News: Ferrari reveals the new FXX K with 1035bhp

BOY RACERS choose RS or GTI. German-car buffs want AMG or M. But in the world of supercars a passion for high performance is sealed with an XX.

The wraps have come off the FXX K (the ‘K’ refers to the KERS kinetic energy recovery system) version of the Ferrari LaFerrari, which the Italian firm claims is nothing less than the ultimate hypercar. Or does it mean hyperHypercar?

Browse the used Ferraris for sale on driving.co.uk

It is fast — no doubt about that — but Ferrari hasn’t released any performance claims for the new model. What it has revealed is that the FXX K has a total of 1035bhp, more than a McLaren P1 GTR (986bhp)  but not as much as the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport (1183bhp). The latter is an extreme version of the Veyron, a car that Jeremy Clarkson was rather taken with: “From behind the wheel of a Veyron, France is the size of a small coconut. I cannot tell you how fast I crossed it the other day. Because you simply wouldn’t believe me.”

The standard LaFerrari offers 950bhp from its hybrid V12 and electric powertrain. That car has a top speed of more than 217mph and accelerates from 0 to 60mph in less than three seconds. The FXX K will be faster still…
Its hybrid drive system has four operating modes. The most extreme is Qualify, which Ferrari says is for maximum performance within a limited number of laps. Then there is Long Run, used to ‘optimise performance consistency’. Manual Boost gives the driver instant maximum torque delivery, and Fast Charge gives the quickest charging time for the car’s battery.
The 6.2-litre V12 engine revs to over 9,200rpm and is said to feature new camshafts and a modified valve train with mechanical rather than hydraulic tappets. Engineers have redesigned the intake manifolds and applied a special type of polishing treatment, while the exhaust system has been modified as its silencers have been eliminated – as you can hear from the video of a prototype model undergoing flat-out testing, below.

The revised bodywork means the car generates 50% more downforce, with 540kg at 124mph. There are slick tyres, developed by Pirelli, and carbon ceramic brakes are standard. As with the standard LaFerrari, there are traction control and Side Slip Angle Control systems and the calibration of the anti-lock brakes can be adjusted from a switch on the steering wheel.

Don’t know your BHPs from your MPVs? Click to take a look at our car jargon buster

The LaFerrari XX will be shown at this year’s final event in Abu Dhabi next weekend. XX cars are not road-legal, so the price includes access to eight exclusive racing weekends a year, when Ferrari flies XX cars and their owners, with mechanics in tow, to an international circuit where they can test — but not race — them. Multimillionaires rub shoulders with billionaires in the pits and swap lap times.

Only 30 are expected to be made and all have reportedly been sold already. According to The Sunday Times Rich List the sales pitch followed the same pattern as for previous XX cars. Buyers of the LaFerrari XX were told that they were test drivers, helping Maranello to research and develop advanced technology that would one day feed back to Ferrari’s road cars.

It’s not a bad way of helping to justify the eyewatering cost of being an owner. Most will never keep the cars in their garage: Ferrari will transport, maintain and — if necessary — repair them. The average fee for each event attended is around £50,000.

Buyers can personalise their paint scheme and choose the number on the bonnet. For a few tens of thousands extra, who could resist?