This review we are featuring the Ferrari F40. This car is a classic when it comes to downhill racing. Specifically in this review we will be looking at the 1994 version with the gold Ultra Hot Wheels. Other versions that have seen success on the track are other early ‘90’s Ultra Hot versions, the 1998 gold Dash 4 Cash version, and the Yellow 2000 version with the 5 spoke wheel. There are several things that make the Ferrari F40 a force to be reckoned with on the track.
First, for a stock Hot Wheels car it is pretty heavy. Coming in at 51 grams, it’s heavier than most any mainline car you’ll find on the shelves today. It’s not as heavy as most of the funny cars, but still, it has good weight. As we’ve talked about before, that weight equals potential energy, which is converted to kinetic energy as it rolls down the track. And kinetic energy is the energy of speed! Now it’s true, in a perfect world, with no friction, no irregularities in the track, perfect wheel alignment and no bumping into the sidewalls, weight doesn’t matter, every car would reach the same speed for a given height. (that’s a physics lesson for another article) But we don’t live in a perfect world, so that weight gives the Ferrari an advantage. More weight means more momentum. Momentum is the object’s ability to overcome the forces that are trying to slow it down, like friction, and irregularities in the track. That extra weight helps the Ferrari keep its speed while lighter cars are more easily overcome by those things that are trying to slow it down. While most of us are trying to lose weight, in the world of downhill racing, a little extra weight is all the rage!
Another plus for the Ferrari is it’s wide stance. Wider cars run straighter down the track with less bouncing back and forth between the sidewall of the track. The more the car goes from side to side as it goes down the track, the farther the car travels. Even if a wider car bounces from side to side the same number of times as a skinny car, it travels less horizontal distance than the skinnier car making its total distance covered less. But that’s the beauty of a wider car, not only is the wasted side to side distance covered going to be less, it’s just not going to bounce around side to side as much as a skinnier car.
Another thing that makes this particular version of the F40 fast is the Ultra Hots wheels and axles. Here’s what it says on the back of the Ultra Hots cards:
Fastest non-powered die-cast metal cars ever to carry the HOT WHEELS name! Thin, high-speed racing axles & special , high-speed wheels make the difference! Six exciting models! Look for the standout, specially-designed hubcaps! Hot Wheels ULTRA HOTS vehicles, each sold separately.
"Thin, high-speed racing axles and special, high speed wheels make the difference!" Enough said.
All in all, the F40 is a great car for racing. As with any casting, you have to find a good one. But if you do, watch out. That thing can really burn up the track!
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