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Ferrari has reprised a storied name with the new 849 Testarossa, which replaces the SF90 Stradale and becomes the company's most powerful series-production model.

The new supercar makes 1035bhp - 49bhp more than its predecessor - and will reach 62mph in 2.35sec on its way to ‘more than’ 205mph.

Deliveries of the coupé are due to start next spring, with the drop-top Spider variant arriving in the autumn.

Along with its extra power, innovations concerning the car's aerodynamics and chassis electronics mean the 849 Testarossa can lap Ferrari’s Fiorano test track in 1min 17.5sec - 1.2sec quicker than the SF90 Stradale and just 0.2sec shy of the limited-series SF90 XX Stradale. 

The lap time was achieved with the help of the Assetto Fiorano pack, which will be offered from the start of sales and shaves 30kg off the car’s 1570kg dry weight, as well as bringing track-focused upgrades to the suspension, tyres and body. 

That dry weight figure is unchanged from the SF90 Stradale, thanks to incremental weight-saving measures throughout the car that mitigate the 20kg or so that the new body and driveline modifications have added. The spider weighs 90kg more. 

In its styling, the mid-engined 849 Testarossa is a radical departure from its predecessor. The leading edge adopts the striking, full-width graphic recently seen on the F80 and 12Cilindri, while the rear of the car features two spectacular spoilers intended to evoke Ferrari’s sports prototype racers of the early 1970s.

Chief designer Flavio Manzoni said at the reveal event in Milan that "it is our duty as designers to create something new", despite the car’s effective status as a facelift and its mechanical similarity to the SF90 Stradale. 

He spoke of the new car's "strong geometric forms and sharp geometric cuts" but said the design intentionally takes no inspiration from the legendary 512 Testarossa of 1991, despite the name. 

The new bodywork is also notable for its dramatic side intake vents, which are integrated into the doors and feed enormous intercoolers taken from the F80. These aluminium panels took two years to put into production, such was the difficulty of pressing the shape. 

Cooling was one of the challenges of the project. As well as those intercoolers having a fifth more surface area than those of the SF90 Stradale, the front intakes are also significantly enlarged. There are also new oil coolers.

The new body makes the 849 Testarossa 8mm longer than the SF90 Stradale. It also helps the car make 25% more downforce at 150mph, although much of this improvement is down to the powerful underbody outwash and the new diffuser. 

Mechanically, the car is largely unchanged from the plug-in hybrid SF90 it supersedes. Under the body is the same driveline, with a 3990cc twin-turbocharged V8 operating alongside two independently acting electric motors on the front axle and another between the engine and the eight-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.   

That the system now makes 49bhp more than before is thanks in part to larger-diameter fixed-geometry turbochargers with low-friction bearings, derived from those used in the F80. There's also an 'innovative' heat shield for the turbine casing that takes learnings from the 296 GT3 racing in the World Endurance Championship.

Further revisions have been made to the cylinder heads, exhaust manifolds, intake plenums and valvetrain, as well as the fuel rail. The lighter crankshaft is new too and titanium screws have been used throughout.

The high-exiting exhaust tract is also 10% longer than before and has larger ducts in an effort to improve the musicality of the 'Tipo F154' engine. Further helping in that endeavour is that the redline has risen by 300rpm to 8300rpm.

Alone this engine musters 818bhp and 621lbft. The combined output of the electric motors is limited to 217bhp at any given moment, because the 7.5kWh battery, which is tucked up against the rear bulkhead and allows for around 18 miles range in the car's EV mode, doesn't allow greater draw. 

Chief development officer Gianmaria Fulgenzi said the potential to increase electric power by using a more capable battery exists, but for now his team is happy with the car's overall balance of its two power sources.

Elsewhere, the brake package has been upgraded from the SF90 Stradale, with larger carbon-ceramic discs and redesigned calipers from Brembo. The regenerative braking calibration has also been revised to give more feedback and consistency as the system blends retardation from the electric motors with the physical brakes themselves. The 849 Testarossa is claimed to haul up one metre sooner from 62mph than its forebear.

The gearbox has also been substantially improved, said Fulgenzi, building on the software found in the 296 GTB for faster shifts both up and down the ‘box.

Mated to the rear electric motor, it drives through an electronically controlled limited-slip differential, the behaviour of which is partly informed by Ferrari’s Slip Slide Control system, now at version 9.0.

However, the big development in terms of software is the inclusion of the Ferrari Integrated Vehicle Estimator (Five) introduced on the F80.

This system, currently reserved for cars only with four-figure power outputs, is able to calculate true speed and vehicle yaw with a very high degree of accuracy. Along with data from sensors dotted about the car, Five creates a ‘digital twin’ of the vehicle’s dynamics in real time and uses this as the basis of a model that predicts what will happen next. 

This prediction determines the behaviour of the ABS, stability control, traction control and torque-vectoring functions to maximise speed and stability. 

The gathering of data, the generation of the twin model, the subsequent prediction and finally the actioning of the 849 Testarossa’s various chassis systems unfolds in a timeframe of single-digit milliseconds. The effect from the driver’s perspective is a reduction in steering inputs - that is, enhanced economy of movement - and quicker lap times.

