Do you know what the most successful model in Ferrari’s history is? Yes, the California, hardly Pininfarina’s finest hour, has been a consistent bestseller for the company since its launch in 2008. It opened up the brand to an entirely new customer base, offering approachability, top-down glamour, a glorious soundtrack from its V8 and the practicality of two seats in the rear. Oh and let’s not forget that badge – the lure of the Prancing Horse should never be underestimated.
When the California T was launched in 2014, the styling was vastly improved, and the car impressed on all bases, having been comprehensively overhauled and turned into a proper sporting four-seater. Having spent a few days with one, I quickly fell in love with it, and could find nothing I wanted to change. But some potential owners want a harder, more focused California T. Now, if they want to, they can opt for the Handling Speciale option: a Dh30,000 overhaul of its suspension for sharper shooting.
Ferrari is giving its clients choice, and there’s nothing wrong with that. But the regular California T is a terrific car as it is, and the thought of a harsher ride does nothing for me. But traditional Ferrari fans have been known to view the model as a bit soft and against brand principles, so there’s undoubtedly some demand for a retuned suspension package.
So what the HS option brings to the table are stiffer springs (16 per cent more so up front; 19 per cent at the rear) and retuned dampers, along with a unique sports exhaust system that Ferrari says liberates more noise and a quicker changing transmission – not that the standard car’s was sluggish, mind you. Trim-wise, there’s a special finish to the exhaust tips, a matte-silver grille, some subtle diffuser action at the rear and a badge on the centre console – the rest of the car remains unchanged.
And that means it’s still a monstrously fast piece of Italian engineering. Few cars can hold a candle to the California T’s ability to cover ground at such speed. But is it a GT recipe ruined? Can the HS hope to be all things to all drivers? Some spirited driving along some of Italy’s finest twisties should reveal all.
It’s noticeably noisier as soon as you thumb the starter button, although it’s still much duller than the original car’s electrifying soundtrack, thanks to the addition of twin turbochargers. Still, be thankful for small mercies. As I set off through town and urban areas in search of a test route in the mountains not far from Portofino, the suspension crashes over potholes and rough surfaces, even in its most comfortable setting, and I find myself wondering why anyone other than a masochist would opt for this package.
But once the road opens, widens and the surfaces become less pocked, the HS comes into its own, delivering a completely different hit. With almost laser-guided accuracy, the car responds to each input with seemingly telepathic reactions. It’s not as pointy as a 488 GTB (it doesn’t need to be, either), but it’s entertaining in a way that rivals such as Porsche’s 911 Turbo and Mercedes’s SL couldn’t hope to be. The route throws up switchback corners, quick changes in camber and occasional bad surfaces, but nothing gets in the way of this car’s progress.
As the day draws on, the roof goes down and the volume goes up. It’s far from ruined, in any respect, but there has to be a trade-off between occupant comfort and sporting prowess. And indeed there is. The magnetic dampers work like magic on the standard car, and they’re present and correct here, too. It’s the stiffer springs that will divide opinion, and whether you want them suspending your California T will very much depend on how you see yourself using it.
If you’re more interested in posing along Abu Dhabi’s Corniche or Dubai’s JBR than pushing the envelope on some this nation’s fabulous mountain roads, then stick with the regular flavour. On the other hand, if you relish the idea of a weekend cross-country thrash to Ras Al Khaimah so you can experience the incomparable delights of the road up and down Jebel Jais, the HS package would make perfect sense.
A similar package was available on the previous California, and Ferrari says roughly 10 per cent of owners opted for it. I never got to drive one with it fitted, but reports complained of an unresolved ride that was unnecessarily harsh. The mix here, however, appears to be much better, and the technological advancements made in the past four years have, says Ferrari’s obsessed engineers, made compromise more palatable.
If you’re fortunate enough to be considering buying a new California T, you owe it to yourself to try one that’s fitted with the HS package, but don’t feel pressured by any sales rhetoric to tick that box – the standard car is still the one that I would go for.
motoring@thenational.ae
