Frankly Frankl - New Book - Frankly Frankl-life, luck, love and automobiles - Guess Who is Coming Back to Ferrari

Unless I am very much mistaken Kimi Raikkonen is going to Ferrari according to a well-informed source. 

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Frankly Frankl - New Book - Frankly Frankl-life, luck, love and automobiles - Belgium Grand Prix

" There have been all sorts of reactions to the publicity stunt by Greenpeace at the Belgian Grand Prix.First of all top marks to who ever came up with the idea. If you protest-peacefully - you should do it where you get the maximum publicity. It is a tribute to the popularity of Grand Prix racing that Greenpeace should have chosen one of the most prestigious of all races-the one  at Spa. They made their point without  hurting  anyone. Whether Shell should or shouldn't drill in the Arctic is not for me to decide, this protest simply highlighted the need  once more to have  serious discussions on a subject relevant to all of us.

As for the race, well, there wasn't any. It isn't Vettel's fault that on circuits with long sweeping corners the Red Bull has no rivals, as Fernando Alonso said the other day he is not just  fighting Vettel but Adrien Newey as well. Interestingly enough Jenson Button reckons that Ferrari will take the fight to Red Bull as some circuits such as Monza will suit the home team. I hope so as right now it looks like a one horse race.

A number of people have asked me about my forthcoming book, all I can say is that we've had to increase the number of pages from 160 to 176 as there were simply too many stories that would have been left out.Halle Berry? A Rolls Royce to replace a sheepdog? A bob sledding Prince? A McLaren at the Top Gear Test track? And of course lots and lots of Ferraris. It may sound like a sales pitch but 499 copies all told won't go very far bearing in mind that FORZA alone has several thousand subscribers.

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Frankly Frankl - New Book - Frankly Frankl-life, luck, love and automobiles

 " Anybody who ever told you that writing a book is a piece of cake is not to be taken  seriously. It is fun, it is hard work and at the end of the day only those who buy it will be able to decide whether it was worth  49.95 dollars  of their hard earned money or not. I hope they'll like it. Just to confirm the basic facts-it will be available in mid-October. The title is Frankly Frankl-life, luck, love and automobiles. It covers the best part of 75 years, for car aficionados there will be stories on Ferrari, McLaren, great drivers such as Jackie Stewart who wrote the foreword, American auto legend Bob Lutz who was kind enough to say a few words for the back cover, Bob Sledding , visiting  Prince Albert in the Royal Palace of Monaco plus lots of original photos never  published before. We are printing 499 coffee table books and at present can accept orders for more than one copy. This is not some sales hype because someone at Concorso Italiano ordered 4 copies even though we are  not even printing and someone else was asking for a bunch of copies he wants to ship to Dubai which apparently is full of Ferraris, 499 copies won't go very far.

So if you would like to reserve a copy -without any obligation- please e mail andrewfrankl@me.com

You can also go to the website www.franklyfrankl.com

Frankly Frankl - The new book is getting closer - Concorso Italiano is coming up here in August

I don't know many of you have written a book, it sure is not a cakewalk. Editor  Aaron Jenkins of Forza is editing the book, Forza art director John Kirikos is art directing it so you might say that we are keeping in the family. That the foreword is by Jackie Stewart is something I've mentioned before, I am very excited, proud and honored. The back cover will also have some kind words by people whose name I am not revealing just yet. In the meantime of course we've also had deadlines for FORZA, as the saying goes-the show, the regular show must go on.

 Talking of shows

I am really excited about Pebble in a couple of weeks, Concorso Italiano will be amazing as usual. Old friend Scott Brown of FIAT is having an early morning party which I am hoping to attend. He really is one of life's great guys. As for all the dramas in F1, I don't know what you make of the Hamilton soap opera, thank God it is not effecting his driving. I would love him or Kimi or Fernando to catch Vettel, I am afraid I am not a huge fan . Whether Alonso could live alongside him it a different matter. If you ask me he simply wanted to warn the team that patience has its limits. Give him a car that he can put on the front row of the grid and leave the rest to him. This playing catch up business is getting on not  only his nerves but on all his fans as well.

