With the winter behind us and the weather forecast finally looking up, what better way to look forward to the summer than with a new convertible?
Plainly such optimism is exactly what Ferrari has in mind with its latest convertible, the Roma Spider revealed this week.
The first soft-topped convertible from Ferrari since the F430 Spider of 2005, the new Roma Spider takes what we think is the prettiest car of the current Ferrari lineup, and chops the roof off. What’s left is the same 2+2 seating configuration as the Roma coupe, meaning you can squeeze a couple of kids in the back for a family road trip.
Ferrari says the roof can be raised or lowered in 13.5 seconds while driving at up to 37 mph.
What also remains is the Roma’s 60s-inspired front grille and shark-like nose, under which you’ll find a 3.9-litre, twin-turbocharged V8 engine producing 612 bhp and accelerating the car to 62 mph in 3.4 seconds. The top speed is 199 mph, while Ferrari says the Roma Spider weighs just 84 kg more than the 1,570 kg coupe.
Some of that weight gain is down to a new wind deflector, which cleverly repositions the backrests of the rear seats and uses them to help deflect wind away from the cabin (when you haven’t got passengers in the back, of course).
The rest of the cabin is the same as the coupe’s, complete with its dual-cockpit layout and 8.4in infotainment display. And yes, the touch-sensitive controls and starter button still feature on the steering wheel.
Below the portrait-orientated display sits a selector for the eight-speed, dual-clutch gearbox that is designed to resemble the metal open-gated layout from manual Ferraris of old.
The first front-engined Ferrari with a canvas roof since the 365 GTS4 of 1969, the Roma Spider doesn’t yet have a price. But given the Roma coupe starts at about £175,000 — and Ferrari’s options list is famously not for the faint-hearted — a £200,000 starting point is likely.
