The Ferrari Portofino is a remarkable, turbo-charged grand tourer from the legendary Italian manufacturer, but when did it come out?
The Ferrari Portofino was first revealed in September 2017, before subsequently being released for sale later the same year. In September 2020, the Ferrari Portofino M was revealed, built around a more powerful engine. This variant was slated to launch in mid-2021.
Read on to learn more about the Ferrari Portofino, why it’s such a special car, and how much it costs to own one.
From Track To Town
It might seem obvious, given that they produce some of the fastest cars in the world, but once upon a time, Ferrari didn’t care for road cars. Instead, the iconic Italian manufacturer had a firm focus on racing cars – which, admittedly, it still does today.
When the first iteration of Ferrari was formed way back in 1929, by Enzo Ferrari, it was founded to build and field high-powered racing cars. There was almost no talk of road vehicles, and Ferrari as a company didn’t fully find its feet until the late 1940s.
And it was also around this time that Ferrari built and released the first road car – the Ferrari 125 S.
However, that road car was one of the most powerful vehicles of the era, boasting a 1.5-liter, V12 engine, and a 5-speed manual gearbox. It was capable of producing 118 bhp and pushing to an overall top speed of around 130 miles per hour.
From that day on, Ferrari would open its doors to the full-time manufacture of production road vehicles. Although it wouldn’t come quickly – the first full series that Ferrari produced was the 250 GT Coupé, many years later, in 1958.
Today, Ferrari is one of the leading manufacturers of high-end, superpowered road cars, sitting at the top of the industry with names like Lamborghini. While its range isn’t diverse, it produces some of the most aesthetically pleasing and technologically advanced vehicles on our roads today.
And while Ferrari still has a massive foothold in motorsports, it’s equally famed for the cars that you see driving around in the world’s more high-end locales.
Producing The Portofino
The Ferrari Portofino is a sleek and luxurious supercar that boasts an instantly recognizable profile out on the open road. It’s a timeless Ferrari that quite literally exudes power, status, and above all else, unbeatable ability.
It was officially revealed at an exclusive event on the opening days of September 2017. The vehicle was an instant hit, and it was further displayed at an event in Maranello just days later, in celebration of Ferrari’s 70th anniversary.
As a product within Ferrari’s prestigious line-up, the Portofino was built to replace the California T, Ferrari’s existing convertible model. When it was first released, the Portofino was a considerably expensive vehicle, being priced at around $200,000 for the base model.
Of course, as with most vehicles, climbing up the customization ladder could bring the cost of that vehicle to $250,000 or more. However, since it was first released in 2017, the Ferrari Portofino has received a considerable upgrade.
In 2020, three years after the Portofino was first released, Ferrari announced and released the Portofino M. This stood for ‘Modificata’, which highlighted that the car had undergone a substantial modification.
This wasn’t just an internal, ‘under-the-hood’ modification, but also an aesthetic facelift. The new Portofino M boasted a heavily upgraded drivetrain that boosted the total horsepower from 600 to 620, and a new gearbox was introduced.
Remainder Of The Range
Ferrari, which built its foundation on gas-guzzling supercars, is constantly working on becoming more eco-friendly. This starts with making cars like the Portofino M more fuel-efficient and ends with the development of all-electric road cars.
In 2019, Ferrari debuted the SF90 Stradale, the company’s first-ever PHEV vehicle – half gas-drive, half electric-driven. However, in 2021 the Italian masters went a little further, pledging to launch a fully electric vehicle by 2025, with more to follow.
It’s a cat and mouse game between Ferrari and its closest competitor, Lamborghini, to see who can become more environmentally friendly first. In 2020, Lamborghini released the Sián, an economical and limited edition vehicle build around a hybrid architecture.
Coincidentally, Lamborghini has also promised to release fully electric cars by 2025, mirroring the pledge made by Ferrari. It might sound ironic as we’re talking about supercar manufacturers, but the race is well and truly on.
Read up a little more about Lamborghini’s efforts, and the Sián, in another article we published.