Is the 2009 Ferrari California the first true "daily driver" to wear the prancing pony badge?
Is it just me, or does the idea of driving a Ferrari every day seem like something of an oxymoron?
Friends with Spyders and Scagliettis and F430s are likely to pull them out to admire and maybe clock a few dozen miles, on the weekend. But commute? Take them to the grocery store? Leave them in the movie theater parking lot? Not a chance. At least not until now. But when the folks at Ferrari start describing the new 2009 California as a daily driver, they really mean it. And if you’re willing to risk a ding in the supermarket lot, you just might agree.
The launch of the 2010 Ferrari California has kicked off a little dust-up among those who’ve argued that it’s not quite up to the design standards of the brand. There’s no question it’s a bit different from the likes of the F430 or the 612 Scaglietti, with some unusual touches, like the vertically stacked twin-double exhaust pipes, a layout Ferrari aerodynamicists came up with because it reduces drag in the rear wheel wells.
But to our eyes, it’s also an admirable attempt at homage to the original 250 GT California, which was produced between 1953 and 1964.
One of the more unusual features in a generally controversial design, the vertical dual-dual exhaust layout is intended to reduce aero drag.
Of course, there are a few notable updates, starting with the all-aluminum modular body, the exception is the composite rear panel. Indeed, there are some significant Ferrari firsts with the 2009 California. For one thing, it marks the first time Ferrari has mounted a V-8 engine ahead of the cockpit, rather than amidship.
Then there’s the all-new, two-piece folding roof, a trick affair that you can raise or lower, with the touch of a button, in just 14 seconds. It does add heft, bringing the total weight of the car to about 3800 pounds, but it’s amazingly easy to operate and, in the up position, gives you the comfort, security and relative quietness of a Ferrari coupe.
Ostensibly, the 2009 Ferrari California is a 4-seater, or as the automaker has dubbed it, a “2+”. No, that’s not a typo. It is not a “2+2,” the automaker has conceded, for despite the claims of Ferrari CEO Luca di Montezemolo, who insists he’s spent time back there, you’d have trouble finding room for anyone out of a child seat. But it does make a reasonably good storage area and, in fact, you can skip the charade and opt for a bench rather than two useless “seats.”
The 2009 Ferrari California is the marque's first offering with a front, rather than midship, mounted V-8, as well as the first with a retractable hardtop -- which opens in 14 seconds.
In the Ferrari matrix, products are divided into sports cars or GTs, V-12s and V-8s. Until now, the Scaglietti had the GT segment all to its own and the GT V-8 quadrant was entirely empty. The California fills that gap, and will carry a reasonable, Ferrari’s term, price tag of around $250,000 once you get it out the showroom door, $244,000 if you talk “base.”
The 453 horsepower, 4.3-liter powertrain boasts another first, Direct Injection, a nod to the need to improve mileage, now 13 City/19 Highway, and lower CO2 emissions. It uses all-new cylinder heads, variable valve timing and a distinctive flat crank, and, in classic Ferrari style, it’s a high revver, an 8,000 RPM redline, though you’ll get 75% of its 358 lb-ft of torque by the time the engine is spinning at 3,250 revs. That front-engine layout helps deliver a balanced 47/53 weight distribution.
Perhaps one of the most delightful features to the powertrain is the F1-derived, rear-mounted dual-clutch transmission. It’s inspiringly intuitive, seemingly always ready with the next gear and, depending on how you’re manning the beast, will shift almost imperceptibly or with a bang that feels like your afterburners have just kicked in. For easy driving, you can leave the seven-speed Getrag gearbox in automatic mode, though true aficionistas will likely prefer manual mode, shifting with the twin, steering wheel-mounted paddles.
Though Ferrari calls the 2009 California a "2+", the back seat is better suited to extra luggage.
Despite its relative heft, the California is blindingly quick. Slap the throttle hard and you’ll immediately feel yourself sucked into the car’s deep sports seats. You’ll hit 60 in well under four seconds and, if you’re willing to chance the ticket, the California will top out around 194 mph.
To check out the first part of that equation, we switched on Launch Control – or what Ferrari is renaming Performance Start. It lets you gun the engine, automatically finding and holding the perfect rev set, before take-off. Lift off the brake and, well, it’s about as close as most mortals will come to the feeling of being launched off an aircraft carrier’s catapult.
One of the most rewarding elements of the powertrain is the resonant blat of the V-8 at full throttle. A hard launch from a stoplight will likely send the old lady in the minivan in the next lane lifting out of her seat. It’s the sound of raw power at your fingertips, or, if you prefer, at the beck-and-call of your right foot, and there’s nothing else like it.
Like other recent Ferrari models, you can make some significant adjustments using the wheel-mounted controls. This includes the F1 Trac Traction Control. Put it into its competitive mode and you’ve not only switched off stability control but reduced the effort you’ll need to push the California to its limits.
Paddle shifters and other key controls are located on the 2009 Ferrari California's steering wheel.
We had the chance to nudge the outer edge when we headed out the Ortega Highway, north of San Diego, and into the hilly California back country. (An appropriate, if obvious place for a first drive in the new Ferrari.) The 2+-er proved surprisingly easy to drive, effortlessly whipping around the tightest of corners and almost begging us to go just a little bit faster through the next turn.
(We actually had a chance to drive two versions of the 2009 California, during the course of the day, and were pleased to have the model with the optional magnetic ride dampers for the Ortega run. There is an irony to this feature, however, as it costs $6,000 to add the suspension system offered on the seemingly pedestrian Corvette.)
What’s particularly impressive about the 2009 Ferrari California is that it doesn’t require you to always be driving hard. The car actually seemed to enjoy cruising through the heavy traffic, earlier in the day, down the Pacific Coast Highway. Unlike earlier gearboxes, the double-clutch handles stop-and-go driving smoothly, with nary a protest.
The break from hard driving gave us a chance to appreciate the rest of the car’s design. The interior may be one of the best-executed layouts Ferrari has come up with, though the unusual flying center console takes a bit of time to get used to. Our two-tone color scheme was bright and flashy but, then again, totally appropriate to the car.
A real trunk? Another reason to think of the 2009 Ferrari California as a daily driver.
Dare we say it, the design almost encourages you to think of the new 2009 Ferrari California as the sort of car you could take out on the road every day. It’s even designed to minimize the normally horrific cost of ownership, requiring just 11 hours of (still expensive) labor in its first 50,000 miles. If only there were a cupholder for the morning Starbucks. Then again, if you own a car like this, you won’t need a cuppa caffeine to start the morning with a jolt. Just slip into track mode, hit Performance Start, and you’ll have your eyes wide open in a heartbeat.