The Ferrari 488 has been in production for two years now, and if this spy video is to be believed, a hybrid version on its way. A Ferrari 488 spotted on the Nürburgring may be one such car, with larger bodywork both front and back.
It’s hard to make out in the video but if you look close enough, it appears that the front intake tracts as well as the rear exhaust exits are slightly larger. This would suggest that there’s additional engine work requiring additional cooling.
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Fueling rumors that there’s a hotter Ferrari 488 on the way were other spy videos taken last year. Audio was captured from Ferrari engineers telling their test driver to explicitly not turn off the KERS system on their test mule.
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KERS, or kinetic energy recover system, is technology straight from Ferrari’s F1 cars. In its current form in Formula One, the system makes 120 KW of available power. That’s equivalent to 160 horsepower for a couple of seconds, enough for quicker overtakes. As it currently sits, the Ferrari 488 in all its turbocharged glory makes 661 HP and 561 lb-ft.
Adding credence to this spy video is a statement given to analysts from Ferrari CEO Sergio Marchionne on a conference call reported by Reuters:
“All Ferraris sold from 2019 and beyond will include some hybrid elements.”
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Hybridization of its fleet is in line with efforts from Ferrari to reduce its carbon footprint and that means tapping into innovative ways to find power. Ferrari has gone on the record saying that it doesn’t prefer to use turbocharged technology, but admitted that “it’s the right way to reduce emissions without sacrificing performance.”
One thing is for certain. Some kind of faster Ferrari 488 is on the way. If Ferrari is going to make changes to the engine in the name of environmental friendliness, the added addition of power will always be welcome.
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