1 month ownership of the Ferrari Roma

Hello all,

Thought it was time to talk about my experience with the Roma after one month of ownership.

I've done 1250 kms/800 miles in this time, and plan to do a very long trip through the south of France and Italian coast in a few weeks.

I've spent quite a bit of time tweaking the various configurations, very time consuming given that I've basically had every system related option fitted in the car.

So here we go:

The Good

As an overall GT/ DD/ sports car combination I struggle to find anything anywhere near the quality of the Roma in the market today. Maybe the 911 Turbo S which lacks all the raw passion and motion, but adds german precision and logic, can be a viable alternative. Or the Continental GT which doubles on the luxury but halves on the sportiness and performance. But for anyone that has beauty as a core value in life and lusts after raw passionate performance, the Roma is the only game in town.

The engine is both smooth when you need it and explosive when you want it. No turbo lag, just immediate delivery even in Comfort mode. The chassis is perfectly balanced, no body roll, no understeer when cornering hard, almost impossible to tell that it is front engine given the ballerina like dynamics. The e-diff allows you to have controlled fun in a way that makes you feel like an action star.

The interior screams luxury. The metal tidbits are beautifully polished and feel wonderful and cold to the touch. Initially I suspected they were cheap chrome plastic, but no, it's real metal. the leather and stitching are top notch.

The infotainment was a big surprise. I watched and read many reviews complaining about it, but after 1 month of almost daily use I must say it is sublime with tons of useful functionalities with or without Apple CarPlay. The fact that you can expand navigation to fill the whole screen is priceless and just helps you feel relaxed and under control in long journeys. The dynamic driver assist features increase that feeling. The premium sound system coupled with the amazing sound insolation allows you to feel like you are in a very special place.

The Bad

After the 1st week the Roma was called in for a system update. It drastically improved the infotainment responsiveness, but is still not immediate . It's ok, and not a problem in terms of usability. But it's not super smooth.

The central console looks... not right. I like the functionality and I have nothing against the fact that it replaces what would normally be physical AC controls. But the way it's just inserted in makes it look like a foreign object and not well integrated with the rest of the interior. The fact that the rest of the interior is perfectly designed makes it look even weirder.

The engine sound is too loud ... for me. I understand that for most people they will actually enjoy that the Roma produces such a wild scream, and it's obvious that Ferrari did a 180 when the first reviews complained about the muted sound of the engine. But personally, i would've preferred a more subdued note. But again, most people will probably be thankful that Ferrari did a U-turn on this.

The Ugly

I haven't found anything that I hated in the Roma so far. If pressed, I might say that the back seats are essentially a shelf , although my 5ft 4in girlfriend has been able to get in there. Barely.


Conclusion

I'm radiant that i've bought the Ferrari Roma. I'm glad I ignored the naysayers. And I would recommend anyone that is still undecided to just pull the trigger. If you want a usable GT overflowing with passion, you won't find anything better.


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Thank you for your well written review!

S

 

@aepma Is that Azzurro California?
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My guess would be Blu Corsa. Lets see which one it is

 

Azzurro California.
Apparently no longer available on the Roma.

 

Thank you for the beautiful review. The Roma is *stunning*. I settled on a Portofino because I love driving with the top down, especially because I love to hear the engine scream... A Ferrari without a LOUD engine noise wouldn't be a Ferrari in my mind. But IMO the Roma is prettier, for me the best looking car in the market right now.

 

That’s odd. I wonder why...?

 

Great review, thanks!

 

Thanks for a well thought out review. I should get a call any day to increase my deposit and have changed my mine on the car several times. Really good to hear about the functionality of the infotainment system. Based on the negative comments it has received it was my biggest concern.

 

The engine sound would be a plus for me.

 

Thank you for the review, well said. Like you, I have been using it daily since January and agree it is a remarkable daily. Elegant, sporty, comfortable and capable. It provided me an avenue to use a Ferrari daily and worth it.


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This is the review I have been waiting for - I was hoping that the software updates would work out some of the early reported kinks on the infotainment system. Sounds like things have improved - thanks for sharing!

 

did you get used to the touch controls on steering etc?

 

My Roma just went into 85 status ... should be on the boat soon..thank you for raising my excitement.

 

I'm wondering whether the Roma interior for driver and passenger feels cramped with the engine pushed so far back - the centre console seems huge but I have yet to see one in the metal.

 

I'm sorry for the off topic question. You mentioned 85 status. Where would I see that? Would it be in the My Ferrari app?

 

this is the production status available to Ferrari dealers via their FNA console

 

We are talking about a Ferrari, not a Maybach. That said, I don't think I've ever felt cramped in any Ferrari I've driven whether that was a 430, 458, F12, Portofino, Cali T, and now the Roma.

 

Excellent review. I like the specifics. I have test drove it at 3 separate events and I loved it each time. We actually have one on order so I am excited for it to be part of the Ferrari Garage in our home. Forza Ferrari... Grazie

 

Beautiful color! similar to my azzuro metallico 328.
Being a drummer, I prefer a loud exhaust tone lol
Enjoy!

 

I love the roma! Def on my shortlist of cars to own soon.. so damn pretty! Love the backseat for an occasion with the kiddos... They love my california!

 

I'm 6'4" and 240 lbs. and was pleasantly surprised by how I fit in the car. It didn't seem cramped at all. That said it does have more of a cockpit feel to it. I was very sensitive to comfort before I made the decision to ordered one.

 

Noise is very decisive. Personally dislike intensely overly loud cars and more so the loud start up!
I had a 3lt Panamera loan car, stupidly loud at start up, I hear my neighbour every time he leaves in his Macan Gts....

I was at a cars and coffee recently...well you know what goes on there as they leave. My sons fav Ferrari is a testarossa, I taught him well! How beautiful did it sound. Purposeful yet understated, just enough for the driver to enjoy, not the whole neighbourhood! 308s the same, lovely music.

Maybe it’s my age, but I’m just not interested in the “look at me noise” these cars , of many brands, now make. Sure on a deserted road I could enjoy it, but who wants/ needs that attention around town?

 

Lots of people...

 

Maybe a live on a different planet, but I don't think that "many brands" nowadays build cars that make "look at me noise"... Its quite the opposite. Apart from Lamborghinis and some other exception, most cars do very little or no noise at all compared to a few decades ago. Even Ferrari makes cars that doesn't sound very good or loud, like the Portofino or the Roma.

About the startup sound... Yeah, sure, a Panamera or a Macan are loud when they are cold and you start the engine. They have powerful engines that need to take temperature quickly. But as soon as they are running at temperature they are extremely quiet - too quiet for me.