Ferrari Mondial
The Ferrari Mondial is a mid-engined, V8, grand tourer manufactured and marketed by Ferrari between 1980 and 1993 – with styling by Pininfarina and bodywork by Carrozzeria Scaglietti.
Offered as either a 2+2 coupé or cabriolet, the Mondial has the slightly higher roofline, greater dimensions and increased weight to accommodate occasional rear seating for children or small adults.
The Mondial replaced the Ferrari 308/208 GT4 coupé and remains the last V8, rear mid-engined, 2+2 Ferrari.
The name Mondial, French for global, reflected its worldwide conformance with 1980 safety and emission standards — as well as the company's prominent motor racing victories. Ferrari had used the nameplate in the 1950s to celebrate Formula 1 World Championships and again in the 1970s to mark its Formula 1 World Constructors Championships.
Design
The Mondial uses a rear mid-engine, in 2+2 2-door coupé or 2+2 convertible bodystyles. It was marketed concurrently with Ferrari's two-seater 308 GTB/GTS, 328, and 348 sports cars, sharing the major mechanical systems with the two-seater model Ferrari marketed concurrently.Unlike its 308 GT4 predecessor which was styled by the Italian Gruppo Bertone, the original Mondial 8 was designed by Pierangelo Andreani who just started working at Pininfarina with subsequent iterations redesigned by Leonardo Fioravanti, the designer with whom Ferrari had worked closely since 1951.
Chassis and body
Pininfarina's bodywork was manufactured by coachbuilder Carrozzeria Scaglietti. It used outer body panels fitted to a separate space-frame chassis of tubular box or oval-shaped steel sections. While most body panels are steel, the front lid and rear engine cover of the Mondial 8 and QV models are aluminium. Full-width aluminium louvre panels across the front lid and engine cover provide airflow through the front-mounted radiators and engine bay.Louvre grilles are located on each side of the vehicle just ahead of the rear wheels providing intake air to the engine on the right and on the left, providing air to an external oil cooler located ahead of the rear wheel arch. Louvres in the front polished aluminium grille provide airflow to the main radiator, supplied with coolant via alloy tubing running through the central chassis spine. A full-width black louvre panel is located below the rear bumper, accommodating an exhaust outlet to each side. Front and rear bumpers are black plastic on the Mondial 8 and QV, while the 3.2 and "t" models use integrated wrap-around glass-fibre panels finished in body colour.
The Mondial chassis features detachable sub-frames holding major mechanical assemblies, including one at the rear supporting the engine/transmission/rear suspension assembly, to simplify engine service compared to previous V8 Ferraris.
A forward-hinged lid covers a front compartment accommodating the spare tyre, radiators and cooling fans, battery, heating and cooling systems electric control systems. At the rear, a full-width, insulated and trimmed luggage boot with a gas-strut-supported lid sits behind the engine bay. Electrically actuated pop-up headlights contain twin round lamps in each for all 8, QV and 3.2 models, and a single homofocal rectangular unit each side of the Mondial t.
U.S. market models feature rectangular side turn-indicator lamps, front and rear.
Engine
All Mondials are fitted with a V8 engine deriving from Ferrari's original V8 powerplant released in the 1974 Ferrari 308 GT4.Mondial engines comprise a lightweight alloy V8 block with 90° bank-angle; shrink-fit cylinder liners; a five-bearing, flat-plane crankshaft with paired connecting rods on each journal; belt-driven, quad overhead camshafts acting directly on the valves; alloy crossflow cylinder heads; and a wet-sump lubrication system. Engine displacement started at for the Mondial 8 and QV models, increasing to for the Mondial 3.2, and culminating in for the Mondial t model. The orientation of the 3.4 V8 engine block is unique in Mondial t models. Mirroring the two-seater Ferrari V8 vehicles, all 3.0 and 3.2 L engines sit across the car with their crankshaft and cylinder planes transverse to the main vehicle axis. The 3.4 L engine in the Mondial t is rotated ninety degrees to a longitudinal orientation with respect to the car.
