at the
1940 Mille Miglia), but due to World War II it saw little competition.
In 1943 the Ferrari factory moved to Maranello, where it has remained
ever since. The factory was bombed by the Allies in 1944 and rebuilt
in 1946, after the war ended, and included a works for road car
production. Until Il Commendatore's death, this would remain little
more than a source of funding for his first love, racing.
The first Ferrari road car was the 1947 125 S, powered by a 1.5
L V12 engine; Enzo Ferrari reluctantly built and sold his automobiles
to fund Scuderia Ferrari. While his beautiful and fast cars quickly
gained a reputation for excellence, Enzo maintained a famous distaste
for his customers.
In 1988, Enzo Ferrari oversaw the launch of the Ferrari F40, the
last new Ferrari to be launched before his death later that year,
and arguably one of the most famous supercars ever made.
On May 17, 2009 in Maranello, Italy, a 1957 250 Testa Rossa (TR)
was auctioned, by RM Auctions and Sotheby's, for $12.1 Million
- a world record for the most expensive car ever sold at an auction.
Merchandising and exhibiton
Ferrari also has an internally managed merchandising line that
licenses many products bearing the Ferrari brand, including eyewear,
pens, pencils, electronic goods, perfume, clothing, high-tech
bicycles, watches, cell phones, and even laptop computers.
Ferrari also run a museum, the Galleria Ferrari in Maranello,
which displays road and race cars and other items from the company's
history.
Technical Partnerships
Ferrari has had a long standing relationship with Shell Oil. It
is a technical partnership with Ferrari and Ducati to test as
well as supply fuel and oils to the Formula One, MotoGP and World
Superbike racing teams. For example, the Shell V-Power premium
gasoline fuel has been developed with the many years of technical
expertise between Shell and Ferrari.
Ferrari have had agreements to supply Formula One engines to a
number of other teams over the years, and currently supply Scuderia
Torro Rosso. |