Ferrari California Open Top full 9 point review
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Performance
The California has a new direct-injection 4.3-litre V8 in the nose, with Ferrari's first double-clutch automated manual gearbox – a seven-speeder – at the rear (there is a six-speed manual if you insist). Together they deliver all the performance you expect from a Ferrari with sensational driveability and smoothness.
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Ride & Handling
Whatever else the California may be, it's first and foremost a Ferrari, so the Formula One hand-me-downs – in the form of the F1-Trac variable traction and stability control and carbon ceramic brakes – are still there. It all adds up to a combination of the effortless and the awe-inspiring, with a supple ride thrown in for good measure.
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Refinement
The California's dual personality is obvious in the refinement on offer when you're taking it easy. Fully-automated gearshifts are smooth, the ride is supple and the engine inaudible when cruising, yet you get the full surround-sound bellow when you let rip. Wind noise is negligible within UK speed limits and there's barely any bluster with the roof down, but there is some road noise on coarse surfaces.
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Buying & Owning
Judging by the three-year waiting list, the California is a sound place to put your money. The everyday running costs will be stratospheric, but you can take heart from the fact that the new engine and gearbox contribute to a vast drop in CO2 and fuel consumption compared with any other current Ferrari.
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Quality & Reliability
Ferrari knows that if it is going to convince people the California is a car to be used every day, then it has to live up to that claim every time you open the door and fire up the engine. From the fit and finish of the car we drove we'd say it does, and the company is adamant that mechanical features honed in the heat of Formula One battle will be trouble-free in a road car.
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Safety & Security
Being a coupe-cabrio, you get only four airbags, and there are no such things as distance-regulating cruise control. Instead, the California is designed to prevent you ever getting into difficulties thanks to its variable stability and traction control system and mightily effective carbon ceramic brakes. It has a satellite-linked tracking system, which the company says has led to any Ferrari that's ever been stolen being found and recovered.
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Behind The Wheel
These days, Ferraris adapt themselves to their owners rather than the other way round, so you get two-way electric steering adjustment and a multi-adjustable seat. Visibility is good, save for an unswept area of windscreen by the driver's screen pillar. The control and switchgear layout is also largely faultless.
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Space & Practicality
You can have your California as a two-seater with space for golf bags or suitcases in the cabin, or as a two-plus-two complete with child-seat mounting points. You can even change your mind and switch between the two after you've bought it. Being realistic, though, it's a two-plus-one at best. There's a 340-litre boot with through-loading into the cabin, and it shrinks by only 100 litres with the folding metal roof down.
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Equipment
Ferrari lets you personalise your car pretty much any way you want (at a price, naturally), although the standard package is, to all intents and purposes, complete. Touch-screen sat-nav, a satellite tracking system to pinpoint the car if it's stolen, tyre pressure monitoring, electric heated seats and the full gamut of Formula One-derived traction and stability aids, plus carbon ceramic brakes are all included.
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