FERRARI 348 GTS / GTB SPIDER
The FERRARI 348 GTS / GTB SPIDER
Line all of these cars up and offer the ignition keys to any performance car enthusiast. Which one will he want to drive first (and keep forever once thoroughly intoxicated)? The Ferrari. No one will ever convince me that an open-top, blood-red Ferrari is the second choice of a normal, mentally sane person.
Let's start with the styling of the 348 Spider. Obviously it's based on the coupe, but designer and coachbuilder Pininfarina has converted that rather ordinary looking sports car into a drop-top combining elegance with machismo. It's almost as though the 348 was meant to be a Spider all along, rather than as a derivative to boost sales in the crucial US market.
It looks slightly less thrilling with the hood up, but even so, the long rear platform adds elegance to the coupe's rather stubby tail. The side strakes are somehow even more pronounced, emphasising the mini-Testarossa image.
Drop the black fabric hood into its space behind the seats, though, and the upper deck is left clean and free of obstruction. Hood up, the coupe's flying buttress C-pillars are retained, thanks to the framework underneath holding the whole ensemble taut, but disappear when folded down - no complicated, heavy electric motors, thank you. And it's a dead cinch for one person to operate.
And it does feel different from the coupe. There's a minor amount of body-flex over road undulations, adding up to a couple of creaks and the occasional shudder felt through the steering-wheel rim, but nothing too serious. It's no worse than a Mercedes SL but not quite up to the rigidity of a Porsche 911 cabriolet.
In fact, the Ferrari's fit and finish is highly impressive even when matched against its renowned German rivals. No rattles, no tacky trim, no wind noise or leaks from the hood but plenty of that good feeling that a well-made car oozes. There's no hint at all of the right-hand drive conversion being anything other than outstanding.
What really makes a Ferrari though, is its performance and handling. First, the 348's 3.4-litre engine has been mildly refined for even better tractability at low rpm. It's a surprise to get into such a thoroughbred and find it's a pussycat to drive. But that tame feeling soon disappears if you hang onto the revs past 4500. Then exhaust and engine notes change, harmonising with wind and road noise to whip up a chorus line that can't fail to move you. This is where the serious intoxication begins.
Hold onto the revs up to the 7500rpm red line, be serious and positive with the traditional alloy ballheaded gearlever as it clacks across the equally traditional steel gate and enjoy the thrust of acceleration that's there right up to around 140mph. It'll pull 0-60 in 5.9 seconds, with 100mph passing in 13.6, which is quick enough for road use. Eventual top speed is a genuine 160mph, hood-up, but that's nonsense most of the time. The 348 Spider is best, hood down, between 50 and 100mph where you can make the most of the middle three gears without ending up with a hair-style like a hurricane victim's.
Even the coupe's tricky on-the-limit handling has been improved with minor changes to the suspension settings. On damp roads, it starts to drift but instead of snapping round and biting yer bum, as did the coupe, the Spider is predictable and gentle.
So what we have here is the best-looking car of the year, combined with more sex appeal than any of us would know what to do with, plus stacks of performance. Now tell me you wouldn't choose this car first.
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