Rennteam 2.0 - EN - Forum - Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California - Page1

Oct 15, 2008 1:20:51 PM

ISUK: Rennteam Master; Loc: UK , United Kingdom; Posts: 4206, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 16, 2004

CAR magazine - first drive of the California

CAR Online - Ferrari California

Ferrari California: real-time CAR review blog

By Chris Chilton

First drive

15 October 2008 14:03

"Bit of a CAR Online experiment here. We're driving the new Ferrari California today and attempting what, as far as we're aware, is the first real-time review of the Cali on the internet. Road test editor Chris Chilton is pinging his thoughts electronically from the launch in Sicily to CAR HQ where we're updating this blog minute by minute with his first drive review of the new Ferrari California drop-top. Traditionalists fear not: we will be publishing his full, regular road test report at the end of the day. So tune in to read CAR's review of the new V8 from Maranello, updated with words and photos throughout the day."

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 1:27:32 PM

ISUK: Rennteam Master; Loc: UK , United Kingdom; Posts: 4206, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 16, 2004; Reply to: ISUK

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

9.00am: The first miles of our road test

We negotiate the first few miles around the Sicilian roads. First impressions are very positive. My nagging doubts that this could prove to be a roly-poly SL in chubby tifosi spec are instantly dismissed. The engine feels alive, edgy, downright loud when provoked. There's no muzzle on this Ferrari.

10.00am: Sensory overload

"My mind is awash with sensations, my brain rapidly assimilating reams of data streaming from my fingertips, ears, stomach and arse. They've done it! The California is a true Ferrari. The twin-clutch box is brilliant - one of the absolute best of its type. Changes are quick, seamless and - if you're pushing on - violently quick. Very impressive."

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 3:54:44 PM

KresoF1: Rennteam VIP; Loc: Croatia , Croatia; Posts: 7856, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 3, 2005; Reply to: ISUK

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

12.24pm: Can the California live with the SL as an everyday car?
We've just driven through the umpteenth fishing village on our Sicilian adventure. If we keep up this pace, we're going to circumnavigate the island several times over before the day is out. What impresses is the California's ability to waft. You know, in a Jag style. The gearbox turns from violent harbinger of screaming new velocities to a smooth, slurrer of gearchanges. It's smooth and doesn't jump straight to seventh in true eco style. And the ride quality is impressing. I'm beginning to wonder what the California can't do!

12.01pm: Ferrari California: the heart and soul is the V8
The twin-clutch box is damn smooth too. Like the road round here - which are also blissfully quiet. Unlike Maranello's latest V8. Direct injection hasn't muted this engine one jot: the noise is great, especially when we find a tunnel and floor it. You can't rev quite as high as in a 430 (the redline is some 500rpm lower), but the noise is addictively blood-curdling. We repeat the tunnel experiment just to make sure...

11.55am: Ferrari's first twin-clutch box impresses
I'm deeply impressed by this transmission. It's brilliant. There's no difference in the economy and emissions of the manual and twin-clutch California; unlike Porsche's 911 PDK box, seventh isn't an overdrive - it mirrors the sixth ratio in the manual. So the ratios are stacked as close as those Sicilian sardines we saw earlier at the port. It helps to make the Cali fly when you stab the throttle.

Indeed. 310km/h is in seventh gear!

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 3:59:40 PM

ISUK: Rennteam Master; Loc: UK , United Kingdom; Posts: 4206, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 16, 2004; Reply to: KresoF1

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

4.16pm: Bugger, we've pranged the Ferrari!

Whoops, we've just scraped the front bumper while doing a three-point turn for photography. Gutted! In our defence, the California is very wide on these narrow roads and you can't easily see the nose. Just wondering how to break this one to the Ferrari PRs...

