Ferrari California - too soft to wear the Prancing Horse badge?
Will a ride in a Ferrari California reveal a classic Prancing Horse or a useless donkey?
The Ferrari California has been around for a couple of years now. It's even just received a mild refresh at the recent Paris Motorshow with the addition of start-stop technology (currently an option but likely to become standard). In that time it has not exactly endeared itself to the Ferrari fans on the internet forums and has had mixed reviews from the motoring press. Most of the complaints centre on it being to soft to be a proper Ferrari with its front mounted V8, folding hardtop - both firsts for Ferrari - and general dissatisfaction with its looks. In an effort to find out if the naysayers are right, I hitched a ride in one down to the Goodwood Breakfast meet on Sunday.
Firstly, let's gets the question of looks out of the way. The Black Nero example below with the optional pentagon wheels looks great to my eyes. The dark colour goes a long way to hiding some of the slightly awkward lines in the roof created by the folding top, and the crease down the side is less prominent. It also disguises the unsightly black rear panel on the admittedly large rear of the car. That said, I suspect many owners will be happy with the large behind, since it does provide reasonable boot (trunk) space even with the roof down.
The interior will be familiar to anyone with experience of modern Ferraris, with the same switchgear as its stablemates, including the awkward climate controls. A double DIN LCD screen for the entertainment system and satellite navigation is a welcome improvement over the 599's single Becker unit. When the ignition is turned on the screen flashes up a warning reminding the driver the obey all traffic laws. Even the exotic world of Ferrari is not immune from the health and safety officials! The seats (the so-called Daytona seats in this case) are supportive and more comfortable than those in the 599, whose chairs tend to give me a numb derrière after half an hour or so, regardless of how the're adjusted.
As a passenger, obviously it's not possible to comment on the steering feel in the car but I can confirm the the double clutch gearbox provides very smooth shifts with none of the jerkiness of the older F1 boxes. In fact, in auto mode only the change in engine note indicates that the shift has taken place.
On the subject of the engine note this is one of the most surprising aspect of the car. The California uses a new version of the 4.3 litre V8, this time sporting direct injection but retaining the familiar Ferrari flat plane crank. Ferrari have clearly spent a lot of time tuning the exhaust of the car, and it does sound good from the outside (and presumably with the roof down, but it was far too cold a day to check that out), but from the inside it gives an odd and slightly harsh harmonic, particularly just as the exhaust silencer valves open. Maybe it's just me being more used to the smooth tones of Ferrari's V12s , but the engine note doesn't seem to fit the car.
The sound may be disappointing, but the V8 certainly endows the California with surprising performance. The combination of the rear-biased weight distribution and the double clutch transmission launch the California with considerably alacrity. Internet complaints of being too soft are quickly dashed as you are pinned back in the seat. Ferrari claim sub-3 second 0-60 times and I can't confirm that, but it does feel that it was at least as quick as 550/575, if not quicker still. The direct injection also improves economy, with figures in the average 20-30 mpg range acheivable. OK, hardly Prius-like economy but not bad for a 450bhp GT car.
More serious criticism of the California has focussed on its ride and body control. As a passenger I found the ride perfectly acceptable and the car seems to shrug off the bumps and potholes that are comomplace on UK roads these days. This may be due in part to this example being fitted with the optional magnetic dampers also found on the 599 and Audi R8. If you are considering buying a California in the UK, this optional extra should definitely be a higher priority than the choice of stitching colour on the leather.
One 80 mile ride is not going to be enough to confirm if the California is a great Ferrari, but it is enough to confirm that it is worthy to carry the Prancing Horse on its nose. Where it perhaps differs from previous Ferraris is that it is far more useable on a daily basis, and I can hardly see this as something that should be complained about.