UK pricing hasn't yet been confirmed, but in Europe the 849 Testarossa will start at €460,000 (£398,260) for the coupé and €500,000 (£432,890) for the spider, with the Assetto Fiorano package adding a further €52,500 (£45,450).

It marks a significant increase over the pricing of the SF90 Stradale when it was launched in 2019 but puts the Ferrari on par with its closest rival, the Lamborghini Revuelto.

Will the XX return?

It’s unknown whether Ferrari will make a red-hot ‘XX’ version of the 849 Testarossa, as it did with the SF90 Stradale, but anybody looking to scratch the trackday itch with the regular car should be well-served by the Assetto Fiorano package, pictured above.

It is by far the single most expensive option available, at €52,500, but it brings several exclusive options, not least lightweight ‘tubular’ bucket seats that together save 18kg versus the standard chairs. Carbonfibre wheels then account for much of the remainder of the pack’s total 30kg weight-saving.

The power output is unchanged but single-rate Multimatic dampers (replacing the standard car’s semi-active Magneride dampers) enhance wheel control and trim roll, helping the driver put down more of that 1049bhp total, more of the time. In our experience these dampers make for pricky company on the road but are sensationally effective on track.

The standard car’s twin spoilers are then replaced by wing-boxes similar to those originally seen on the Enzo FXX in 2005, and there are larger flicks in the nose and two extra vortex generators for the front underbody. Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres complete the package.

To a person, the early arrivals look busy and happy to arrive at an event billed all year as the greatest European motor exhibition for a decade, maybe longer.

In the massive Munich motor show entrance hall, veteran attendees talk about enjoying again the very smell of a genuine motor show.

Not that this Munich event is like static shows of old. Sure, it’s based in a classically huge, six-hall exhibition centre, but in other locations across the city there have already been extravagant unveilings and displays, many involving dynamic demonstrations and lots of test driving, and there will be even more throughout the week. 

Munich motor show 2025: all the best new cars

If you seek affirmation that car culture and a car industry still matters to at least one leading nation in Europe, here it is. However, you only need to take a few steps inside – and begin to eyeball the huge and fast-changing display screens that are everywhere – to realise that this show is far from being an old-time carefree chance to feast your eyes on the latest in mobility.

This is a car industry battleground. It's the place where a renewed European industry – mostly German, because of where we are – will show how it will use a slew of improved and rethought models to defend its stake in its home car market against a tidal wave of Chinese rivals, every one of them driven by a slowdown in their own home sales to seek customers across Europe.

Annual car making capacity in China today is 50 million, a helpful Chinese market expert tells me, but the home market can only accept 28 million. There are thus 22 million extremely well-priced Chinese cars per year seeking foreign homes, despite both the EU and US tariff uncertainties.

This fact has special implications for the UK car market, currently just about the easiest and most accepting of the lot for an importer to enter.

The seriousness of the challenge to Europe is laid bare by the extreme changes, particularly in tone of voice, of major players.

Audi has already revealed its superb 'TT' coupé concept – reminiscent in my eye of the Jaguar Type 00, in which its design chief Massimo Frascella was also heavily involved. Audi, says Frascella, aims to begin a new design era. He has already candidly told assembled hacks that the four-rings marque “lost its way” for a while and needs a bold, simple, new design direction. This is it.

BMW uses Munich to reveal its own hottest harbinger of change, the new iX3 EV, first production model from the much-discussed Neue Klasse family that will eventually to amount to 40 different cars. The aim is to greatly improve both the customer appeal and the economics of the Munich company’s whole car-making business.

The iX3 looks good – a little more like the outgoing model than some might have wished (one of the penalties of designing SUVs) and somewhat bigger than expected. Perhaps the first Neue Klasse saloon – previewed at the show and confirmed to take the i3 name – will be even better, we all agree.

Mercedes-Benz has plenty to offer too. Its big 'WELCOME HOME' slogan is on screens and hoardings everywhere and is doubtless meant to sound comforting - and to encourage those who know the brand values to embrace them again. To my ear, there’s a strikingly un-Mercedes lack of confidence about it. 'Please come back', they’re saying; 'you left us and now we really need you.' I'm not sure desperation sells. It's a million miles from 'Engineered Like No Other Car' back in the day.

Volkswagen is also in full change mode, but part of that change is backward. There’s lots of talk about the new, enticing range of small EV models building a 'true Volkswagen' line-up. All the talk is about realigning the range with Volkswagen's core values. There’s a bit of desperation there too – 'remember the good old days?' – but it works because it’s understandable. Small EVs have an appeal and a logic to the many of us numbed in recent years by successions of big saloons and endless identical SUVs with 500bhp-plus, as if such outputs were important to most car buyers. 

But again, this isn’t a simple celebration of Volkswagen's capabilities and a chance to appreciate its view of the future. It’s a grim-faced circling of the wagons to meet a looming threat – from China. Many other displaying brands show the same mindset.

