THE FAMILY MAN’S FERRARI
Hard-working movie and TV actor, devoted husband and dad, and passionate lover of the Prancing Horse, Alex Fong takes a drive in the fabulous yet super-practical GTC4Lusso T
to call alex fong hard-working is an understatement. In a career spanning around three decades, the actor – famed for his portrayals of good guys such as policemen and firemen – has appeared in countless movies and TV series in Hong Kong and China, and though now he’s reached his mid-50s, the youthful, trim and stylish Fong shows no sign of slowing down.
That’s not only because the once-archetypal bachelor is now a devoted husband and father, to wife Hoyan and 10-year-old daughter Ka-ching. It’s also because Fong nurtures a passion that’s consumed him since his teens: he’s crazy about cars – and in particular he’s mad about Ferraris.
“I’ve just come back from summer holiday in Europe with my family and as soon I got back I started work again. I’ve got to work, otherwise I can’t afford to buy my Ferraris!” he says, laughing.
“A supercar is a big toy for guys,” explains Fong, who grew up in Macau and as a boy must have seen more than his fair share of fast cars. “I really fell in love with cars when I was about 14 or 15, and I
“IT’S A FERRARI YOU CAN DRIVE EVERY DAY, WHICH MEANS IT’S GREAT FOR ME AND MY FAMILY”
started to read car magazines. I first drove my father’s car and then when I came to Hong Kong I bought a second-hand sports car for myself.”
Fong got his first Ferrari – a mid-engine 360 – in 2003. “Now,” he says, “I have a 488 and next year I’m getting a Pista” – the fabulous track-focussed version of the “regular” 488 GTB that the Italian car-maker unveiled around six months ago.
He loves driving his two-seat 488 – “sometimes,” he says, “I even drive my Ferrari to the wet market” – but he readily admits it’s hardly the car for family use. So today, he’s at the wheel of a GTC4Lusso T, the Ferrari that combines the best of supercar, grand tourer and everyday family transport in one single astonishing automobile.
Fong is clearly impressed, because the shootingbrake-style Lusso T not only boasts the incendiary speed, razor-sharp handling and sleek profile that are synonymous with the cars that wear the cavallino rampante badge. It also has space in abundance – in fact, its luxurious cabin is roomy enough to carry four full-size passengers in comfort.
“When you look at the GTC4Lusso T,” he says, “it’s obviously a Ferrari and it immediately makes you think ‘supercar’. In fact, its 4-litre turbo V8 engine is very similar to the one in the 488, which really is a supercar, so it has incredible acceleration. There’s rear-wheel steering, too, so it’s really manoeuvrable and as exciting to drive as a Ferrari should be.
“But as the Lusso T also has four seats and an incredible chassis, it’s very comfortable to ride in. It’s practical and convenient, too, because there’s plenty of space for my luggage whenever I have to fly off to China for work.
“The GTC4Lusso T is very user-friendly and not so heavy on gasoline,” Fong adds. “It’s definitely a car you can drive every day, which means it’s great for me and my family.
“So as I now need to buy another Ferrari I’m going to have to work even harder!”