Motor Trend Names Ferrari 458 Italia 2011 Best Driver's Car

EL SEGUNDO, Calif., Sep 12, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Motor Trend, the world's foremost automotive authority on cars, trucks and SUVs, today announced the Ferrari 458 Italia as its 2011 Best Driver's Car. The award announcement, made on the Motor Trend homepage, was the climax of seven days of teaser coverage that included videos of each of the contenders hot lapping a racetrack, and an epic 11-car drag race.

Established in 2009, the Best Driver's Car competition aims to go beyond the numbers, uncovering the one vehicle that offers enthusiasts the most engaging and rewarding driving experience possible. This year, Motor Trend devoted more resources to this story than any previous single piece in its history. The brand drafted a crew of 25 editors, photographers, video producers, championship-winning race driver Randy Pobst and Le Mans class winner/TV host Justin Bell, to test, review and film the largest group of cars in the competition's history over six days.

During testing, Motor Trend staff took into account the results of quantitative and qualitative data collected using some of the industry's most advanced testing equipment, both on and off the track. The competition required daily driving, hot lapping the famed Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, plus the full battery of Motor Trend performance tests to determine which vehicle would win the coveted honor. After six exhaustive days of testing a fleet powered by a combined 82 cylinders producing more than 5,000 horsepower and costing more than $1.5 million, the Ferrari stood out as the overall leader.

"The 458 Italia is easily the best mid-engined Ferrari road car yet," said Angus MacKenzie, Editor-in-Chief of Motor Trend. "It's an artful mix of race-bred high technology and pure Italian passion that is easily accessible and yet utterly engages the driver. It delivers supercar performance and razor-sharp handling, but it's also remarkably comfortable and refined on the street. You could drive it all day, every day."

In addition to the 458 Italia, the 2011 Best Driver's Car competition included: 2012 Audi R8 GT, 2011 Lotus Evora S, 2011 BMW 1M, 2012 Mercedes-Benz AMG SLS, 2012 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 with Z07 Package, 2011 Nissan GT-R, 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Laguna Seca, 2011 Porsche 911 GT3 RS, 2012 Lexus LFA and a 2011 Porsche Cayman R.

While the Ferrari won overall, other models performed well in individual aspects of this year's testing. Chevrolet's Corvette Z06 fitted with the Z07 package decimated the field at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, recording a lap time almost two seconds quicker than the number two finisher, the 458 Italia. The 530-hp Nissan GT-R, took top honors in the 11-car drag race at El Toro Marine Base; its advanced all-wheel drive system allowed the car to rocket through the quarter-mile in 11.2 seconds, just one-tenth of a second ahead of the 458 Italia. Video of drag race is available by visiting Motor Trend's YouTube channel.



Source: [MarketWatch.com]