California Test Drive (my review)

Quick background. I don't own a Ferrari, but do have a '05 Maserati Spyder. My daily drivers are BMW. Currently a 335i Vert and before that a Z4. The demo drive was with the top down.

Cliff Notes:
As has been said many times before, car looks much better in the metal than the pictures. 14 second top is nice. Top up, plenty of headroom but shoulder room is a little tight for me. It would be fine for normal sized humans. Transmission is awesome. Exhaust sound is great, aftermarket is going to find it difficult to do better. Steering is too light, seems to be over boosted. As a person who prefers GT type convertibles, would I buy one? Yes.

Main Impressions:
The test car was red/tan (surprised?) with black dash /w red stitching. That part was a bit awkward, since the red stitching wasn't present anywhere else in the cabin. Overall the cabin looked to be well finished and presented itself as "luxurious": Wife especially like the "flying bridge" console. The car has a cupholder which extends from the dash similar to current BMWs.

With the top in place, there was plenty of headroom. I am tall through the torso and usually can't fit a car with a sunroof, for example. The top deployment is a quick fourteen seconds. Compare that to my 335i Vert at 25 seconds or the new Z4 at ~20. For me, there could be a bit more shoulder room at the door, but overall the cabin felt spacious. Rear seats are a joke, there is no legroom. Not even for children. If I was a buying new, I would spec the luggage shelf option.

The engine was very responsive and revved freely. Obviously, it is missing the low end grunt of a Corvette motor or a Ferrari V-12. But considering how quickly the engine climbs into its power range, it should only be an issue with those raised on small block Chevys. Specs claim the car is very fast 0 through 60, this is presumably due to the tranny - if the reliability is present, this might go down as the greatest road transmission ever. It was a pure joy to operate.

The auto mode actually works. And if my perception is correct, the upshifts were quicker than the downshifts. That's a first. The downshifts are slower to allow a rev match while upshifts are so quick you barely see the rpm needle bobble. Thank goodness, Ferrari kept the operation the same as the F1 including the two paddle pull for neutral.

Exhaust sound is sublime. Expected burble & pop on downshifts, but here is the cool part - on high rpm upshifts, the pipes bark with a quick "BLAT" explosion of noise.

CCB Brakes were firm, solid, with good feedback, but squealed just before coming to a complete stop.

Steering - hmmm, the first negative. Quite surprised how light and quick. To me, it felt overboosted. Great for parking lots when cruising at the local high-end Mall, otherwise, my bimmer is much better. I've driven a few modern Ferraris as comparison; none were like this - it was like a '90's Chrysler. The steering was precise, however, it just didn't have enough "weight" to it.

No handling comments nor the ability to assess structure stiffness due to location/nature of the drive.

Now about that ass-end. With the top dropped on the Bimmer and parked next to the Cali, the Ferrari butt's really isn't physically larger. It is a perception caused by the creases/lines raising from the sides. The BMW character lines flow straight down the side, parallel to the street, wrapping around the trunk, which gives the bimmer's backside a perception of low and long versus the high and stubby of the Ferrari. Twin silo taillights are running lights/turnsignals, whereas the main brake lights are located low where one first assumes are the backup lights.

After the demo, I was asked to fill out a survey about my impression of the car, what were my current drives, etc. I gave the car high marks except for the above mentioned steering.

Epilogue:
From my wife's point of view, aside from a F430 coupe, this is the only other modern Ferrari the wife has liked and the only F-car convertible. Looks like Ferrari has hit its desired demographic and its intended mission.


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