One of the biggest news coming out of Maranello is the end-of-the-summer release of the Ferrari 458 Spider, the convertible version of the Ferrari 458 Italia, with a retractable hardtop.
It features a 4.5 liter naturally aspirated direct-injection V8. The power is transferred by a dual-clutch F1 paddle-shift transmisson. That engine produces 562 horsepower and 398 lb-ft of torque. The 50kg extra weight slows down the 0-100km/h acceleration time by a tenth of a second, bringing it to a 3.4 second-level. The top speed drops 5 km/h; from 325km/h to 320km/h. Even thought the decrease in speed and acceleration, this car still is Ferrari's fastest convertible ever.
Due to it's retractable hardtop, the styling on the back of the car is much different, with 6 air inputs and buttresses. Ferrari wanted this car to have a ''sporty but not aggressive driving style''. This car will cost you about $258,000, while Ferrari plans to produce from 1500 to 2000 examples per year.
Ferrari 599 GTB HGTE 60F1
Ferrari has released this limited edition 599 GTB HGTE: their most powerful car of their entire range. It is the last car by the 599 GTB name, because it will be replaced at the Geneva Motor Show next year. This package is to commemorate 60 years of victories at Ferrari F1.
The HGTE offers reduced body roll for a stiffer ride, less understeer, easy control and sharper cornering. This special edition car comes in three different liveries:
375 F1 Livery: The same red as clothed Froilan Gonzalez’s 375 F1 is used. This is a historic red used by the Scuderia for its very first Formula 1 cars. Its darker pastel tone gives the car a compact and sporty look.
Ferrari 150° Italia Livery: this car has the Scuderia 2011 red livery used for Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari 150° Italia. The exterior also features Formula 1 white on the lower part of the front bumpers and mudguards, bonnet, A-posts and buttresses. The tricolour featured on the spoiler of the F150 is also represented on the rear.
Ferrari 150° Italia 2 Livery: the car is painted in the Scuderia 2011 red used on Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari 150° Italia. In this version, however, white is used only on the lower part of the bumpers and there is no tricolour at the rear.
Ferrari California HGTE Spyshots
Next February, Ferrari will unveil a package for their California to make it way more powerful. Autocar spy photographers have spotted it testing at Fiorano.
This package will bring many improvements, including a power increase of 28hp to 483hp and torque by 15lb-ft to 372lb-ft. It will also receive upgrades to the steering rack, making it 10 percent faster coupled with a 15 percent stiffer suspension setup. Finally, the HGTE should get a dark chrome trim for the grille and side air vents.
