Advice on spec'ing 488 interior - leather/alcantara

My Speciale is Grigio Ferro, and I love it. Great decision on the exterior.

If it were me, I'd go all black with the interior. But either way, would definitely do the Leather/Alcantara option. It has a fantastic feel - luxe but racy, all at the same time.

Will be a beautiful car, congrats.

 

Nice spec. Very elegant and yet very sharp. I would stick with all leather. I'll be honest, I've never settled on liking Alcantara. I like it for small trim areas (like the lining of storage spot of the central tunnel), but that's really it. One other often overlooked option is CTU3, which was added earlier in 2016. It is including leather in the lower tunnel and the very lower rear shelf behind the seats (which is normally carpet)

 

I love (and have) the alcantara inserts on my 488; had the door inserts on my 458 but i would not get the door again; Instead I would do alcantara seat inserts, ceiling & a-pillars and keep the door in leather.

 

Looks very nice. I don't like the colored lower dash though. Detracts from the seats.

 

I have a grigio titanio aperta with all alcantara interior - blu scurro and cuoio and blue carbon - have had the cuoio protected and have had zero issues so far after 5,000km or so of driving. a couple of pics attached.
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Unfortunately, there are limitless combinations.
I can tell you what I have done on my previous cars and what I might do differently if I were speccing again.
First, the black carpets set off the seats. So, I would recommend doing the "carpet" in black alcantara and letting it run up the back wall. In my 458 I have beige race seats with black carpets but did the back wall in beige leather as an extra comp option. While it does look good/finished, it does not let the seats "pop" off the contrast black would have provided. The reason I am recommending the black alcantara carpets is that the regular carpet quality in a Ferrari is a disgrace and you get the back wall included in the alcantara carpet option.
In regards to the alcantara seat centers, not a ? of right/wrong: leather looks richer and alcantara sportier IMO. I have heard people say alcantara fades and I have heard that it holds color better! Why the difference in opinion, I have no idea. I did do an alcantara headliner for contrast and as I have a spider I thought alcantara would handle the heat better. I was afraid of the leather shrinking/getting discolored more than the alcantara from the heat. 4 years in, alcantara headliner looks new.
I had to do an extra comp charge to split upper/lower dash into black/beige. I would definitely split the dash as you have specced and not do all black.
In regards to stitching, I would do all stiching in same or go for beige chiarro. It looks great against black AND the cuoio. 2 of my buddies have done this with cuoio and neither has any complaints.
Any thought of cavallino being embossed or stitched?
Any thought of central seat stripe in contrast color?
Great spec and best of luck.
Randy

 

Looks great!

A couple of comments:

Myself, I would do the stitching on the dash and binnacle cover in black, so it doesn't reflect up in the windshield (I can't quite tell if you've already done that in the photos or not).

Have you tried the Cavallino on the seats in silver or black or yellow? That might give a nice, subtle accent.

I don't have too much experience with the yellow tach. However, on my 458 I have a white tach face and really love it. The white changes to black at night (with the lights on). I, myself, specifically avoided cars with a yellow tach because it appeared to me that (at night) it took on a strange yellowish color that I didn't care for. If I had to spec a car now, I would probably do a black tachometer or a white one.

Instead of the cuoio, have you considered the slightly darker Terra Bruciata color? It might be too dark for your exterior color, but it's a bit richer feeling than the Cuoio (which everyone goes with usually). I'll attach a couple photos from a car I was recently considering that had that color - wow, it was a show stopper!

Diamond stitching on the head liner, etc. is a nice touch...

I have the stock stereo in my 458. In a Toyota I recently purchased for my girlfriend to drive, I have the JBL - the difference in sound quality is very noticeable. If I had it to do over again, I would definitely get the JBL in the Ferrari.

As far as leather and alcantara.. I have that in my 458 and really like it. Alcantara has a very nice feel to it. I'm actually changing my dashboard over from leather to Alcantara, since it looks nicer up there than leather (in my opinion). On the door panel, I think it would be fine too. I have it on the top and bottom of my steering wheel and it gives a very warm touch.

Get the large racing seats, those Italians are thin!

Ray
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Love the color combo. Don't do the alcantara. Leather looks so much better.

 

Yes, you must get the upgraded Hi-Fi. It's actually quite alright in the 488.

Rear wall should be kept Cuoio, keeps the flow of the color contrast with the lower dash, doors and seats.

I love alcantara, holds you better and better feel IMO. Just keep it maintaned. Why not try the alcantara seat centers in black/charcoal?

On a side note. I can't quite tell from the photos, it looks like you have but incase you haven't; I would have a look at contrast stitching, either nero/charcoal/grigio/similar to match the look of the car. Same goes with the Cavallino. Glare from the dash is mostly a non-issue, never has been for me. Furthermore I would spec the brakelight surrounds in CF, ludicrously priced option for two bits of CF, but leaving them in the standard plastic looks nothing other than cheap and unfinished - this willl be highlighted sat to such a high spec interior. Would treat the rear fog light similarly if you haven't already - as it looks like you've opted for the CF side sill.

Congratulations! Beautifully specced car.

 

I did alcantara headliner and I am SOOOOOOOO glad I did!!!!

 

Heres mine

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Have you ever driven your car in the daylight?

Contrasting stitching reflects like a mother. It's practically like a heads up display on a helicopter when it's sunny/bright outside.

I actually used to have a video on youtube showing my friend how bad it was.

