Opinions on New California Purchase

Hello

First post here I think. New to Ferrari. Old to Porsche.

Hoping for your valuable feedback. This is what I am about to purchase:

2012 California (2012 production which is supposed to include the HP upgrade)

Exterior: Grigio Silverstone

Interior: Rosso (including the steering, dash, pillars & carpet) with contrasting stitch in exterior color

Wheels: 20" Sport Rims Diamond Finish

Rev Counter & Brake Calipers: Yellow


What do you think about this build?

I was going to buy a stock unit in Rosso Scuderia with Charcoal interior but walked away due to:

1. Love the Rosso Scuderia but not sure about Charcoal interior

2. It was 2011 production (wouldnt have the HP upgrade)

3. It seemed too late to pay sticker price for the 2011 production when a 2012 production could be had in a few weeks time

However, I keep getting haunted by the thought that I may miss not having bought my first Ferrari in red!

By the way I never bought a red Porsche. Never really liked red on any car. Only when I think Ferrari I feel Ferrari & red are always synonymous!

Thanks for your feedback!

PS Not willing to place a brand new order & wait few more months. Want to choose between these two cars.

 

Color is a personal choice...there are no shortage of unusual Ferrari combinations. Silverstone is a popular color, usually with black or cuoio, sometimes with bordeaux/burgendy or red. Personally I think the all red (dash/wheel/carpets/seats) might be an acquired taste and a tougher resale...but why listen to me. If you love it go for it, if not, why not wait a little longer and see what else comes up? One thing you didn't mention on the option list was magneride...many owners will tell you it's a must-have, including me.

 

There are no cars yet built with the extra 30hp for the USA market, Europe is getting the higher HP model before USA production starts later this year (no one is sure when USA spec cars will be begun to made at this point)

If it were me, I would order a car conditional upon it being the high HP model and be one of the first of the owners to have an update car

Ferraris are worth waiting a bit longer for

And as the owner of a magneride car, I vote that you get it, it's amazing

And shields, and 20 inch wheels

 

Sounds very nice! Contrast grey/red is great looking! I would get red calippers to match the interior.... I Would also get diamond stitch design on the seats.

 

More horsepower will be on the 2013 model year. We have a 2012 and it is the same power as previous years

 

I did inquire about Magneride with my dealer and was surprised to hear that they usually don't order that option. Since both are stock cars (Rosso already in stock and Grigio on the boat), they didn't order Magenride on any of those.

The demo I test drove was without Magneride and I did feel that something was missing. It's like I always want the PDCC (Porsche Dynamic Chasis Control) and PTV (Porsche Torque Vectoring) on any Porsche car. Without that something seems to be missing...

 

I'm sure if the cars in stock had magnaride the story from the salesman would be different

"of course it has magneride, it's a very popular option"

Or "try selling a car without magneride"

I just looked at your details and it looks like you are in the UAE, not the USA, so that might speed up delivery times

I do notice that "gulf" cars have the stupid looking front indicators in the bumpers, and if you get that I'm guessing you also get the different bumper internals like USA spec cars

But what remains to be seen is if the gulf cars get the new engine right away like Europe, or later like USA

I suggest you have a paper trail in writing so that if you do order a new car, you get what they represent

It is common for salespeople to tell you what you want to hear

 

I came from a 997.1 c2s to the Cali. It is a great all around car and much more suitable as a daily driver IMO. You did not mention Daytona seats or scuderia shields which some consider desirable options. I have the 20 inch diamond finish rims, fully electric and heated seats which are useful at night with top down and front sensors.

 

And sport chrono

 

I agree with the others about color and getting commitments on the added HP if you order a new one. Whatever you do, buy only what you really like, as it doesn't really matter much what we think, and it's an expensive car no matter what. As for options, consider your use of the car, as well as the next owner's. If used as a GT as intended, you may find wanting options on this car that many others would pass on w/r/t the mid-rear engine cars like the 458, such as cruise control.

Personally, in keeping with the GT mission/character of the car (and making sure I could easily re-sell it), if ordering a car special, I would go for cruise control, Daytona style seats or diamond, depending on your preference, both with the full electric option, which gives you seat heating and driving position memory (standard electric seats only give you electric adjustment, but no heating or memory), iPod integration, Scuderia Shields, Magnaride Suspension, 20" Diamond Finish Wheels, rear seats (not package shelf), Homelink (which at a minimum, also gives you an electrochromatic mirror - there is an option that for more money, gives you that plus electrochromatic outside mirrors) and rear camera (handy for parallel parking, but if you never or almost never do that, I can see doing without it).

Having driven both cars with and without Magnaride, I'd say it's definitely worth getting. The comfort setting rides better without handling sacrifice as compared to non-Magnaride, and the sport setting handles better.

Then, I would consider the following a plus, but not a "necessity": LED Steering wheel (though I have to admit, that's a very cool option), yellow tachometer (actually the stock black one is fine; I've seen the red one and don't like it as much as black), AFS lights (really only valuable if you drive poorly lit backroads at night), yellow brake calipers (or whatever other color you prefer).

The other options are almost pure personal preference and budget, such as the carbon fiber options, extra leather (on A-pillars, console, etc.), stitching colors, piping, etc. The most ridiculous "personal preference" option on the list (in my view) is the "dedication plate" at $5567, which gives you a silver plate mounted in the car inscribed with your name on it (I have no idea where they put the plate).

I also thought about and got, a stereo upgrade on this car, though I probably wouldn't have bothered on a more single-purposed car like a 458/430/360. As you will probably read from other threads, most people don't think the Ferrari hi-fi upgrade (at >$5k) is worth the money, and I went aftermarket for that on my car (for less than the cost of the hi-fi option).

