The high-performance Ferrari Roma Spider delivers an open-top option for a sports car that’s stylish, elegant, fun, and dynamic on any road.
Where did this new soft-top version of the Ferrari Roma make its debut? Thankfully, Ferrari didn’t have to look too far to find the perfect place to display the pure style and presence of this new car. The Island of Sardinia is only a short ride from Italy’s mainland, providing the perfect setting for this car’s debut. Sardinia is filled with untamed nature and cosmopolitan flair, which is the combination desired when showing off a new high-end sports car.
This Ferrari convertible marks significant milestones
The new Roma Spider is named for Italy’s capital city and built in Maranello at the Ferrari headquarters, but that’s not what makes this car special. The Roma Spider brings a change from hardcore design language to smooth lines with the spiciness of a romance novel in the curves. The Ferrari team transformed the hardtop into a convertible while maintaining the curves and lines of this gorgeous machine. The Spider is the first front-engine soft-top convertible in the Ferrari lineup since the Daytona, which went out of production more than 50 years ago.
The convertible challenge of the Roma Spider
Transforming the standard hardtop Roma into the Ferrari Roma Spider was not an easy transition for the Ferrari team. The coupe’s C-pillar design has many elements, including the curvature of the rear, the flush mounting of the rear window, and the short overhang of the tail. The convertible has a lot going on visually, but all of the C-pillar elements of the coupe are gone. In their place is an area where the five-layer fabric top is folded. The result is a graceful curve that transitions perfectly along the sides to the rear of this incredible car.
A Ferrari with unique style
Much of the world is used to Ferrari sports cars with rear-engine layouts. This setup brings short front-end designs with styling similar to a wedge that you might put under your door to hold it in place. Although Ferrari expertly hides the crudeness of this shape with exquisite curves, a front-end car changes the entire build. With the engine ahead of the cockpit, the Roma Spider requires a long hood and greater dash-to-axle ratio than other models. This change gives the Roma Spider a unique look among Ferrari sports cars, with sensual lines transitioning from the long hood to the short rear deck.
The convertible Roma has a better steering wheel
Ferrari is heavily invested in motorsports racing, but that can have its drawbacks at times. The steering wheel in the Roma coupe is complicated and has twice as many controls and sensors as the new Roma Spider. This new convertible sports car borrows the steering wheel from the Purosangue, which is an upgrade with fewer controls. This means drives are less prone to accidentally activating some of the sensors on the wheel. This makes the Roma Spider much easier to control on the road or track.
The Roma Spider is a little heavier than the coupe
Convertibles are typically heavier than their coupe counterparts. The Ferrari Roma Spider is 185 pounds heavier than the coupe model. This added weight comes with the addition of the convertible roof motor, body reinforcements, and a roll bar that pops up when the car detects a rollover. The top folds down in 13.5 seconds and can be operated at speeds up to 37 mph. This is perfect for slow-paced cruising down the Italian coast when the sun shows up, and you want to open the cabin up to the warm air and sun outside.
How much power does this Ferrari offer?
This new convertible Ferrari sports car utilizes a classic setup with a 3.9-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine that produces 612 horsepower and 561 lb-ft of torque. This Ferrari is extremely quick, thanks to 80 percent of the torque provided at 1,900 rpm. The engine is mated to an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission located at the rear axle to give this car a balanced feeling from front to rear.
Driving pleasure in the Ferrari Roma Spider comes with practice. Drivers need to pay attention to the shift lights and tap the paddle shifters accordingly to have the most fun on the road or track. Comfort mode softens the ride, and Wet mode enables drivers to get to the redline through quick upshifts.
The Ferrari Roma Spider provides incredible power, punch, style, and elegance on any road or track. This car looks polite and calm until you get behind the wheel and let it loose. Will this be the Ferrari you love to drive?
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