Ferrari 458 Italia - driven - In the cabin

The cabin is totally driver-centric. All the controls are on a module that looks like a scale model of the Starship Enterprise, and many – lights, wipers, indicators, damper adjustment, engine stop/start and traction control switch – are on the steering wheel itself, echoing the style if not the content of a Formula One car. We think it works fine, but concede that others may disagree.

Other than that, there's only the awful visibility at angled junctions to worry about.

The days when you made yourself fit in a Ferrari as best you could are long gone. The company's important markets are now as diverse as China and America, two countries where people tend to be shaped rather differently, so Ferrari has ensured that both nationalities will be equally comfortable.

The cabin is spacious and light, and there's room for light luggage behind the two seats to supplement the deep, if narrow, front storage area.

The 458 doesn't go on sale in the UK until next June and the final spec has yet to be settled. It's not a pricing issue – Ferrari buyers don't tend to have to count the pennies – it's more a matter of what customers will expect and what they would prefer to choose for themselves.

There'll be no variation in the mechanical spec – even the semi-auto gearbox will be standard, making this the first Ferrari not to offer a manual – so the equipment choices are likely to concentrate on the interior.