---
title: "Silent Ferrari 488 Caught Testing in Fiorano Could Be Hybrid"
description: "Despite making a speedy takeoff, the Ferrari 488 didn't emit a single sound."
date: "2018-04-02"
modified: "2018-04-02"
authors:
  - name: "Jerry Perez"
    job_title: "Deputy Editor"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/jerry-perez"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/19825/silent-ferrari-488-caught-testing-in-fiorano-could-be-hybrid"
categories:
  - "News"
tags:
  - "Ferrari"
  - "Ferrari 488 GTB"
  - "Formula 1"
  - "hybrid"
  - "maranello"
  - "SF71H"
---

# Silent Ferrari 488 Caught Testing in Fiorano Could Be Hybrid

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2018/04/180104-car_488-pista-rossi.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

Footage of a partially-camouflaged Ferrari testing at the automaker's home track in Maranello recently surfaced on YouTube, and oddly enough, it's making headlines for doing the exact opposite of what Ferraris are known for: engine noise. The lack of it in this case.

This [video](<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84-J9S-qrmI&feature=youtu.be>) shows the exact moment when what looks like a [Ferrari 488](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/19134/watch-the-ferrari-488-pista-get-thrashed>) makes its way around Turn 2 of the iconic race track, before making a full stop right before the kink (Turn 1) that leads to the pits. After a brief pause, the Ferrari accelerates and speeds down the track without making a single sound. The lack of tire noise tells me that the driver didn't exactly perform a [launch sequence](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/19350/ferrari-488-gt3-flips-in-dramatic-fashion-at-12-hours-of-sebring>) in the quest for scorching acceleration, but it's easy to tell that it wasn't a granny-style start either.

https://youtube.com/embed/84-J9S-qrmI

Could this be an upcoming hybrid version of the 488 GTB or is Ferrari simply performing powertrain testing in its newest mid-engine platform? According to [previous reports](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/5915/all-ferraris-will-start-going-hybrid-in-2019-ceo-says>), all Ferrari models will start being propelled by hybrid powertrains by 2019, and let's not forget the [upcoming Prancing Horse SUV](<https://www.thedrive.com/article/14995/marchionne-confirms-ferrari-suv-says-its-not-selling-jeep-to-the-chinese>), which would be the perfect platform to roll out a hybrid powerplant.

Ferrari's range-topping hypercar, the LaFerrari, and its Formula 1 championship contender, the SF71H, both feature hybrid powertrains with high-performance kinetic energy recovery systems, otherwise known as KERS. As electrification technology improves, it will surely trickle down to the "lesser" models, and that's probably what we're witnessing in this video.

Should Ferrari go hybrid? Let us know what you think in the comments section.

## Author
Jerry is responsible for upholding The Drive's ethos as an audience-first, enthusiast-driven car blog that serves up industry-leading news, reviews, culture, and motorsport coverage. Overseeing a staff of writers and editors from his home base in Indianapolis, he helps curate the site's daily rundown, as well as its medium- and long-term content strategies. Jerry joined The Drive in 2018 as a writer and worked as news editor and managing editor before becoming the deputy in 2023. As a lifelong car enthusiast and racing fan, Jerry believes that all cars are cool, but the people behind the machines are even cooler. This belief often gives The Drive a slightly different focus from most other car sites, where we explore the humanity behind the machines. When he's not obsessing over the day's biggest stories or hanging out at a race track, Jerry can be found behind the wheel of a car, most likely sharing a laugh with his teenage son or daughter.

### Author social links  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/drive_jerry/>)