Ferrari has stopped production of its 2020 Formula 1 car, along with its road-going models, at its factories in Maranello and Modena, Italy, as the country battens down the hatches over the coronavirus.
The Italian marque will close its production facilities until the 27th March, citing issues with suppliers as the reason behind the temporary shutdown. Brake manufacturer Brembo, among Ferrari’s top suppliers, announced last week that it would be temporarily closing four factories owing to the COVID-19 outbreak. Ferrari said it would continue all non-manufacturing activities as normal.
This could have a significant impact on the company’s 2020-spec Formula 1 car, as most teams will be using the next few weeks to develop their challengers for the season ahead. That said, with the postponement of the Australian, Bahrain, Vietnamese and Chinese Grand Prix, it could be several months until the SF1000 turns a wheel in anger.
Ferrari isn’t the only manufacturer to halt production. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), which owns Alfa Romeo and Maserati, has also confirmed similar measures across its sites in Italy, Poland and Serbia.
The group said it would use the downtime to “implement revisions to production and quality control”, and that it intended to meet its production targets in spite of the virus.
Keyword: Ferrari halts road and 2020 F1 car production amid coronavirus lockdown