Frankly Frankl - Great Drives in Europe

 

I must apologize for the blog's long absence but getting ready for the trip back to SF took a bit of organizing. I left for Europe on 20th May and been away until 4th July. But never mind all that, how about the cars I've been driving. I can honestly say that I have never ever driven a  more exotic collection my life. Let me start with Maserati's refreshed Quattroporte. A very fine gentleman's carriage indeed. It ran like a dream until it got a puncture which took quite a while to fix. Luckily the gauges showing the tires pressures were accurate to the nth degree which was reassuring under the circumstances. The mad dash to Bologna was just that-effortless and quick. WE had to hurry as we only had one hour in which to enjoy Lamborghini's Aventador Spider. In a word-insane. On a sunny afternoon in Tuscany the only car I can think of which would be on par is Ferrari's  458 Spider. The difference is that whereas the 458 has tons of room for luggage the Lambo has nil. Not even for a blackberry or an iPhone. I called it the Fedex special, after shopping trip to Florence the only way to get the stuff home is to head for their nearest office. As for getting in and out, well, being an acrobat helps, AARP members needn't apply.

 

The following day we had a field day in Ferrari's F12 and the Lambo coupe. Or rather we would have had but for the somewhat unexpected snow in and around Abetone. Details are in the next issue of FORZA which is at the printers as we speak. This however was not the end of the story, back in London I had a brand new 5 liter, supercharged  510 horsepower Jaguar XF waiting for me. Oh my life! You see the Ferrari looks like a Ferrari, a Lambo looks like a Lambo but for all intents and purposes the Jag could have been a diesel. Yes, on closer inspection the tires and exhausts would have given a clue but to Joe Punter it was just another Jag. Until you touched the loud pedal. Personally I prefer it to an M5. Just as I was getting ready to leave I had another Jaguar which took me in total comfort to Silverstone  and the British Grand Prix. The XJ is one size bigger and for me one size too big. I simply loved the XF which was very much in Maserati country. One other problem I had which I must as well admit hear and now-I got stuck in the XJ. Well and truly stuck, so much so that I had to dig it out. To make matters worse it was in a car park not far from where Jaguars are built and which is a regular haunt of Jag executives. The Crab Mill is near  Stratford,  Claverdon  and all those wonderful places in Warwickshire, luckily it was dark. I got out and sank angle deep into the very wet gravel. I did of course managed to get the Jag out but my dinner was cold by the time I got into the pub. My fault, should have known better. Now back in sunny Marin County and settle down to finish my book-"Frankly Frankl-the crazy life and times of an automotive journalist." With a bit of luck it will be on sale by the fall. 

 

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Frankly Frankl - This was not in the script..

The trip from Monaco to Maranello in Maserati's finest is always a treat and also a prelude to what we should expect in Italy's motoring Mecca. The F12 was waiting inside the gates as promised and we were looking forward to a quick blast to the Med. Forte dei Marmi. Instead we got as far as Abetone in a snowstorm. The locals were a bit puzzled as they were clearly not expecting a Ferrari and a Lamborghini, worth between them a good 600 thousand dollars. Not mentioning over 1400 horses from the two. The full story will have to wait for FORZA but let me assure you that good, dare I say great cars will get you to your destination come rain come shine.

It would be remiss of me not to mention the latest Quattroporte which is a serious piece of machinery. Elegant to the nth degree it has a presence that makes BMWs and Mercedes look positively pedestrian and dull. You only have to come up behind other cars, the drivers take one look and the strada opens up a bit like the Red Sea. Is it perfect? No. The gearbox is not intuitive but once you are on the road it is just fine. Cruising at 100 miles per hour the noise level is minimal and the fun factor is 100 per cent.

I hate to finish on sad note but I have to pay tribute to the Marshall who lost his life in Canada during the Grand Prix. These volunteers work 12 hour days, take their own sandwiches and do a superb job for the love of the sport. I do hope that the extremely well paid drivers will reach into their pockets and made major donation to the family.

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Frankly Frankl - From Budapest

Phew! Tried to figure out why my neck and shoulder muscles were aching. Then I realized. If you hurtle around for hours in 700 plus horsepower beasts your body takes a bit of a beating. I am not expecting too much sympathy, we could have driven the hills of Tuscany far more slowly. Sure. In an F12 and an Aventador. The full report will of course appear in FORZA, let me just say that neither car is perfect. Without wishing to offend anyone and given serious money to spend I would pick the 458spider for sheer thrills and an adrenalin rush while the rest of the time I would be very happy indeed cruising round in a Ferrari engined Maserati Quattroporte. The latter has a presence which makes Mercs and Bimmers look positively boring.

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