Born in 1985 and originating from Australia, the Internet sensation known as Supercar Blondie doesn’t know too much about shifting her own gears. Alex Hirschi had a go in a one-off Ferrari in Dubai in her latest video, and as you can tell from the headline, the six-speed manual took much of the abuse along with the clutch.
In addition to using two hands to push the lever in then get the transmission into reverse, the YouTube vlogger also has trouble shifting into gear. So much for those titles from Arabian Business (50 Most Influential Women in the Arab World) and Esquire Magazine Middle East (Biggest Influencers in the Middle East).
Even though people make mistakes, shrugging it off with “these old-school manuals” and similar jibber-jabber is an insult to those people who know how to use a stick shift without putting a strain on the drivetrain. It doesn’t help either that Supercar Blondie made these errors in a 599 GTZ Nibbio by Zagato, listed for $1,495,000 by Tomini Classics in Dubai.
Zagato bodied nine such vehicles with this coachwork, and this is the only one equipped with a gated shifter. With less than 27,000 kilometers on the odometer, the 599 GTB Fiorano-based limited edition presents itself in pristine condition. This particular example of the breed was finished in 2007, sporting a blue exterior with a white-painted roof and C-pillars.
Regarding the unconventional taillights, replacing them costs 60,000 euros per piece. In other words, the Prancing Horse in Maranello is much obliged to sell you two taillights for the price of two Mercedes-Benz CLS 300 d. So what else is special about this car?
To be frank, not much. Like the GTB, the GTZ serves as a reminder that Ferrari once offered three pedals instead of two. During the 2016 Paris Motor Show, chief technology officer Michael Hugo Leiters said: “there’s no manual transmission that can beat this performance and therefore we have decided to stay on the double-clutch gearbox.”
Even though this course of action isn’t seen well by purists, there’s always an older Ferrari heading to auction. And as opposed to the GTZ, a 250-series Ferrari is a lot better as a blue-chip investment.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?
Google News