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 4:55:25 PM

ISUK: Rennteam Master; Loc: UK , United Kingdom; Posts: 4206, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 16, 2004; Reply to: ISUK

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

4.23pm: One last blast

Don't worry, it's only superficial damage. Time for one last proper drive of the Ferrari California before we have to hand the keys back. I haven't yet mentioned the new, simplified mannettino. The steering wheel control has just three, not four settings: Comfort, Sport and CST off (basically the same as Sport, but with stability control disengaged for sideways action). It's brilliantly simple and works well, tweaking the transmission's abruptness and damper settings (although I should stress the Cali rides really virtually anywhere on our Sicilian test route). And this is one very stiff structure - it's remarkably free of shake and shudder.

5.01pm: The handling verdict

Right, we've dispatched some rollercoaster roads around the coastline and can deliver the final verdict on how the California handles. In a nutshell, this is brilliantly judged. Yes, it's softer than a 430 Scuderia but then it's meant to be. There's not quite the front-end grip, the fluency that marks out Ferrari's smallest sports car, but the California is remarkably adept at stringing together a sequence of cross-country roads. It's not perfect, mind. The brakes are slightly weird, with a longer pedal travel and lack of initial bite - presumably so as not to scare SL newcomers. And that steering is quick and responsive, but it can't compete with the telepathic helm of, say, a Porsche Cayman. But make no mistake, the California is every inch a junior Ferrari in the driving department.

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 5:05:07 PM

MKSGR: Rennteam Moderator; Loc: Germany , Germany; Posts: 8098, Gallery; Registered on: Jun 17, 2002; Reply to: ISUK

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Quote:
ISUK said:

5.01pm: The handling verdict

Right, we've dispatched some rollercoaster roads around the coastline and can deliver the final verdict on how the California handles. In a nutshell, this is brilliantly judged. Yes, it's softer than a 430 Scuderia but then it's meant to be. There's not quite the front-end grip, the fluency that marks out Ferrari's smallest sports car, but the California is remarkably adept at stringing together a sequence of cross-country roads. It's not perfect, mind. The brakes are slightly weird, with a longer pedal travel and lack of initial bite - presumably so as not to scare SL newcomers. And that steering is quick and responsive, but it can't compete with the telepathic helm of, say, a Porsche Cayman. But make no mistake, the California is every inch a junior Ferrari in the driving department.

That does not sound well

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 5:14:11 PM

Rossi: Rennteam VIP; Loc: Home , Germany; Posts: 12680, Gallery; Registered on: Apr 11, 2002; Reply to: MKSGR

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Quote:
MKSGR said:
Quote:
ISUK said:

5.01pm: The handling verdict

Right, we've dispatched some rollercoaster roads around the coastline and can deliver the final verdict on how the California handles. In a nutshell, this is brilliantly judged. Yes, it's softer than a 430 Scuderia but then it's meant to be. There's not quite the front-end grip, the fluency that marks out Ferrari's smallest sports car, but the California is remarkably adept at stringing together a sequence of cross-country roads. It's not perfect, mind. The brakes are slightly weird, with a longer pedal travel and lack of initial bite - presumably so as not to scare SL newcomers. And that steering is quick and responsive, but it can't compete with the telepathic helm of, say, a Porsche Cayman. But make no mistake, the California is every inch a junior Ferrari in the driving department.

That does not sound well

But it's how it has to be for their new California customers.

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 5:15:03 PM

MKSGR: Rennteam Moderator; Loc: Germany , Germany; Posts: 8098, Gallery; Registered on: Jun 17, 2002; Reply to: Rossi

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Quote:
Rossi said:
Quote:
MKSGR said:
Quote:
ISUK said:

5.01pm: The handling verdict

Right, we've dispatched some rollercoaster roads around the coastline and can deliver the final verdict on how the California handles. In a nutshell, this is brilliantly judged. Yes, it's softer than a 430 Scuderia but then it's meant to be. There's not quite the front-end grip, the fluency that marks out Ferrari's smallest sports car, but the California is remarkably adept at stringing together a sequence of cross-country roads. It's not perfect, mind. The brakes are slightly weird, with a longer pedal travel and lack of initial bite - presumably so as not to scare SL newcomers. And that steering is quick and responsive, but it can't compete with the telepathic helm of, say, a Porsche Cayman. But make no mistake, the California is every inch a junior Ferrari in the driving department.