In the Mondial 8 the V8 employs two valves-per-cylinder, and this increases to four valves-per-cylinder for the Quattrovalvole QV and all later models. All models feature a cast-alloy intake housing nestled centrally above the engine "vee" with manifold tubing running directly to each cylinder. Marelli electronic ignition is used on all vehicles with the exception of the Mondial t, and comprises twin coils, a separate distributor run off each bank of cylinders, and a common electronic control module. Again excepting the Mondial t, fuel metering is via Bosch K Jetronic continuous fuel injection with lambda exhaust sensing. For the Mondial t, a Bosch Motronic 2.5 or 2.7 engine management system controls both the ignition and fuel metering functions. Exhaust gases on all models are collected via 4-2-1 systems fitted to the outside of each cylinder bank, flowing through a one or two catalytic converters to twin outlets each side of the rear panel.
| Engine code | Volume | Bore | Stroke | Power* | Torque* | Comp ratio | Max rpm | Years | Vehicle model | 0-60 mph | Source |
| F106B | at 6600 rpm | at 4600 rpm | 8.8:1 | 7700 | 1980–82 | Mondial 8 | 8.2 sec | Motor Trend 1981 | |||
| F105A | at 6800 rpm | at 5500 rpm | 8.6:1 | 7700 | 1982–85 | Mondial QV | 6.4 sec | Motor 1982 | |||
| F105C | at 7000 rpm | at 5500 rpm | 9.8:1 | 7700 | 1985–89 | Mondial 3.2 | 6.3 sec | Car and Driver 1987 | |||
| F119D or G | at 7200 rpm | at 4200 rpm | 10.4:1 | 7500 | 1989–93 | Mondial t | 5.6 sec | Autocar June 1992 |
- Power and torque figures quoted are for European versions
Transmission
A five-speed, all-indirect manual transmission using a "dog-leg" selector pattern was the only transmission offered. Instead of the conventional "H" shift pattern, this arrangement has 1st gear situated to the far left and back, behind reverse. This pattern has been popular with racing gearboxes, as it allows quicker, more direct shifts between 2nd and 3rd, and 4th and 5th, gears. The output from the final drive to the rear wheels is via a pair of short, solid drive shafts fitted with constant-velocity joints at each end to allow for suspension articulation.
For these models, clutch actuation is hydraulic, unlike their two-seater cousins' cable systems, and transmission selection is via a rod which extends through the centre chassis tunnel and passes through the engine sump into the transmission housing.
For the Mondial t, the engine and transmission were substantially reconfigured and their orientations rotated by ninety degrees to place the axes of both the engine crankshaft and the transmission input shafts parallel to the vehicle's longitudinal axis. The transmission and final-drive units form a combined transaxle arrangement fitted to the rear of the engine block, using a design originally derived from Ferrari's 312T Formula 1 car. Drive from the single-plate clutch enters the gearbox and is turned ninety degrees by bevel gears to the main transmission shafts which are aligned transverse to the vehicle. A parallel crownwheel with integral limited-slip action directs output torque to driveshafts with CV joints at each end. The clutch is hydraulically actuated, and gear selection is via cable operation.
in 1991, an "auto-clutch" option became available on the Mondial t, developed by French supplier Valeo. Essentially, this turned the transmission from a conventional manual into a clutchless manual. This system retained the conventional manual transmission mechanicals but replaced the normal clutch linkage mechanism with an electro-mechanical actuator, without a foot-operated clutch pedal. Clutch engagement and disengagement on the Valeo unit is triggered by the movement of the gear-lever, although the electronic control unit combines data from sources including engine, road-speed, and gear selection to warn against, or over-ride, attempted selections outside the specified operating limits.
Suspension and running gear
Although based on the two-seater vehicle designs, Mondials are slightly larger overall including having appreciably wider front and rear track dimensions. Suspension systems are fully independent all-round, comprising unequal-length upper and lower wishbones, coil-over damper units and anti-roll bars at each end of the vehicle. Mondial t vehicles include a driver-adjustable selector to set the electronically controlled damper units, providing three choices of ride-stiffness adjustment.Steering is a rack-and-pinion mechanism sitting ahead of the front wheels, unpowered on all 8, QV and 3.2 models. Hydraulic power-assistance was standard on the subsequent Mondial t model. Braking is via four-wheel ventilated disks with split-circuit vacuum assistance on all vehicles. Anti-lock braking was available as an option in 1987, and it was fitted as standard from 1988.
Wheels on all vehicles are of a five-spoke alloy design in a clear-lacquered finish. Two distinct patterns were used: the Mondial 8 and QV models have wheels with a flat centre and pronounced edges to the five spokes, whereas the 3.2 and t models' wheels have a convex centre and smoother, angled spokes. All wheels feature a yellow circular centre cap bearing Ferrari's black Cavallino Rampante rearing-horse logo.
Mondials until the late 1980s, including all 8 and QV models and many 3.2s, were originally fitted with Michelin TRX tyres of size 220/55 VR 390 front and 240/55 VR390 rear. TRX tyres require wheels with the proprietary TRX rim profile, meaning all vehicles fitted with such wheels could only utilise TRX-style tyres. Later 3.2 vehicles and the Mondial t reverted to industry-standard wheel designs of size 7x16 front and 8x16 rear, enabling a far wider range of tyre choices to suit the 205/55 VR16 front and 225/55 VR16 rear tyre specifications.