Ferrari has announced plans to introduce the long-awaited topless LaFerrari during this fall’s Paris Auto Show. Full details — including the car’s official name — are being kept under wraps for the time being, but the Prancing Horse has published a trio of photos to whet our appetite.
The LaFerrari loses its roof panel in its transition from a coupe to a convertible. Ferrari explains the convertible is offered with both a soft top and a hard top, but photos of the car with the top up aren’t available. However, it’s safe to assume that the hard top is crafted out of a composite material like carbon fiber in order to save as much weight as possible.
Engineers have made extensive modifications to LaFerrari’s chassis in order to give the convertible the same torsional rigidity and beam stiffness as the coupe. That’s no small feat, but what’s even more surprising is that the topless model boasts the same drag coefficient as the coupe — even with the top down — thanks to subtle aerodynamic tweaks.
There are no major mechanical modifications to report. Power for the convertible model comes from a LaFerrari-sourced gasoline-electric hybrid drivetrain made up of a mid-mounted, 800-horsepower 6.3-liter V12 engine capable of revving to 9,350 rpm and a 160-horsepower electric motor. Together, the two power sources generate a spectacular 963 horsepower and 663 pound-feet of torque.
The LaFerrari convertible will arrive as a limited-edition model, and earlier rumors claimed that just 150 examples will be offered. Ferrari isn’t ready to tell us precisely how many examples it will build, but it doesn’t matter much because the car is already sold out. That’s right; while we’re getting our first glimpse of it today, Ferrari’s next convertible was shown to a small, hand-selected group of customers earlier this year and every single example became spoken for during the event.
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Stay tuned: We’ll find out more about the topless Ferrari LaFerrari in the days leading up to the Paris Auto Show, and Digital Trends’ car team will be in the French capital to bring you full details and live images as soon as it’s unveiled.
