CHRIS HARRIS ON CARS - Car of the Year 2014

Different strokes for different folks I guess. To me the Italia is too plain and has no sense of Exotica. From the moment I first saw the Speciale I had to have it. All those gills, fins and scoops are what make it spectacular. And certainly not to be confused with a tuner.

 

My exact thoughts!!!!

 

+ 458

 

+ Speciale! You sum up my thoughts better than I can write them...lol!

 

Another +458 here!!
And as Chris Harris's closing statement on the Speciale (not the exact quote, but something along these lines) where does Ferrari possibly go from here, the car is perfect!

 

It would be nice to have both, but then they are not different enough.[/QUOTE]

IMO too, the Italia is more elegant. That's why I was sure to keep the Italia and not to buy a Speciale for a certain time. But after driving both Italia and Speciale in Hockenheim I understood, why the Speciale has to be an aggressive version of the Italia. Al this fins etc. make sense, because the car is so more competitive.
Same thing with the choice between Italia and Spider. Do you prefer to see the motor or to hear it?
Finally, after buying the SpecialeA the only possible solution was to keep the Italia too!

 

With respect, this sounds like nonsense to me. Those two photos are very different - the lighting is markedly different, which assists the appearance of the standard 458. If you use different pictures you get a very different result...
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And the two cars are not exactly similar to drive I can assure you
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I for one didn't like the first images of the speciale. I thought it was ugly. Yes, ugly. But it grew on me as I looked at it. Then... I heard that you have to see it in real life to really get the nuances. Well I was in italy when I saw my first Speciale... and it was breathtaking. I would say beautiful. It is extreme... but beautiful... To me. That's the key. To my subjective evaluation of beauty. I look at the italia now and view it as a bit dated... but still a very nice looking car. I currently own a Speciale. I love her.
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Agree (mostly) completely. I didn't think the Speciale was ugly when I saw the first pictures, but I was disappointed. I really did not like the front end at all. I wasn't sure about the side fins. But seeing it in person changed all that....pictures flatten the car out. In person it's fantastic, you can see all the curves and angles. I still think the Italia is a great looking car...I always have from the time I saw the first pics. But IMO in comparison to the Speciale it looks a bit bland. And the Speciale has much more presence. Ferrari absolutely nailed it with every aspect of the car.

 

I would say the car is not photogenic You know... there are people that are knockouts in person but in pictures just ho hum? I mean, yeah there are people that are both... but hey.

 

And then there are those of us that are equally unattractive on film or in person....

 

l was so attracted by the Speciale when I first saw it. It had all the cues that would make a car enthusiast drool - the vents, the gills .... The details fascinated me, but I realized the car taken a whole was not cohesive aesthetically to me. Both cars are spectacular, so ultimately it is simply taste. Maybe one is Grace Kelly, the other Beyonce. The lucky fellow here is the one with both cars (and in both open & coupe versions!). How lucky is that?

 

Speciale is god !

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I would say Speciale is curvaceous Beyonce with tattoos all over her body. That kind of girl is fire, but you are now willing to take her out on fancy parties and places

You just want to keep her in room and ba*g s*it out of her for whole night

 

Crazy no mclaren anywhere in this video lol

 

Wouldn't surprise me if CH tried to get his hands on a P1. He said on the GRRC site that the P1 would be his choice of the three. Pretty sure the 918 is in this test to redeem some lost glory from those initial tests - which it succesfully did.