There are actually more Chinese manufacturers displaying at this Munich show than European ones, although you wouldn’t know it. Even well-known Oriental marques, established in Europe, are scattered to remote locations across the six-hall array, smothered by dozens of stands occupied by decent-enough component suppliers likely to be of little interest to the thousands of punters due here later in the week. Finding the likes of Changan, Xiaomi and Aito – all of which have new cars to show – is like being at an airport and being forced to walk through endless duty-free shops on your way to the departure gate. 

Along the way, I learn that the initials of Aito – one of at least five car marques backed by the gigantic, controversial Huawei technology conglomerate – stand for 'Adding Intelligence To Auto'. This information comes one of many nice, open-faced, young Chinese brand ambassadors who intercept me as I wander past. They all seem keen to talk and happy to be at Europe’s greatest motor show. Not one, as far as I can judge, is interested in the overthrow of Western civilisation…

The Europe-versus-China thing is on everyone’s mind in Munich, yet it can’t be pitched as a battle. As all parties admit, the new Chinese arrivals employ copious numbers of Europeans to import, register, sell and service their products - surely a positive. And from the product appeal point of view, you can hardly expect a financially pressed European car consumer to feel guilty about buying the best-value car they can find, whatever its origin.

The focus of many discussions therefore was on what the European authorities, muleishly intent on implementing climate neutrality standards that pose an existential threat to the whole European car industry, can do to improve the situation.

The words 'sense of urgency' come up every time legislators were mentioned – not least by new Renault Group boss François Provost, who makes clear his belief that the European strategy on climate neutrality is wrong and that “technology neutrality with a push toward electric” is the way that will work. 

One Munich feature, different from motor shows past, is its overall quietness. No loud displays; no bands or dance acts; even the ceiling-high video presentations are muted. “This place is a bit like electric cars themselves,” says one cynic. “No noise, no vibe.”

Yet such a dismissal of Munich’s mighty event – with its many associated city mobility festivals – would be a gross misinterpretation of what really happened.

Wonderful designs with new eye-appeal are everywhere. Huge improvements in the practical appeal of European cars have been prepared for whizzbang unveilings in these epoch-making days of early September 2025, likely to be remembered for many years. The excellence – and in many cases the anonymity – of the latest Chinese offerings is also laid bare.

Now the battle for the soul of the European car industry will begin in earnest.

The production version of the Skoda Vision 7S seven-seater will arrive next year as the firm’s new electric flagship, with chiefs claiming it can play a key role in further strengthening the brand.

The new EV will sit above the Elroq, Enyaq and forthcoming Epiq in the Czech firm’s growing bespoke EV line-up and has been described by CEO Klaus Zellmer as Skoda’s new flagship.

The concept version of the Vision 7S was shown in 2022, introducing Skoda's new ‘Modern Solid’ design language, which has since been applied elsewhere.

The production version, which like the Eloq and Enyaq will use the Volkswagen Group’s MEB platform, is tipped to stick close to the concept’s styling.

Skoda sales boss Martin Jahn told Autocar that the new seven-seat EV would be “our new highlight”, adding: “There are not too many seven-seaters in the in the BEV arena, so we believe it will be a really important car: beautiful from the outside, very practical from the inside.

"It’s also an extension of the brand. We put a lot of effort into strengthening the brand, and this car will also help us to do that.”

Jahn refused to discuss an aspirational target price for the new model but acknowledged that it will sit above the Enyaq (which is priced from £39,010), potentially pushing Skoda into an entirely new price bracket. 

But he said: “Skoda is always based on value for money.  We are not the cheapest car in the segment, but when you buy our cars, you get better value for money than when you buy a car for the same money from another brand. Value for money is important for us, but [with this car it will be on] a different level than before.”

A Mercedes-Benz EQS fitted with a prototype solid-state battery has been driven 749 miles without stopping to recharge, marking a milestone in the development of the technology.

Mercedes engineers drove the modified saloon from the firm’s home town of Stuttgart, Germany, to Malmö, Sweden. It claims to have finished the trip with 85 miles of range left in reserve.

Although the route between the two cities would typically measure around 630 miles in length, the engineers plotted an alternate course accounting for the landscape and traffic conditions, while avoiding ferry crossings. That extended the drive by more than 100 miles.

The car’s solid-state battery uses cells from US firm Factorial Energy while the pack was designed in collaboration with Mercedes’ F1 base in Brixworth, Northamptonshire. Its weight and footprint are said to be “comparable” to a standard EQS’s lithium-ion pack – which yields up to 481 miles of range – but its energy capacity is said to be improved by 25%. 

The battery pack uses a floating cell case with pneumatic actuators that help to manage the expansion and contraction of the cells in operation, to improve their stability and longevity.

Mercedes had previously expected the new pack to improve the car’s range to around 620 miles.

Chief technology officer Markus Schäfer hailed the technology as a “gamechanger”, saying the successful test drive shows how it can deliver “a new level of range and comfort”. 

Schäfer added that Mercedes is aiming to bring solid-state batteries – which have long been considered a major breakthrough for electric cars, but which have faced decades of delays – to market this decade.

That matches the timeline quoted by the rival Volkswagen Group, which has unveiled its solid-state prototype at the Munich motor show. Rather than testing the technology in cars, however, it has opted to use a motorbike built by Audi-owned brand Ducati.