Is the new HGTE handling pack for the Ferrari 599 GTB worth the extra outlay?
Ben Oliver thinks it almost makes sense. Those of you who think that the 599 GTB doesn’t need much improving will be pleased to hear that Ferrari hasn’t done much to improve it. With test driver Dario Benuzzi at the wheel, a 599 GTB equipped with the new HGTE package will lap Fiorano precisely 0.6 second faster, an improvement of less than one percent. But other than their invoice being larger, we suspect most buyers will struggle to tell the difference. In a bizarre bit of post-Esperanto multilingual naming, HGTE stands for Handling Gran Turismo Evoluzione. Ferrari is keen to stress that this is not a hardcore, Scuderia-style makeover. It’s certainly a lot cheaper than the jump from F430 to Scuderia, and the 599’s sublime, Enzo-derived, 612bhp F140C V12 is left well alone; it hardly needs more power. Instead, the HGTE package brings tweaks to suspension, gearbox and trim, and is aimed at sharpening the 599 GTB’s handling without compromising its grand-touring abilities.