As to buy now vs. order, I didn't really have the patience to wait, either (spring is coming, life is short, Mayan calendar re 12/21 (!), etc.), and I got a good deal on a very lightly used '11 that had most of the options I wanted, in the colors I preferred, so I went for it. Good luck and post pics when you get your car!

 

Need4speeds post above is one of the best I have seen on here for a long time

I couldn't agree more with virtually everything he wrote

And his suggested spec matches my cars spec almost to the letter

Need4speed could be renamed yoda he is wise beyond his years

 

+1.
I wish I had read your post before ordering mine. It's a very logical way of prioritizing the myriad options choices!

 

Thanks for the feedback!

I have written to my sales advisor. Some excerpts of my email:

"

I've been researching the car more & more and have some specific queries:

1. Does this car have Magneride?

2. What exactly is Magneride? I couldn't really find a good official description anywhere but this feature highly recommended by California owners

3. Is there a catalog or ordering guide which gives a good description of the standard specifications and options?

4. What are the exact changes for the 2012 production? Again, some press release here and there over the net but haven't really found a good description or list of all the changes.

I thought it would be best to just seek this information from the right source i.e. authorized dealer.

"


I will let you guys know their response.

By the way, conceptually speaking, is Magneride in California like a combination of Sports Chrono Package & Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) in Porsche? The former changes the engine response and the latter the suspension setting.

 

I don't know of a catalog, but you can visit the Ferrari official site and use their "build your car" feature. No prices, though, and there isn't a lot of info on exactly what each option features.

MagneRide (I originally spelled it incorrectly with an "a") is a brand name for a magnetorheological damper system utilizing fluid that is responsive to changes in electromagnetic field. This allows on-the-fly changes to damping characteristics (in milliseconds). Yes, it was developed by Delphi (of General Motors); in the US, there's this rather annoying TV commercial showing a 458 following a Cadillac around a race course, boasting that the Ferrari got its technology from Cadillac. I will credit GM/Delphi, though - clever invention.

http://www.automobilesreview.com/auto-news/delphi-technologies-keep-new-ferrari-california-cool-wired-and-smooth/6539/

And thanks for the kudos, guys. I did a bunch of this research for my own situation and just wanted to share, as it wasn't easy to put this all together.
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Thanks everyone, especially Need4Spd for your valuable feedback

I have been back & forth to the dealer. They stressed that no more than 3 or 4 Californias were ever sold with Magneride from their dealership. Their customers are simply not asking for this feature, they stressed.

I told them that my Cayenne Turbo with PDCC and PTV feels more sporty compared to the California I drove without Magneride.

I test drove a California with update. Couldn't really feel the 30hp power difference.

My only reservation was the steering & suspension were too soft even in curves/turns. This was a major disappointment. I have four other cars, two of which are SUVs, and all have change in steering feel (harder) on curves. Not sure if I would be happy with a Ferrari that has a steering that feels so numb as I;m looking to enjoy the car not just show off the shields.

Perhaps I need to get the Handling Package but my dealer feels there's not much difference in the steering feel and the wait will be a few months.

Perhaps I need to test drive the 458 and 599 - which will hopefully be tomorrow - to discover another Ferrari that is more suitable for me or just reinforce my choice of the California.

Dont get me wrong I never tracked any of my cars and I am usually driving in casual mode. It's just that sometimes I want to approach an exit/curve and need the car have not too much body roll & stick to the road confidently. That brings a few moments of priceless smile to be cherished.

Perhaps the California is actually great at doing that but I just need to let the steering feel grow on me.

 

The car i've booked will be exactly like this Nero but will Griogio Silverstone exterior.

Wheels, calipers, etc. everything stays the same as this car

This one just arrived and the customer decided to order a red one so its available...hmmm
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I don't find the steering "numb" at all. Remember the car is almost perfectly 50/50 balanced. I definitely get steering feedback (i.e. stiffer ) when entering a turn at 45mph.
The suspension without magenride is dialed in at 50% which probably can seem too soft.

 

I agree. No teeming numbers whatsoever.

I have a 2011 Cayenne Turbo with sport package, SportDesign steering and a 2012 Cayenne Turbo with the same. The steering feedback on both of those is, at best similar and at worst slightly less than my California.

Now, my California has Magneride. I, for one, don't care if anyone else specs it. I think it is brilliant.

Cheers!

J

 

Jason, glad to hear you found out your car has Magneride. Why wasn't it listed separately as an option?

 

Only the first 13 options are listed on the sticker, don't know how Ferrari chooses which ones, probably alphabetically?

 

From my point of view the magnaride makes a HUGE difference in making the suspension a lot stiffer when you want. To be honest it is so good though that I barely use comfort mode anymore even when driving in London.

As for the test drive with the extra 30bhp are you sure it really was? From what I understand from Ferrari in Italy not a single "upgraded" car has left the factory yet....

 

First deliveries of new 2012 model upgraded bhp will be in next 2 weeks to UK.

 

I am not sure why it is not listed.

I agree with the usability of it. I leave mine in Sport almost all the time.

J

 

Seems like all the votes are in favor of Magneride. I might have to wait it out - that's the difficult part.

Regarding being sure whether the car I drove on Thursday has the extra 30hp, I can only go by what my dealer is telling me. Is there another way to tell by looking at the car?

My dealer made me do the test drive on this particular car due to the car being extra 30bhp so I don't see the point in their misleading me. In fact, to be fair, it was my sales advisor who mentioned the update to me during my first meeting few weeks back. They could've easily sold me the 2011 production without mentioning a word of the 2012 update if they wanted to mislead me.

I did check the navigation carefully and went through the settings to make the map settings from 2D to 3D. I think the 3D maps as well as Bluetooth Audio are all part of the update?

 

3D Nav is on all the 2012s, but not Bluetooth audio, just phone connectivity.