Ferrari Portofino reviews

My own personal impressions of driving a Cali GT 70,000+ Miles over two and a half years was that I found it to have some predictable weak points related to a new model.

There were some areas of poor design and execution such as the trunk area and rear seats.

I also found that the height of the dash and front seats somehow never fit as well as my 360 or 458. I’m 5’10 and felt I wat a bit too short for the car. But this is perplexing since Ferrari had intended the Cali to appeal specifically to women.

I also found that the Cali GT did not instill the same level of confidence when pushing to the edge of the envelope as did the mid engine rear F Cars.

In the case of the 360, that confidence was misplaced as the car could snap and bite when pushed too far!

The Cali GT was far more forgiving albeit not as reassuring . Perhaps the ride height and higher center of gravity were factors. Maybe the magneride I had was a little dumbed down compared to my 458.

But I suspect for many Cali owners and Cali T owners, the car is a wonderful fit, immensely satisfying, able to sing and hit all the high notes!

I can’t wait to see and hopefully test the Portofino !

 

Thanks...T

 

Portofino like the Cali before will always fall between two objectives, but this time it seems that the breadth of abilities got wider. For those who seek practicality and need rear seats and a little bit of a boot/trunk its a winner ( though with roof down you really don't have much storage ). What has changed though is that the 488 is also a car with much wider abilities, it is not just the extreme sports car, and is far more sophisticated than the 458. Basically all these cars are getting so damn good . I have had all the Cali , Cali T , 458 and 488 models you like , and I will have a Portofino alongside a 488 spider. Well I need to fit a baby seat sometimes ... But you need to decide your real needs, and maybe decide if you want to sit in your car (488) or on your car (Portofino) . Portofino is always going to be a 4 out of 5 car much like a Lusso , because if practicality is your real need, there are options for a lot less money (which is why I guess it loses the star in the context of a review) , if extreme performance is the need, then Ferrari make better options . The last Cali T HS was the car the Cali should have been from the start, few drove it, but it was a vast improvement. The Portofino will be that plus plus, for sure, and in my book, that will make it an outstanding Ferrari for many people and really who cares about what star ratings it gets , never stopped them selling the original Cali (Maserati) did it.

Oh and why the Chris Harris comments, he bought and ran a RR Phantom recently, which he did not use to drift ,, he also owned an FF and loves the Lusso , he does know the difference in use of cars !

 

Your impressions about these cars are pretty much on the money. However, given your understanding of them, if all you do is buy and use these cars as-is from the factory, you will never be truly happy. IMO, if you can sense the shortcomings, you need to sort them out or at least try to, using aftermarket or your own solutions. Unfortunately many owners just buy these cars for a brief experience before trading them for the next car, which may be an even worse (fit).

if people buy these cars like they buy watches, they will only ever wear them, not control them. Of course, some watch collectors actually open up the case backs. Warranty be damned.

You have to modify and customize these cars to make them what you want them to be. They are just baselines from where you take your inaginations.. Otherwise you are just another consumer.

 

Huh?

 

The factory offers a Tailor Made program which allows customizing from the perspective of paints, livery, upholstery aesthetics. It usually also offers a limited selection of performance upgrades at some time after model introduction. Even more aggressive upgrades are offered by reputable 3rd Party tuning specialists once the cars are available for them to examine and to develop their upgrades from.

Since it is true the factory tends to design cars that are slotted between luxury and performance, then just configuring and enjoying them from the online configurators will not allow you to make them truly what you prefer out of the base designs. You will also notice some people also configure the minimum options even from the configurator. For instance, exotic rental outfits would also tend to do that... because like some owners, they are only concerned about offering a fleeting ( sorry about the unintended pun) experience for the driver. Unfortunately, this sort of experience tends to be limiting, like the often even more superficial automotive journo reviews which seasoned owners of these cas will find misleading.

So the configurator options are really just basic feature options. While these cars are not cheap, the added costs from those options are in reality just the minimum if you are discerning enough to realize the options still do not fully satisfy what you perceive as insufficiencies. You have to go beyond the configurator and sometimes, you may need to test the limits of the factory's warranty. However, you can ignore the warranty if you keep the car long enough, something that also allows you to truly know the car, unlike what the journalists pretend to do from their often brief first hand experiences. There's a very definite aspect of timing involved with these upgrades, some must be ordered before the cars are built and some, after you have thoroughly road tested the car, others after you realze the car is a "keeper" and you further upgrade regardless of warranty implications.

Sorry about the watch ownership analogy... I like to regulate some of my watches myself whenever practical. I am looking into adjusting them too, because I notice some of them can be improved. I like to tinker.

 

Having rented and driven a Cali T several times I can tell you that it was surprisingly comfortable, and it was very easy to just drive. Sure if you mashed the throttle it would go but it was not hard to drive like normal. My wife even fell in love with the car which means I got the green light to start planning to purchase. I found it was quite simple to adapt to the controls on the steering wheel the first time and was easy to revert back to several months later. I was disappointed with the rear seat, specifically the floor space. I thought the exhaust was quite quiet and discovered earlier models have more sound. The retractable hard top really impressed me. I'm not a convertible guy and I really dislike cloth tops and have witnessed seal issues on previous Ferrari convertibles. This hard top won me over.

All that said I believe all of these issues transfer over and are improved. I think I read someplace that there was a bit more room in the rear seat area too. I think the portofino is the logical progression the California line should follow. There are a few features I'm not crazy about but I think that's more due to my age and being set in my ways, the old adage I'm becoming my parents.

 

I think there are 2 more inches of leg room in the Portofino.

