It is no surprise that the latest mid engine offering from Maranello has caught the attention of the motoring press with its dramatic new styling and revolutionary 4.5 Liter V8 engine equipped with a traditional flat style crankshaft that giving the new super car Ferrari's signature top end bark producing 570 HP at an astonishingly high 9000 RPM. Tipping the scales at just over 3000 pounds, the new Ferrari 458 Italia will rocket from 0 to 60 MPH in just 3.4 seconds and won’t stop until it reaches a top speed of 202 MPH. For these reasons and a whole lot more, the BBC's crack team of automotive scrupulators from Top Gear have selected the all new Italia as their car of the year for 2009.

The 458->ke3479 was unveiled earlier this year at the Frankfurt Motor Show and it should arrive in showrooms here in the U.S. by the beginning of next summer. In reference as to why the Italia was chosen as the 2009 Top Gear car of the year, responses ranged from the 458 being “a game changing car” and “the new benchmark in getting from A to B as rapidly as possible” to being chosen as “our winner because the scope of its abilities is absolutely breathtaking” and that it “isn’t just a worthy winner, it’s off the scale!” We couldn't agree more.

Press release after the jump.

PRESS RELEASE

“Car of the Year” and “Supercar of the Year” Awards

The Ferrari 458 Italia has scooped two prestigious awards from BBC Top Gear Magazine, one of the world’s most influential automotive magazines. Not only did the British monthly nominate the 458 Italia “Supercar of the Year”, but also, for the very first time for a Ferrari, the coveted title of “Car of the Year”. This brings Ferrari’s tally of consecutive BBC Top Gear Magazine awards to the astonishing figure of eight in seven years.

The Ferrari 458 Italia was revealed at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September to immediate critical acclaim. Following an extensive international media test drive programme in Maranello, the home of the fabled Prancing Horse, the car has been the subject of enthusiastic reviews, with its handling, roadholding, ride comfort and performance all being subject to the kind of superlatives rarely seen from the world’s leading journalists.

In electing the Ferrari 458 Italia as their Supercar of the Year, BBC Top Gear Magazine underlined how it has established “the new benchmark in getting from A to B as rapidly as possible.” They also described the 570-hp V8-engined berlinetta as “a game-changing car.”

When nominating the car for the overall top award as Car of the Year, the magazine described how it became “our winner because the scope of its abilities is absolutely breathtaking”, concluding that the Ferrari 458 Italia “isn’t just a worthy winner, it’s off the scale!”