The new In the Ferrari 849 Testaro replaces the SF90 Stradale at the top of the Italian brand’s road car range and continues the same plug-in hybrid powertrain (PHEV) format, consisting of a mid/rear-mounted twin-turbo V8 paired with three electric motors.
However, since Ferrari primarily uses hybrid technology to improve performance rather than reduce emissions, the company’s admission that most owners don’t plug in their vehicles to charge is no surprise.
During the global launch of the new 849 Testarossa in Spain this month, Ferrari announced Daily Sparkz The main difference between the model’s four eManettino positions is not whether maximum power is available, but rather how the car manages battery usage and charging in each mode.
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Ferrari says all positions can deliver maximum power, with the battery strategy changing depending on whether the driver prioritizes electric-only operation, efficiency, sustainable driving or short bursts of maximum power.
Ferrari continues to offer four drive modes with the eManettino: eDrive, Hybrid, Performance and Qualify. In eDrive mode, the car can run exclusively on electric power, and Ferrari claims a purely electric range of up to 25 km for the 849 and 120 kW in eDrive mode.
With hybrid, the intent is to use as much electrical energy as possible for efficiency by turning off the internal combustion engine when conditions permit. However, this requires a fully charged battery, which most owners don’t seem to bother with.
Ferrari says most owners of its plug-in hybrids, including the SF90 and 296 families, do not regularly plug in their cars to charge. Instead, owners often use them as regular hybrid vehicles, relying on the engine to run and the system to maintain charge while driving, and more often only charging them when stored for long periods of time.
Additionally, Ferrari has used data from the last five years of ownership to get an idea of how its customers use their PHEVs, and based on this data it says that pure electric mode is not used all that often.
The company says the most commonly used eManettino setting is “Performance,” not “Hybrid.” This is because Performance Mode keeps the internal combustion engine running, which is what most car owners prefer to use, while also maintaining enough battery charge until the end of a trip, eliminating the need to plug in the vehicle.
At the other end of the scale, Ferrari’s ‘Qualifying’ mode is designed for short, maximum attack runs, with a more aggressive approach to using available battery energy and then reclaiming it when the driver doesn’t need full power.
If the driver does not demand maximum acceleration, the excess combustion power can be used to charge the battery, so that more energy is available for the next full-throttle operation.
Ferrari also described how the hybrid system can be used as part of traction management and not just as a performance enhancer. For example, if the driver demands more power exiting a corner than the tires can provide, the car can handle this situation by using the rear electric motor to absorb excess power rather than throttling the combustion engine’s output.
Ferrari claims this can stabilize the car faster and more smoothly than a traditional ignition cut, while also recovering energy back into the battery.
Braking feel and energy recovery remain closely linked to this strategy. On the new 849 Testarossa, the combination of regenerative braking and friction braking is a key calibration focus of the plug-in hybrid system, with brake-by-wire technology the key factor in achieving consistent pedal feel while maximizing electric recuperation where possible.
Ferrari’s admission that its PHEV owners rarely charge their vehicles comes at a time when the company is trying to convince customers of long-term battery backup. The company’s mantra “Ferrari is forever” is intended to make PHEV customers feel more confident that their battery packs will be reliable over the long term.
Ferrari claims that by producing batteries in-house, the battery packs remain operational over the long term and upgrades can be possible as the technology develops. An all-new and lighter battery pack was recently released for the LaFerrari hypercar, replacing the original system.
Over 330,000 Ferraris have been sold to date and more than 90 percent of them are still in service. However, the company’s move toward electrification also requires maintaining its ever-growing fleet of hybrid vehicles and, soon, fully battery electric vehicles.
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