Drove the 488 today.. thoughts, photos and videos

Thank you! Is it me or does it seem like the 20" wheels look small on the 488?

 

And the engine looks small as well.

 

The rims are 20" as on the 458. What looks smaller is the tyres in the back. They are now 27,2" in diameter compared to the 28,1" of the 458. The front tyres are larger in diameter than those on the 458.

 

So if memory serves, this is partly what makes the 458 so "twitchy" at the limit?

 

To the Mclaren guy. Not everything is about street and straight line speed. I was in the market for a 650s until I drove it. It was very fast but felt numb. I ended up with a speciale. It's handles much better to me and is more fun on the track. Regardless my 997 cup will smoke both the 650s and speciale on any track made. Not everyone is excited by straight line power. I for one hated the tranny creep and feel.


My mum slapped me in the chest and teared up when I gave her a test drive in the speciale.

 

I suppose the argument will be similar to what we saw with the 458 introduction and no more manuals being offered.

Today its the NA vs Turbo argument.

I suppose we all have to make up our minds if its a step forward or a step back. Those who liked manuals said the 458 was a step back also.

The question is... is it a turning point up or down for Ferrari's 8 cyl sports cars.

I think from the posts here, its "unclear".

I personally did not like the Mac for 2 things. 1) the suspension seemed too artificial to me. 2) the Turbo engine had a lot of power but no raw feel. It was just a powerplant that IMO, lacked emotion.

As good car as it was (and the 12c was an amazingly fast car) and being faster than a 458, it didn't get me to plunk down 300 grand for one where the 458 did.

Will the 488? I'm not sure yet.

 

I will have a 488 for a full day on 7/28 and look forward to sharing my thoughts.

 

Why do you think that would be because of the diameter?

 

I believe you mean something else. That N/A engine loves to rev!

Also, the 8500 RPM rev limiter in the Maccas is largely irrelevant, as they top out at 7500 power wise.

 

I drove a 488 at a 'first drive' event arranged at Millbrook Proving ground. The biggest leap forward was in the braking. These are LaF figment and what a improvement! On the 1 mile straight, using launch control and up to 175mph and then emergency stop. My god - how impressive!
The launch control, side-slip 2, zero turbo/lag, it's brilliant.
Also, can now use bumpy road setting in 'race'. This combined with the better gear change, makes progress so much smoother.
Noise in the cabin is reduced, but still sounds so good! The rate of rev rise is also epic - yep, it's a winner!
Graham

 

Can use bumpy road setting in Race mode on my 2012 458 Spider.

 

I'm really curious. How do you get to drive the 488 for a full day...or anyone for that matter? Do you dealers let you guys have demo 488's to try?

 

Bob,

I'm not sure that the 488 isn't a one off series of model years and production models allowing N/A and electric hybrid tech to get a bit cheaper before Ferrari uses it in their v8's. The next V8 (488 replacement) could be that combo and if they wanted a lower entry level model to compete with the 911, they could make that the twin turbo model. Just a thought.

 

I think you're right. I'm not sure the Turbo is here to stay. Something else will replace it.

I personally would go with a NA and hybrid booster. It would appear more like a regular NA to me.

But it probably needs a clean sheet design from the 458 and the cost may also be an issue.

I guess we have to wait another 4 years to find out.

 

i think you be on to something.

 

If that's how it made you feel, that's how it made you feel. I suspect I'd be pretty happy with a Speciale. I still enjoy driving the 458 but now that I'm used to the speed of the 650S, and the better chassis, the 458 just feels slow and loose to me now. The 997 Cup must be wonderful! I assume you run it on slicks. I drove a track car on slicks for the first time this year and it was an amazing experience. If I had more time to go to track I'd considering something like that or maybe a Radical.

 

The 458 produces max torque at 6000 rpm.

 

And max aural pleasure at 9 grand.

 

Which is very high. More importantly though it produces max power at 9000 RPM, which is stratospheric for a road car.

 

The V8 N/A-high rev engine will never come back, not even with hybrid.
The drive generation after the turbo era will be purely electric. Then perhaps with V8 sound animation...

 

Oh dear Lord. I surely hope that's incorrect. What's next....rubber band cars?

 

How do you know that for sure?