Three days of testing at Portimao in Portugal, invaluable for gathering data and continuing the development programme that will see the new Ferrari 296 GT3 make its January 2023 debut at the 24 Hours of Daytona, opening round of the American IMSA series. During the Portuguese trip, four official Competizioni GT drivers took turns at the wheel, working non-stop.
The Autodromo Internazionale dell'Algarve, a 4,653-kilometre track characterised by long straights and technical curves, particularly well-suited to a range of dynamic testing, hosted the new 296 GT3 tests behind closed doors. The weather over the three days varied between fine spells with summer temperatures and short, intense downpours. Alessandro Pier Guidi, Davide Rigon, Daniel Serra and Miguel Molina, tested the new Ferrari supplying data and reports to the technicians and engineers monitoring the car’s progress from the pit wall and the garage. The car is fitted with a mid-rear 2,993 cc V6 turbo engine, capable of delivering some 600 horsepower (the figure is always subject to BoP parameters) with a maximum torque of 710 Nm, mated to a 6-speed transverse sequential gearbox.
Daniel Serrra: “We concluded three positive days of testing, in which we completed the activities that had been planned, collecting a lot of data that we will now have a way to analyze, in order to optimize the path following the program and the direction we have defined."
With just under four months to go before the endurance race in Daytona, Florida, the testing process of the car, which made its first appearance last April for its shakedown at Fiorano, goes into overdrive, reviving the tradition that every new Maranello-produced model has undergone. The 296 GT3, which supersedes the 488 GT3 that has won almost 500 races since its launch in 2016, was officially unveiled in July at the Spa-Francorchamps 24 Hours.