Driving a Ferrari 458 these days can be a bit complicated, at least if you’re willing to do it at 10/10. You see, while the final naturally aspirated V8 Prancing Horse offers just the kind of linear power delivery and aural delights that people associate with this engine type, the supercar may feel a bit down on power compared to its twin-turbo successors. However, there are other ways of adding muscle, so let’s take a look at what is probably the world’s first nitrous-infused Ferrari 458!
Production of the 458 stopped after 2015, so why hasn’t anybody thrown a bottle inside one of these Prancing Horses before? Well, for one, many people treat these cars as investments, regardless of how they drive them. And the fear that adding nitrous could cause the $70,000 engine to grenade is a pretty strong deterrent.
Then there’s the fact that using this form of power adder on a stock engine will only bring limited gains. Nevertheless, isn’t 100 hp, along with a spectacular decibel premium, enough to get your heart pumping?
It probably depends on whom you’re asking. And, in the case of actress/car vlogger Emelia Hartford, the answer is a big, purged yes.
Is the Ferrari 458 reliable?
A member of the Ferrari-Maserati F136 engine family that entered service in 2001, the 4.5L naturally aspirated V8 of the 458 Italia makes 562 hp (570 PS) and 540 Nm (398 lb-ft) when stock. And adding the said 100 shot (yes, this signifies the hp gain) takes the motor way past the 597 hp (600 PS) output offered on the 458 Speciale, which still holds the specific power world record for an atmospheric V8.
These engines love to rev, as I’ve had the pleasure to discover while reviewing the 458 family back in the day, with the 9,000 rpm redline being an extreme delight. And they’re generally regarded as being reliable, as is the 458 altogether, despite the crankshaft issues that could cause engine failure (the affected units were recalled) and the costly ($25,000 to fix) transmission failures experience by cars built between 2010 and 2011.
And if we consider that the said 100 shot means about 12.5 extra hp per cylinder, it seems like she’s not necessarily adding that much stress. Alas, installing a nitrous system does involve a backfire risk, even though proper installation should seriously minimize this.
Still, even if the shenanigan doesn’t lead to any tech issues, we’re pretty sure Maranello isn’t too happy about this (remember the exhaust mods prohibition question?).
What type of nitrous oxide system does Emelia Hartford’s Ferrari 458 use?
A nitrous oxide system works by introducing extra oxygen into the intake charge—this is released once the intake mix reaches the kind of high temperatures found in the combustion chamber. Emelia went with a wet kit. As opposed to the dry setup that simply introduces the nitrous oxide using a basic fogger placed in the intake tube, the wet hardware delivers a mix between fuel and nitrous oxide.
The 458’s V8 introduced direct injection as a first, while featuring the usual dual throttle body setup. As such, Emelia went with two solenoids (the smallest kit available is a 50 shot, and she had one installed for each throttle body), with the lines penetrating the intake manifold after the MAF (mass air flow sensor).
From the injection part to the purge lines, which send the gas upwards via the engine cover, and even the plumbing that links the frunk-mounted-bottle to the rest of the system, it’s all been done discreetly. So you can hardly even notice the power adder.
Inside, a small box fitted to the center console accommodates the nitrous system’s activation and purge buttons, with these sitting next to the button for the hydraulic lift system—we covered the latter when describing Emelia’s Liberty Walk 458 build back in May, costs breakdown included.
As for the “go” button, the Ferrari steering wheel, which traditionally includes more controls than those of most cars (e.g., lights, wipers) might sound tempting. However, for the time being, there’s a separate controller the driver keeps in her hand while hooning.
Now, as she mentions in the YouTube video below, Emelia will race the nitrous-augmented Ferrari 458 against her now-famous twin-turbo C8 Corvette (yep, she adores power adders of all sorts, even though it can sometimes lead to fiery trouble). Meanwhile, though, you can listen to the soundtrack of the car as she does some serious pulls at the 12:50 timestamp.
