A brace of Ferrari 612 Scagliettis have this week completed a 15,000 mile tour of China.Dubbed the Red Miles Tour, the expedition marks Ferrari’s first full year of trading in the Republic and pays tribute to it being named a ‘Renowned Brand’ by the Chinese Office for Trademarks last year.
The tour took 45 days to complete, with a total of 51 Chinese and international journalists taking turns to navigate the prancing horses through extremes of temperature and altitude.
Surprisingly, given the conditions, there were no oil refills and the only casualties were two damaged alloys.
The route took in Manchuria, Beijing, the Great Wall, Lanzhou, Tibet, the Gobi desert and the tropical region of Canton before returning to Shanghai. Upon their arrival, the city’s famous 468 metre high Oriental Pearl Tower was illuminated in Ferrari red.
Ferrari has been selling cars in China through a private importer since 1993. October 2004 saw the creation of Ferrari Maserati Cars Trading International, a joint venture backed by both brands to provide official marketing and support. By the end of the year, the dealer network will cover 10 major cities.
Just 90 cars have been allocated to China in 2005, but given its rate of economic growth, it is expected to become one of Ferrari’s six biggest markets within a few years.
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