On an overcast day, it's not so bad. However, when the sun is out, it's quite noticeable in my experience. I'm recovering my dash in alcantara and changing over to black stitching also, just for this reason. After my experience with contrasting stitching up on the dash, I would never spec a car out with anything but black stitching on the upper dash area.

Ray

 

If you want to leave the colors as is, Id recommend black horses and the black stripe in the seat center

 

I was going to suggest the black stripe in the center of the seats also. Not sure if it would look too busy or not

Ray

 

I think it breaks it nice if its black. The seat look as if there is too much brown. Also reflects well to the dashboard black/brown mix. The seat stripe is not an expensive option either

 

Go for Iroko, best brown shade on catalogue IMHO

 

I'll third this opinion, a black center stripe with a black cavallino on the head rest would make this a pretty much perfect spec imo.
I love the split dash in black/cuoio as it really ties it all together with the doors and seats.

 

Ray,

I didn't say I didn't notice it - you definitively do. Case in point, yellow stitching on a black alcantara interior. I said it has never been an issue for me. Every man speaks for himself, based on my experience I believe the issue of glare is somewhat over exaggerated.

 

I had a 2013 Italia with an all cuoio interior. The seats were Daytonas, and I used cuoio alcantara Daytona inserts (just the small horizontal inserts) in the leather seats. It was a subtle effect, and I really liked it. The wear on the alcantara was no problem. I also had a cuoio alcantara headliner, and an insert in the console was alcantara.

I prefer the alcantara as an accent item, rather than for large surfaces.

 

In previous cars I'd had all leather interiors and decided to give alcantara a try for my Aperta. Best thing I've done - the color pops more than the leather (did numerous comparisons at the atelier) and to me the seats are more grippy and cooler in hot weather. I've had the car 11 months and the interior is still like new after a decent amount of miles and lots of top down driving. So my vote would be alcantara.

 

you really can't go wrong either way, get what you think fits your style.
i did Alcantara in the 458 & all leather in the 488
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Some thoughts:

Very sharp spec! Love GF and Cuoio. I also think the alcantara and leather gives you a sporty and luxurious feel.

Exterior:
* You might want to consider the side vent intake splitter/ blade in black. I'm not sure this would be an improvement, but it's just something that's gone through my head as worthy of consideration.

Interior:
* Contrasting stitching? I can't tell from the pics. There are some who are more and some who are less sensitive to contrast stitch on the dash. It doesn't bother me at all but its something to be aware of. And the style of contrast stitch is really a personal choice. I like the look, I think its sporty, but your interior works both ways. A suggestion for your color combo would be Grigio Chiaro. Its a little brighter then beige and darker/ more tan/ than white. I think it would give you a nice "tailored" look and also I think it would match the grey weave in the CF.

* I would also suggest a leather insert for the center "stripe" on the seats. You can do it in Cuoio or another color. I think it might look sharp in black. The black will help tie the seats to the rest of the interior visually. Or if you stick with Cuoio then having this in leather will supposedly help the seat material wear better. I was told this by someone at the factory when I did my car.

* If you go with a black stripe on the seats I would then suggest the Prancing Horse on the headrest in black to match. If not keep it simple and Cuoio.

* I used to like the tach in yellow, but in this current generation of cars I think either black or white looks best and with your spec I would suggest black. Yellow works fine in your interior though and its not as obvious from the outside as on the 360/430 generation.

* I like the alcantara on the door inserts. It adds warmth to the interior.

* I think with your interior I would stick with black leather on the a-pillars and headliner. I usually like alcantara here but I don't think you should do too much alcantara.

* A fun touch could be to ask them to do the area behind the steering wheel in black alcantara.

* Another fun touch could be to get the liner material that is under the central tunnel (PS, R, Auto buttons) in Cuoio either leather or alcantara, I'd go for alcantara. Along with the little padded areas on the side of the center console - if you look its about where your knees would go.

* I would have them do the entire footwell area in black alcantara.

* Definitely get a set of carpets in black alcantara, they can put a leather binding on it and along the outside they can give you a leather "tab". At the top of this you can have them do a Prancing Horse in either Grigio Chiaro if you use that or then in Cuoio if you don't. I would get two sets of carpets made, one in alcantara and one in standard, but in matching style.

* I note the speaker grills on the doors are black. I'm not sure if it would be better in Cuoio color but be aware they can match the grills, its just will cost extra.

* Small item, but I notice in the pictures that they show metal accents on the door, whereas everywhere else the metal accents are replaced by CF. I would see if they can do those in CF as well.

Very handsome spec you have and I think you will really enjoy the car.

Oh, on the hi-fi, I haven't really listened to it in the 488 so I am giving you my general advice on these things: If playing back music matters to you then get it. I've done aftermarket audio in my F cars and while its a fun project, I have found going aftermarket will usually cost 1.5-2.5x as much as the factory hi-fi option. The aftermarket results can be better, but there is diminishing returns inside a Ferrari (road/engine noise/ compromised acoustics). While its not likely to uncover problems, there is always the risk of unwanted headaches when doing this kind of work. Therefore, if there is the chance you might regret skipping the hi-fi, I say you are better off just getting it direct from Ferrari.

I hope you find these thoughts useful.

 

John, Absolutely beautiful 488 interior; it that the new Ferrari beige tradizione interior?
Just curious why you chose black center stripe and horse vs red. Thanks, Al