As far as the road car side of the business is concerned, my answer would be: I wouldn’t change very much at all.
The road cars they are producing at Maranello nowadays are out of the very top drawer, right the way across the range. I can’t actually think of a single Ferrari on sale in 2014 – from FF to 458 Speciale to LaFerrari – that isn’t the best in the business, in fact.
The products themselves are peerless, just as Ferraris should be (but haven’t always been in the past).
I also wouldn’t alter the 'less is more' philosophy that Luca di Montezemolo has pursued to great effect in recent years. The idea of selling less cars for more profit, thereby enhancing the allure and value of the brand was a bold and decisive move on LDM’s behalf. But it was also a stroke of genius, I believe.
His idea of making the cars as good as they possibly could be, both technically and emotionally, then charging fewer customers more money for the privilege of buying into an increasingly exclusive club was, I thought, pretty much the perfect template for a bright and lasting future at Ferrari.
But then somebody, somewhere, quite clearly decided that LDM was wrong to pursue this strategy. And now, it seems, that whole business model could be turned on its head. The idea of a Ferrari SUV will, no doubt, rear its ugly head once again as higher overall sales figures become the holy grail.
So what would I change?
One, I’d push the engineers and the designers at Maranello right to the very front of the PR machine, and let them do the talking instead. The PR machine at Ferrari is quite strenuous to work with on occasion, yet the products they are pedalling often need no PR or marketing at all.
Two, I’d bring in a whole load of fresh and, if necessary, expensive new talent to do whatever needs to be done to put the Formula 1 cars back on top – because having the fastest driver flogging himself half to death to come fifth all the time is not doing anything for the brand.
Three, and now I’m struggling.
Be in little doubt, the continuing mediocrity of the F1 team’s achievements are what did it for Luca di Montezemolo in the end. So whatever else Mr Marchionne does with Ferrari over the coming years, he needs to make sure he cracks F1, otherwise great unrest will ensue. And eventually it will do for him, too.
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Less is more? I don't think so.
Ferrari Production in 2014: c. 7000.
How is that less?
Pretty much everything that is wrong with them is located on their steering wheels. A ridiculous array of buttons, knobs and leavers, all of which either pointlessly complicate life, or mask the ineptitude of the driver.
Surely there is nothing more disgusting than their system that allows the greatest display of skill, the power slide, to be utterly faked by an idiot?
All this nonsense is no different to the idea of Steinway suggesting to a decent pianist that he might enjoy the experience a whole lot more if they inserted between the keyboard and strings a system that corrected his very occasional errors. And took away the tiresome job of pushing the peddles as that could be taken care of internally as well. I seriously cannot see any difference.
Enzo of course didn't really give a crap about the road cars, but he would be turning in his grave about the feeble F1 effort. And I shudder to think what he would have thought about Ferrari World. And as for the Ferrari surfboard I recently saw in the Ferrari store in Malaga airport...
So I would change pretty much everything. Except of course for the V12s.
What would I change?
That is very easy 1. Stop
1. Stop selling Ferrari branded teddy bears, key chains, Perfumes, clothes and bags. That makes the brand appear cheap.
2. Don't limit selling Ferrari cars. The Montezemolo was very keen on it.
3. Previously they had their cars appear differently but now they all look same. For example, previous California, 430, 360, 612 they all looked different but now new cali, 458, F12, FF all looks the same.
4. Don't cut the current R&D budget. That made the Ferrari stand out from Germans and some Japanese.
5. No Ferrari SUV please and no future FF please. Ferrari should build sports cars. All Ferraris should be dream machines. They should be fast, impractical and beautiful. Period.