1st 100 miles with my new 458 Italia

So, after a 5 month wait from order time, I have spent my first full day with my new 458 Italia. This is my first new Ferrari, my previous car was a 2006 F430 3 Pedal that I bought in September 2011 and drove for 8,000 miles.

Some background: My daily driver is a 2008 Porsche Cayman S, my track car is a Lotus Exige cup 255. I do about 40 -50 track days per year and instruct with Porsche club and other groups.

Previous cars have included a 997.2 GT3 (50+ track days as well as about 2,500 street miles), a 997.1 C2S, and a BMW E46 M3. All my cars up until the 458 have been a traditional manual transmission.

I thought I might share my impressions of the differences between the 458 and the F430.


First, the controversial stuff:

Steering wheel controls

I tend to drive my street cars the same way as my track caars: Forward seating position, and hands at 3 and 9 O' clock on the wheel. I will turn the wheel a little past 90 degrees with both hands, and use shuffle steering if I need to go further. My impression is that the car was brilliantly designed for this sort of driving. With my hands in my normal track position, I can operate the turn signals and horns with my thumbs. The horn is in the same position as it was on the F430, which, in my opinion, is superior to any other car. Think about it, the last thing you might do before an impact on a street car is hit the horn; with the superior Ferrari scheme, your palms are not pressing down on the airbag chamber!

The turn signals make perfect sense, and, while different, I believe are also superior to the traditional stalk control. As long as you signal BEFORE you turn the wheel, there is no way to confuse this. This is as it should be, signaling should take place before the turn commences.

If I move my fingers down, I get the Manitino in the same location where it was in the F430, so that seems comfortable to me. I tend to use it a lot, as I like to tailor the car to the conditions. On the left side, I can easily slide my thumb down on the shock decouple button. I am learning this button, but it seems brilliant, as I can adjust the suspension to respond to road conditions. I have not used the high beam switch much, but it makes sense. I have not had occasion at all to use the wind shield wipers, I suspect that many Ferrari owners drive the car for years and never do!

So, in my opinion, the steering wheel is a great success. It's different, so we tend to be less comfortable at first, but I suspect that it is superior and clearly brings a more logical approach to controlling the car.


Next, the DTC transmission. This is where I thought I might have the longest adjustment curve, and I was correct. When I first got into the car, it was similar enough to my old F430 that I reached for the place where the gear selector would be to pop it in neutral. Muscle memory I guess.

I also find I try to step on the clutch to start the car, but that is going away rapidly. I have to actively think about shifting the paddles, where I have been driving a conventional manual for so long that I do it without thinking. So in that respect, I am not adjusted to the car.

Now the most interesting thing, and I think the part that is most satisfying: To my brain/butt, the car feels as if it is a manual transmission. I feel that direct connection in the drive train, it does not feel like a conventional Automatic. I do not know if that is programming or mechanics, but I am very pleased with this. It feels like I have a manual box but someone (or I should say something) is operating the clutch and gear selector for me.

After 100 miles, I can say that I am smoothing out and learning the transmission, but I would still be smoother with my 3 pedal. I believe that the transmission senses how fast I pull the paddle, and smooth shifts (especially downshifts) seem to take a more leisurely pull of the paddle. I also find that it downshifts best under braking, and using the same shift points and gears that I would have used in the F430 yields the best results.

So, in my opinion, fears about not having involvement or manual control over the transmission are not warranted. Of course, you can be lazy and put it in Auto, and I did that today when I got a few work phone calls that required some mental energy. To be honest, I was glad for the Auto mode at that point, but I would not use it in most situations as it upshifts very early.

The car clearly is much, much quicker than my old F430. So much so, that I am slowly working up to it. This is unusual for me, as I have hundreds of track days and usually don't need much time to acclimate. The closest thing I have driven on track in terms of power to weight and acceleration is a Radical SR3, and I think the 458 has more straight line performance.

The steering seems quicker and a little lighter than the F430; given that the tires are still not "broken in" I am being careful about the grip levels. I will work up to this and report back, but the car responds well to proper weight management and it's easy to modulate weight transfer with throttle as long as I am not in the upper reaches of the power band. I am not acclimated to the car yet to be able to trust the grip levels at higher rpm settings, so I tend to take corners at a lower than normal rpm to allow me more margin of safety. (Yes, I am sure the electronic aids would probably prevent me from getting the rear out to far, but I prefer to try to manage that myself. Old habit from the race track.)

The car sounds quieter than my F430, until the exhaust valves open up; then I get that familiar flat plane crank song we all love.

The electronic systems in this car are clearly orders of magnitudes more advanced than the previous generation: The infotainment system ( I have iPod and sat radio, but no Nav) works well. The owners manual does not give any details on the system and the little "quick guide" gives only general concepts. Ferrari should give us a detailed infotainment manual.

The screens are clear and legible both day and night, but the display dimming level does not seem to control the Tach, and the tach is distractingly bright to my eyes at night. I tend to like my gauges turned down as low as possible as night, my 47 year old eyes need all the help in night vision that they can get and the Tach is a distraction at night.

Automatic headlights, and electro chromatic mirrors help to bring this car into the modern era.

The parking brake is also brilliant, it just works when I need it to, with no intervention. Again, muscle memory seems to have me reaching for the non existent e-brake lever, but I am adapting fast.


This is also my first experience with Carbon Ceramic brakes, as I track guy, I prefer steel. When you replace brake pads every 4 track days and rotors every 9 days, steel brakes are the only way to go. I was concerned about the initial bite when cold, as I had read this can be an issue. On my car, the brakes grab smoothly and predictably. My dealer said they bed them in as part of pre-delivery prep.

Overall, the build quality of this car seems improved over the F430. It seems solid and I have no rattles or squeaks in the interior. The doors work smoothly and are balanced a little heavier than those of the F430.

The car is going in tomorrow for a full paint correction, I asked the dealer not to detail the car as part of prep, so I will post more pictures when I get it back. Dave Saunders of Street Dreams will handle that for me, and he will apply the 22PLE coating as well.

Enclosed are a few shots from my friend Matt, I will do a more detailed photo shoot when I get the car back. I am headed to VIR this weekend, so I won't have the 458 back until early next week.

Overall, I am really loving this car, it's a huge step up from the F430.

Cheers,

Ron
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This one is going on the street only. At this point, I really want harnesses and proper seats, and the groups I run with require fire extinguishers.

It's not fun for me to track an expensive street car, too much worry about damage.

 

Your are correct, but, unfortunately this does not seem to be the case with cars coming out of the factory these days. It's been discussed here a few times, so I don't want to turn this thread into another "Ferrari paint sucks" thread.

Here are some pictures of it in process from the detailer.

Best,

Ron
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PM Sent.