There have been numerous before it and I’m positive there will be numerous a lot more to come, but the newest edition to the Ferrari legacy is the mid-engined 458 Italia. This amazing hunk of metal featured in last night’s episode of Leading Gear and even made Jeremy Clarkson grin like a Cheshire cat.

The 458 replaces the F430, according to the Top gear website, with a new” 4.five litre direct injection V8, which produces an astonishing 562bhp”. To put this into perspective, that is 79bhp much more than the present F430 and 52bhp more than the legendary Scuderia.

In accurate Clarkson style his review of the fabulous Ferrari started a little rocky, with an attack on the secondary controls, but surprisingly this was the only fault he could locate. The styling, the engine, the handling and the raw exhaust sound were all praised by the pessimistic presenter even though he was hurtling around the track at breakneck speed.

1 of the finest quotes of the night, employed by Clarkson when describing the 458 was when he said the Ferrari was like “Stephen Fry with Kiera Knightley’s face” – what a combination! He even shocked viewers by saying he preferred the 458 to the flawless F40.

In accurate Leading Gear style the three stooges, Clarkson, May well and Hammond, were given the challenge of obtaining from the Lotus headquarters in Norfolk to the derelict TVR factory in Blackpool – sound straightforward, nicely there was one slight snag, they would be driving in classic British sports cars.

Clarkson went for a classic gem in the form of a Jensen Healey, May possibly chose the standard TVR S2 but Hammond went for a much less obvious treasure, the Lotus Elan. Classic cars are definitely built to last but are not so great at going the distance.

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Ferrari Motor Sports