That does not sound well

But it's how it has to be for their new California customers.

That's probably true

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 8:31:15 PM

nberry: Rennteam VIP; Loc: La Jolla, USA , United States; Posts: 13735, Gallery; Registered on: Apr 11, 2002; Reply to: MKSGR

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

WTF, junior Ferrari????

Porsche redux.

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 8:49:13 PM

brunner: Veteran; Loc: E. Europe , Romania; Posts: 1125, Gallery; Registered on: Apr 28, 2003; Reply to: nberry

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Except Porsche always had a 'junior' model... 912, 914, 924, Boxster, etc. (i'm talking from a price POV, not trying to degrade any of them)

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 10:03:41 PM

ISUK: Rennteam Master; Loc: UK , United Kingdom; Posts: 4206, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 16, 2004; Reply to: brunner

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Relax Nick, it's just a turn of phrase. They've referred to the 430 as the junior Ferrari in the past. The final entry is pretty encouraging -

5.45pm: The Ferrari California verdict

What a day! What a car! The California is by no means perfect - it's pricey and we can quibble over the finer points of the handling, brakes and rear packaging - but it's hard not to be impressed by the California. Especially when we were so sceptical before. It's everything that a slightly softer Ferrari should be and brilliantly judged to tempt buyers out of top-rung Merc SLs and the like. The folding metal roof (Ferrari's first) is well executed, the boot space is truly astonishing and the interior a roomy, comfy place to be. That the California also manages to pack the mother of all V8s, with fuel-miser direct-injection present and correct, and hit the bullseye first time with the superlative new transmission is quite a feat. Don't believe the doubters who say this Ferrari is too soft. It's not. It's nigh-on perfect for its target market. That leaves this road tester deeply impressed.

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 10:33:45 PM

Carlos from Spain: Rennteam Moderator; Loc: Spain. , Spain; Posts: 21148, Gallery; Registered on: Feb 9, 2003; Reply to: ISUK

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Quote:
ISUK said:It's everything that a slightly softer Ferrari should be and brilliantly judged to tempt buyers out of top-rung Merc SLs and the like.

Ferrari making an SL type sportcar... its a sad day

Next
Threads

Oct 15, 2008 10:58:10 PM

nberry: Rennteam VIP; Loc: La Jolla, USA , United States; Posts: 13735, Gallery; Registered on: Apr 11, 2002; Reply to: nberry

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Quote:
nberry said:
WTF, junior Ferrari????

Porsche redux.

That was what I was referring to. I said it before and I will say it again. I have no doubt this car will sell but in doing so Ferrari has tarnished its iconic and storied brand. I also suspect there will be other models to be introduced in the future i.e. a sedan.

Next
Threads

Oct 16, 2008 9:45:39 AM

reginos: Rennteam VIP; Loc: Nicosia , Cyprus; Posts: 12130, Gallery; Registered on: Mar 20, 2005; Reply to: ISUK

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Quote:
ISUK said:
5.01pm: The handling verdict
And that steering is quick and responsive, but it can't compete with the telepathic helm of, say, a Porsche Cayman.

What does a humble Porsche Cayman have to do with this new Ferrari jewel

Next
Threads

Oct 16, 2008 9:57:29 AM

Moogle: Rennteam Master; Loc: Bay Area , United States; Posts: 5019, Gallery; Registered on: Aug 9, 2003; Reply to: reginos

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

CAR is implying that as a drivers car, the Cali cannot compete with the much cheaper Cayman (they LOVE porsche at that mag...) And a great mag it is.

Next
Threads

Oct 16, 2008 10:49:58 AM

ISUK: Rennteam Master; Loc: UK , United Kingdom; Posts: 4206, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 16, 2004; Reply to: Moogle

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

I'd think Chris Chilton was trying to say just how good the steering was for this class of car but qualify that comment by saying it wasn't as good as a Cayman which they rate as one of the best benchmarks. Bit of an odd comparison as the Cayman is a) much lighter, b) mid engined, c) has a shorter wheelbase, d) doesn't have the weight of a folding hardtop to contend with in affecting it's balance etc etc. I'd put it down to the fact that he was writing the blog on the hoof whilst testing the car and made a throwaway remark.

