News Source: topspeed.com

Every year at the Geneva Motor Show,  some of the biggest aftermarket tuning firms troop to the event to showcase their latest wares. It’s a lot different than what people expect from automakers, because as tuners, their business is geared towards improving what automakers have done and make certain cars look better, drive faster, or in some cases, a combination of both.

Mansory  is considered one of the best in the business, or at least one of the most influential tuners in the world. Every year, it goes to Geneva to unveil some of its new projects and this year will be no different. One of its new creations is this one, the 4XX Siracusa that’s based off of the Ferrari 488 GTB. 

Like it? Don’t like it? Don’t worry, those are common reactions when it comes to these guys. The thing you have to realize with a tuner like Mansory is that the aggressive way it creates its programs often leads to polarizing reactions. Some people don’t like how edgy Mansory is with its kits, whereas others love the tuner’s willingness to be bold and provocative.

Either way, that reputation has served the Mansory well and that’s why it has no problem presenting a kit like the 4XX Siracusa at the world’s biggest auto show, where as has become a routine, the program will be one of the most talked-about cars in the showroom floor.

The exterior is largely defined by Mansory’s trademark for adding an extensive amount of carbon fiber aero kits to give the 488 GTB a more race-oriented profile. The entire front section has been dramatically altered with the addition of a front spoiler and larger air intakes. The two vertical fins on the bumper of the Ferrari have been swapped for one large bar in the middle. The hood, for the most part, retains its standard configuration, but if you look at it real closely, Mansory’s use of the yellow and black finishes on the exterior gives the 488 GTB a different and far more aggressive look. Notice also how the tuner created that yellow nose with the black carbon fiber trim with the Mansory badge inside it. It does remind you of the Ferrari Enzo, doesn’t it?

The side profile is probably the most muted aspect of the 4XX Siracusa’s body. The side body graphics are there, as is the Mansory badge, the carbon fiber mirrors and side sills, and the set of 20- and 21-inch alloy wheels wrapped in 255/30 and 325/25 high-performance tires, respectively. But other than these handful of additions, there’s not much going on there.

For better or worse, that’s not the case with the rear, which gets an extensive modification that’s bordering on the outrageous. First, there’s the dual rear spoiler that we rarely get to see. That’s complemented by the dramatically stylized rear bumper and the massive diffuser that for some, including myself, kind of looks like the whiskers of a Decepticon. I get the functional aspects of these components and why they’re there, but those people who do think that Mansory tends to get a little too edgy for its own good can point to this rear as Exhibit A. On that end, I have no arguments. True to form, Mansory wasted little time splashing as much carbon fiber trim on the interior as the 488 GTB can handle. The dashboard, the wheel, and parts of the center tunnel are awash in carbon fiber. Complementing that high-quality material are sports seats dressed in premium leather with matching yellow contrast stitching and special floor mats that look far more comfortable than most of the car seats we have today. One other thing of note is the switchgear. It’s packaged differently than they are in the standard model to the point that a casual observer might mistake them as being integrated into a handbrake when in fact it appears to be something that Mansory just created to be different.

The power upgrades included in the 4XX Siracusa program are impressive even though the methods appear to be rather straightforward. According to the German tuner, the modifications to the car’s 3.9-liter biturbo V-8 engine mainly include an optimized ECU unit and a new, specially designed sports exhaust system. It does seem simple, but apparently, this upgrade is enough to take the output of the Ferrari from 659 horsepower and 560 pound-feet of torque all the way up to 790 ponies and 561 pound-feet of twist. There’s really not much of an upgrade on the torque numbers, but that extra 131 horsepower is a healthy dose of extra horses.

The result of this engine upgrade helps the 4XX Siracusa sprint from 0 to 62 mph in just 2.9 seconds, one-tenth of a second quicker than the standard 488 GTB. It’s top speed also increased from the standard 205 mph all the way up to 211 mph. The detailed work on the car’s aerodynamic characteristics and the significant increase in power made it necessary for Mansory to make some adjustments on the 488 GTB’s ride height. As such, the tuner installed a set of lowering springs that effectively drops the Ferrari’s height by 0.78 inches.