Is switching from a 458 Coupe to Spider worth it?

Agree 100% here, also the Spider suffers from body flex a bit too much for my liking where as the Italia feels rock solid.

 

+1

When you look back at the golden age of motoring, rich and sophisticated car owners drove convertibles, even when ragtops were not very reliable. And those people really knew how to enjoy life and had the means to do so. Automobiles with roofs for the rich were almost always driven by chauffeurs. Hardtop sports cars were not the classy thing to own. Hardtops are really products of modern city living (the grind), not products of carefree privileged lifestyle.

When people think about traversing the continent in style, they think of bright sunny days, hair flying in the wind and a convertible …not the dark cabin of a coupe.

IMO, unless maximum performance and solitary driving is all you are after, a convertible supercar should always be a basic necessity and the starting point if you like to drive and share the fun with passengers of both sexes. I could never fathom why people would prefer to skulk around inside a noisy claustrophobic cabin when they could instead feel the wind, the sun and share the same road noises and engine sounds that observers outside the car experience.

The internal sounds of a car are purely artificial as far as the world is concerned. Ever hear the sounds of your car when you fly through a tunnel - it sounds way better with the roof down.

There's a very simple reason why convertibles are offered even after so many coupe versions have already been sold - there is a big demand for them!

 

That’s it Michael.

I consider also that people who don't gives a damn for spiders probably never driven one in a summer sunset across the coast feeling sea air humidity entering in the cabin from everywhere. It's unique. Once you have it, you'll never want to lose it.

 

Miguel, you are soooo lucky to live in sunny beautiful Portugal.

 

Yes Michael. I am indeed.

But also you have Ontario and Erie Lakes to experience great convertible rides. Should also be amazing!

 

Sunrise over the lake, countryside sunsets stretched across the horizon are beautiful. Thanks, I do find nice places to drive here, even though it does take quite a bit more work!

 

Hence the question of it only costing an additional $30K.

You either have to trade in your 458 now and order a Spider for much later, trade in your car now and pay way over MSRP, or trade in your car when your spider comes in and lose value over the next 12-18 months.

In other words, you'll be paying a lot more than $30K for the difference. I heard there is a cheap green one for sale at Lamborghini Houston though

 

I don’t think 458 spider replacement arrives to US before end 2017 IMHO. First in Europe and even so never before end 2016.

 

I think you said you want a spider!

 

If you want the spider buy it, I did and its the best you can buy right now... Nothing comes close

 

i have had both. for me the 458 spider is completely superior to the coupe in every way as a road car. i don't track road cars and i am not super aggressive on the road. it is personal taste but i also feel the spider is much better looking. that being said i prefer my 355 spider stick over my 458 spider

 

Personally-speaking, I would not ever buy a first-year new model.

I would just be asking for headaches as new models are never fully-sorted. That's one bg reason why people will still buy the last-year models of cars about to be replaced. They are fully-matured, reliable and are available. For the 458 replacement I would factor in 2 extra years after the launch of the 458 replacement for it to be fully-sorted. So that means 2009 + 5 + 2 = 2016 and at least 2017 or 2018 for the spider.

Plus, you have to be in-line for a build.
Plus, they will all cost more and be MSRP+.

Personally, I think it's impractical to even consider waiting for the 458 replacement if you want a new car now and especially a 458-type spider. I think you'll be looking at waiting 4+ years for the next spider.

 

+458 well said

 

Do you like taking off and putting on the boot over the lowered top?

 

Happy motoring. Let us know what you think.

 

Any reason why you don't just use the door for the tender cord?

 

Afraid the door will mash/damage the cord. The window wants to go all the way up. Afraid to damage the window and/or the cord. Going thru the back window which does not want to automatically go up, no such worry.

On my 360 I had to use a thin extension cord so as not to damage the tender cord. It was only a two prong cord but with three prong adaptor worked well. Now I can use a heavy 3 prong ext cord with no worries.

 

If you pass the cord for the slot in passenger inferior door corner you can close the door without damage the cord.

 

+ Exactly right. The weather stripping conforms around the cord.

 

Just picked up my spider... 40 mile drive home. The car is soft and not as fast and solid feeling as my Italia was. Beautiful but thought it would drive a bit more like Italia, big difference. Glad I still have my scud! I don't get why it feels like power down. Just my initial observations.