The California is a GT car not a sports car. It cannot be fairly compared to the 430, which is a pure sports car, as many are trying to do. Before condemning it out of hand I'd suggest people wait to see and drive it if they get the chance before making up their minds. I've already heard quite a few people change their negative opinions on the styling after seeing the car at Paris.

The overall review by Car suggests that the California does have a sharper and focussed dynamic edge to it when driven hard and the comments on the DCT box bode well as it may end up replacing the F1 system in the future in sports car models like the F142.

Top
Threads

Board	Subject	Last post	Views	Replies
Porsche	SUN'S LAST RUN TO WILSON, WY - 991 C2S CAB LIFE, END OF AN ERA (Part II)	4/11/24 6:53 AM Gnil	753011	1796
Porsche	Welcome to Rennteam: Cars and Coffee... (photos)	4/7/24 11:48 AM Boxster Coupe GTS	430665	565
Porsche	OFFICIAL: Cayman GT4 RS (2021)	5/12/23 12:11 PM W8MM	258576	288
Porsche	OFFICIAL: Porsche 911 (992) GT3 RS - 2022	3/12/24 8:28 AM DJM48	255447	323
Porsche	The new Macan: the first all-electric SUV from Porsche	1/30/24 9:18 AM RC	79499	45
Porsche	OFFICIAL: Taycan 2024 Facelift	3/15/24 1:23 PM CGX car nut	5256	50
Porsche	The moment I've been waiting for...	2/1/24 7:01 PM Pilot	868271	1364
Porsche	992 GT3	7/23/23 7:01 PM Grant	801814	3868
Porsche	Welcome to the new Taycan Forum!	2/10/24 4:43 PM nberry	384095	1526
Porsche	GT4RS	4/16/24 8:34 AM 996FourEss	381949	1445
Others	Tesla 2 the new thread	12/13/23 2:48 PM CGX car nut	365397	2401
Porsche	Donor vehicle for Singer Vehicle Design	7/3/23 12:30 PM Porker	364169	797
Ferrari	Ferrari 812 Superfast	4/21/23 8:09 AM the-missile	285772	550
Porsche	Red Nipples 991.2 GT3 Touring on tour	4/11/24 12:32 PM Ferdie	284205	668
Porsche	Collected my 997 GTS today	10/19/23 7:06 PM CGX car nut	257964	812
Lambo	Huracán EVO STO	7/30/23 6:59 PM mcdelaug	235447	346
Lotus	Lotus Emira	6/25/23 2:53 PM Enmanuel	222709	101
Others	Corvette C8	10/16/23 3:24 PM Enmanuel	218877	488
Others	Gordon Murray - T.50	11/22/23 10:27 AM mcdelaug	165721	387
Porsche	Back to basics - 996 GT3 RS	6/11/23 5:13 PM CGX car nut	137777	144
BMW M	2024 BMW M3 CS Official Now	12/29/23 9:04 AM RC	114750	303
Motor Sp.	2023 Formula One	12/19/23 5:38 AM Whoopsy	107025	685
Others	Valkyrie final design?	4/28/23 2:45 AM Rossi	99110	219
Porsche	2022 992 Safari Model	3/7/24 4:22 PM Whoopsy	83384	239
AMG	Mercedes-Benz W124 500E aka Porsche typ 2758	2/23/24 10:03 PM blueflame	74852	297
Porsche	992 GT3 RS	3/3/24 7:22 PM Whoopsy	52869	314
Motor Sp.	Porsche 963	3/16/24 9:27 PM Whoopsy	24535	237
Ferrari	Ferrari 296 GTB (830PS, Hybrid V6)	1/21/24 4:29 PM GT-Boy	20869	103
BMW M	2022 BMW M5 CS	4/8/24 1:43 PM Ferdie	19111	140
AMG	G63 sold out	9/15/23 7:38 PM Nico997	16383	120

Crown

Forum - Thread

CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Re: CAR magazine - first drive of the California

Forum

Boards