Beauty Contest: 458 coupe vs. spider

It's not about fractions of a second, it's about how they feel to drive. They may well be almost bang on as far as lap times are concerned but with the F430 if you drive the open and the closed back to back (and I've done so many times) there is a notable difference. The open top just doesn't seem as accomplished a car.

 

for those who have driven the 16m and Scud, the former is more 'thrilling' even though it is undoubtedly less 'clinical', less 'composed'...and on and on...

 

no it still loses a lot of rigidity vs the coupe

plus added weight

but like others have said the difference is hardly noticeable off the track




as for the question, im a coupe guy so i say coupe.

 

But the 16M is not just a chopped Scud, it's a further development, so that's not exactly a straight example.

 

Even with the top up?

Apparently the hard top on the Cali is lighter than a rag.

See my previous comments on the open v closed F430.

 

yes structural rigidity suffers even with the top up

im sure the 458 spider will still be a hell of a car and more than enough for almost anyone.

 

Yes, that's for certain.

 

Maybe the 16M has the edge up to 130 mph. After that I prefer to have a solid roof over my head :-}

 

My thinking is this as to why they may go with a hard roof.

The 458 goes something over 200 mph. As you go faster, the air resistance rises expotentially. Even a few MPH will drastically increase the pressures inside and outside the car. The strain on a fabric may be too much or it may distort outwards causing even more drag. So, a hard top may be necessary to get all the performance at top speed.

Of course, no one really knows but it's a pretty good theory.

 

+ 1

 

The continuous line created by any GTB is much prettier than its convertible counterpart because it compliments the body lines of the car for the entire length of the car.

 

+1

 

I saw in March issue of one of the leading Italian magazine a (guess) drawing of the future spider: it has a crystal roof that folds in half, retracts, and fits vertically between the engine and cockpit. So not really a hard top....

 

No, air resistance grows quadradically (x**2) with speed and the power required grows cubically (x**3) wiht speed but this is far less than exponentially (constant**x).

 

no link unfortunately: I just flipped through the magazine while waiting at my Ferrari dealer in Switzerland. I even don't remember the name, but it was an Italian magazine.

 

i would like to see a manually removable sport roof. like an F50. I think those are the best of both worlds. Coupe looks with the top on but you can still pop the top. And i think they look awesome top off too. Had a supra with the "targa" top. Loved it. I hate the way spiders look with the top up.

 

Spider for sure. I love the Scuderia but would loose unimportant body parts for a 16m. A finger a toe maybe even a two or three. Lol. Just leave me enough digets to pull the paddle shifter.