 

For a kid that's loads

 

That's huge, in my CalifTHS I need to scrunch up for my 6yr old to sit behind me.

 

From the Car review:
https://www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-reviews/ferrari/ferrari-portofino-2018-review/

50mm= 1.96 inches

 

We are gonna my to see EPAS become standard. It is lighter, more customizable , better for fuel economy due to its on demand electrical vs the hydraulics constant belt driven parasitic loss, and the fact that it doesn’t add to heat production.

EPAS It’s a very good thIng

 

Yes, EPAS looks good on paper and technology "improvements" appear to be the primary means to accommodate government regulation (your wording reminds me of how HELE works on the HVAC and engine-cooling systems). However, some early comments from testers do mention PF steering being "very light" as well as concerns regarding the amount of tactile feedback.

Modern Ferraris have light steering anyway so I wonder if the PF's steering is any different; something that can be fairly easily verified by Cali owners first-hand, from proper test drives.

As for tactile feedback, it would be interesting to know how that is adjusted by the software in response to what the ECU senses from the tires and suspension. I don't expect Ferrari to describe the specific algorithm(s) used but it would be nice if owners knew how the software generally determines which sensor inputs affect feedback and how steering adjustments are made. Porsche has had its own electric steering power system out for a few years now and we know something about how it works. I would like to be able compare these systems as well as better understand future upgrades, when they happen. I imagine there will still be people who prefer hydraulic steering, especially vs early versions of EPAS so it would help to know specifics, rather than to guess.

 

Anyone know what happens when an EPAS fails? Is there a back-up or is it time to pray?

 

That's a very good and apt question. Unfortunately I can only guess at a fail-safe but perhaps someone else will know a more useful answer.

 

It is very similar to when a hydraulic system fails.
There is still a mechanical connection but the force needed esp at low speeds is very high.

 

Thanks. Good to know!

 

Yes, that answers the question of what happens if the electrical power assist mechanism moving the steering rack fails. That is an YES/NO type of error but what if a sensor(s) malfunction and sends the wrong steering telemetry or some other data to the ECU? That type of error is not YES/NO or ON/OFF, it's a miscalculation that may vary by unpredictable amounts.

So how does the system detect sensor errors and how does it respond?

There was a recent discussion about DCT temperature sensor malfunctions. In that scenario, the sensor trips (by mistake) and the system apparently just simply disables the bank of gears monitored by the sensor. In the case of the steering system, if the sensor miscalculates, the steering system may respond in a miscalculated manner and cannot simply turn off the power assist as a fail-safe mechanism because it's not a case of the power assist failing but that of a sensor(s) not accurately detecting road conditions or the attitude of the suspension.

At any rate, it has to first detect a sensor failure before it can even activate a fail-safe procedure. There are a multitude of possible failures, each potentially presenting different levels of risk, requiring a different fail-safe response. If a lot of sensors are involved, it's potentially very complicated.

 

Or not..Again I think some of us are over thinking things, even drawing rather bold conclusions without an expert understanding of the EPAS which Ferrari has implemented.

 

Having driven the 812 there is really next to no difference that I could point at towards EPAS compared to the F12/488 etc etc. The usual very light, very quick steering will probably have been made even «friendlier» in the PF. Suitable for the car’s character no doubt.

All is well

 

OK, prove it. How am I overthinking? So what's your "expert understanding of the EPAS"?

FWIW, I used to design and write software for controlling factory robots. Do you have any software experience?

It's a fact that sensors do fail, like with temp sensors in the DCT which gave a wrong temperature reading. Perhaps your enthusiasm for your 812 on order may be getting the better of your judgment. I am also not saying there are any flaws in the EPAS, only that it is not a simple system.

 

Thanks MisterMaranello, for your highly-regarded, first-hand input.

It's actually what I suspected (as I stated earlier) but I've yet to test drive an EPAS-equiped car. Ferrari may also program the EPAS differently for the PF, compared to the 812.

I suspect some journalists are just more used to cars with a bit of (obvious) understeer dialed in, while Ferraris tend to feel completely neutral when cornering, aided by that lighter steering effort and faster rack. The understeer in other cars are designed for more novice drivers, for safety reasons but seasoned drivers want neutral steering responses, no understeer, for faster more responsive cornering. Once you get used to the Ferrari's steering, it becomes your "norm".

 

Hey you are pretty arrogant and annoying,

You tend to go off and offend people

Cool it

 

I understand you may feel offended because I may highlight points that are difficult to counter but I didn't do it to upset you. However, this is a technical debate about our passion for cars and so long as we respect each other and stay on topic, it should be open season to insist on getting closer to the facts. I debated in a fair manner that allowed you to counter my assertion or walk back a comment. You could even have said "OK, but I am still not convinced (or still don't agree) because we don't have actual detailed information on EPAS to prove what you suggest.".

FWIW, I also felt a bit miffed when you said "...some of us are over thinking things, even drawing rather bold conclusions without an expert understanding..." but I didn't get upset over it. Instead I challenged you to prove your point and I posted the reasons why I feel I have sufficient expertise to suggest EPAS is more complicated than what you implied.

 

It is painfully obviously you are no expert expert when icomes to Ferrari EPAS or Ferrari DCT either.

What basis do you have for all the long winded posts other than your “whiskey talk”.

Perhaps that’s what I was miffed about!

Your discussion about dry and wet sump was also so full of assumptions and extrapolations which were counter to what most accept that unless you have some specific knowledge it is comical rather than than credible.

Anyway perhaps the best path forward is for us to ignore each other.