2012 Ferrari FF

shooting brake - hatch

            It finally happened, someone at Ferrari finally snapped.  Well in a good way.  They have finally come to their senses and made a car worthy or doing your groceries in.  I guess Ferrari figured, if it works for Porsche, it might as well work for Ferrari.  No Ferrari did not go as far as to build a sedan or SUV, but they have just released a shooting brake version of their 599 GTB Fiorano. ​

Of course when you’re as smart as Ferrari or Porsche you won’t release this new model under the same name.  The new grocery getter from Ferrari is the FF.  And no the FF does not stand for “Freaking Fast.  It should stand for “Funny Ferrari” since this is something you would expect from a coach build company, not Ferrari.  Yes is may seem odd that a supercar company would build a grocery getter, but just remember that Ferrari has had some models which you could fetch groceries in.

            Now on to the good stuff, the stuff that makes you want to know more about the car itself.  The exterior design of this car does hint at where its roots are, but not where it should be.  This is a car which from the front you can tell that it is a Ferrari, but out back you may think this is an Alfa Romeo or SEAT hatch.  Yes it still has the prancing horse out back, but really, it still feels like an aftermarket version of an average brands hot hatch.  But I guess when you add a hatch to a model it may wind up looking like any other hatch. ​

​            Up front Ferrari has done a decent job at preparing this shooting brake for entry into the supercar grocery market.  But it still lacks the bad ass appeal of other supercars.  For starters, they should have brought down the size of the headlights.  They do fit the design, but still they seem a bit tall.  Next they added an oversized grille, which seems to capitalize on chrome real estate.  Why do I say that, well the grille it self is oversized to begin with.  Next they made the fins overlap onto the side walls of the opening.  And lastly, the main design of this grille comes off looking like an evil clown face.  Yes I said it; Ferrari has turned this shooting brake into Bozo the clown’s retirement car.

            Now when you look up from the clown face you will find the next odd piece of design work.  Someone has decided to make the windshield separate from the hood line.  This in turn makes the top of the car appear to be a pod sitting on top of a body.  Yes we all know that essentially this is true, but in reality, it helps when the outline of the car blends together, not breaks apart.  Someone needs to make the windshield into more of a sweeping design, not a pod look.  Yes we all know the pod design helps with visibility, but it still looks odd. 

            Along the bottom of the front you may notice something odd sitting on the sides of the car.  No they are not speaker holes for partying outside of the car.  They are in fact the lower air ducts.  They do well with this design, but really, I think to make the front look like a whole, someone needs to take the material from the air ducts and move it up to the grille.

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​            Ferrari has made an effort in using some parts from most of its existing models on this car.  Along the side you start to see some of the California on this car.  It seems that someone has brought along the sweeping body line from the California and added it on to the side of the FF.  Of course you cannot use everything from the previous model, so Ferrari has gone one step further and changed up the side air ducts for the FF model.  Using the same speaker style grille as up front, the side ducts seem to be a bit too small for the area the lines make up.  Enlarging the ducts may help reduce the awkward look of this area.  Of course you could always go for a slit style grille, where the slit would sit on the end notch area of the body line.  Sort of like the side air ducts on a Dodge Viper.
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            Out back we start to see a little less Ferrari, and a little more Fiat S.P.A. inspiration.  The tail lamps are one of the best features of the rear of this car, because they tend to come off as evil red eyes starring you down.  This works for people who like to scare drivers from both ends.

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​            One down side to rear of this car is that it comes off as “V” pattern.  Take a close look at all of the features and you will start to see what I mean.  Everything from the bodyline down to the bumper is lined up in a perfect “V”.  This does seem to work for the rear of this model, but it still begs the question of, does it really matter.  Well it does matter on this model, because this leaves ample room on both sides to fit in those beautiful exhaust ports.  Yes this car does like to show off that it has power and it is willing to use that power.  Something others in supercar grocery field do not have.  Now add in a race inspired lower air escape and you have the workings of a hot hatch on your hands.

            All around the FF is a decent looking car, but still you will not catch me racing to the local Ferrari dealer to get one.  But when it comes to other grocery getters in the supercar world, this would seem to be the best one if you’re looking for a run about.  Compared to a Panamera or Rapide, the FF is one car which you can pick up a few things in and then take it to the track and not have to worry about being put into a field of sport sedans.  I believe this is one of the best answers for a partial family car within the supercar market.  And why would I say that, well for starters, it won’t bring down the image of Ferrari.  This would have happened when suburban moms start showing up at Wal-Mart in a Ferrari.  Added to this the FF comes off as a reverse mullet.  Party up front and business out back.  This allows you to go to work and then to the track and do both in style.  All in all the FF is one decent car for a crowd of 7 days a week people, but if you want to everything, I would still suggest you keep separate cars.

​Front End = D+
            Good – Headlight setup, Lower air vents
            Bad – Front symbol (amount) Grille, Windshield

Rear End = C
            Good – Exhaust, Rear bumper, Licence Plate
            Bad – Taillight setup, Name placement

Side =D-
            Good – Wheel size, bodyline
            Bad – Door Handles, Air vent design, Appearance

Overall Appeal = C+
           Good – Outline, Fast, Mysterious
            Bad – Outline, Use of Chrome, Cheap

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​Offset Competition:

Aston Martin Rapide
Porsche Panamera
Audi A7
BMW Grand Coupe
Mercedes-Benz CLS