Let’s get the facts out of the way first shall we? The Ferrari California is a two door open topped sports car (well aren’t they all) that’s front mid-engined and featuring a lovely direct injection 4.3 litre V8 with an output of 453BHP. There’s no figure on the price yet, or the fuel consumption. Not a surprise on either really, you don’t want to put people off after all…
It’s always an event when a new supercar comes along, especially when it looks as damn good as the car above. It’s the sort of thing that people will stop and stare at, or if they’re lucky enough, have sex with supermodels in. For the rest of us mere mortals, we simply get to see it on the Internet or at a motorshow, where it will stand sterile, taunting us with all that unused power.
It is rumoured that this Ferrari, the California, is to be fitted with a V8 that is going to be in front of the driver, yet still mid-mounted (behind those all important front wheels). It should mean a change in dynamics, but it’s not as if Ferrari doesn’t know what they’re doing. The name, for instance, harks back to various other Ferraris that have been open-topped, with owners driving along with the wind in their hair.
As with a number of other Ferraris, this is a car that will feature a transaxle setup. This is both good for power and weight distribution, giving the car a more dynamic load setup. Naturally, this means your brand new California should be able to guided like a rocket around your chosen city streets – or track for that matter.
For power, Ferrari have said that the big V8 lump should shove the car up to 60 in less than 4 seconds – so a bit more than your average hot hatch and in fact faster than a significant number of exotics. What will really differentiate it then will be that handling and the lovely wail that you should get from the lump up at the front. If it doesn’t sound special, that will surely shoot it in the front, especially as an open topped car.
Will you want one? Well yes, of course you blood dolt. It’s a Ferrari – and it doesn’t have a roof to boot. Okay, so you can afford a luxury car like this – will you buy one in the face of 911 Turbos, Lamborghini Gallardos and even imported Nissan GT-R’s? Well, that remains to be seen. It has the power and the style. It also though comes with an estimated price tag that’ll push it past the value of a standard F430.
With that in mind, I don’t think it will it will float my boat enough. I’m quite hardcore when it comes to these things, and the roar grunt of the F430 – with those quad exhausts and the screaming engine (along with the tried and tested formula) would still make it my choice. However, let’s keep our eyes open and I’ll give you regular updates on this motor. Who knows, I might just change my mind when I sit in one…
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