Ferrari: At last there's one for the real world

The new Ferrari California is a surprisingly easy drive. Photo / Jacqui Madelin

International launch conditions are quite different from local ones and strictly controlled launch routes are rarely typical of New Zealand roads. Hence our drive of Ferrari's California north of Auckland - albeit with the company's hand-brake sitting rigid in the passenger seat, periodically reciting insurance excesses, speeding-fine info, and what the distributor's fearsome owner, the redoubtable Neville Crichton, would do to me if I scratch this car. He didn't even get started on the dealer's likely reaction, given this Ferrari belongs not to Crichton but to a dealer.

So what's new? It's here, for starters. Order one now and it will take two years, but deliveries are under way. Buyers get Ferrari's first front-engined V8 road car, its first with direct injection, a double clutch and seven gears, its first electronically folding hard-top roof. It's the second to get cruise control, following the 612 last year.

Cruise control? Yep, this is Ferrari's GT, designed to deliver the prancing horse's famous persona but be easier to drive. This test car even came with a Ferrari-branded iPod. It's one of a suite of extras that include the 20-inch diamond-finish wheels, active suspension and electric seats. That adds $33,956 to the car's $442,750 price.

The company line is "slow down". Yes, I mean it, "slow down". You have to wonder how owners of hard-core Ferraris cope on our 100km/h roads. At least the California is designed for drivers who want their Ferrari comfy enough for touring. The plan was to draw new customers into the fold, and it's working. Worldwide, 80 per cent of buyers are new to Ferrari, 70 per cent here, and the California has doubled the number of women owners.

Building a more accessible, softer Ferrari means its more sporting alternative can get harder. So you can expect the new 458 entry-level car to be quicker than the departing 430's most extreme variant, with the line-up culminating in a GT3 racer. As for softer, it's all relative. The California's 4.3-litre 338kW/485Nm engine is front-mounted but it still sits between the axles. There's still a manatino switch that tweaks throttle, gearbox, brakes, ESP, steering and suspension. And this car is still capable of zero to 100 in under four seconds and more than 300km/h.

The California is almost disappointingly easy to drive. You just get in, press the start button and pull away. Yes, there's aural drama from the engine, but none from the auto transmission or the suspension-handling equation.

My co-driver strictly controlled my progress - largely by strident squawks at too brisk an increase in speed and uncontrolled sweating at rapid approaches to corners. What this drive did prove is that on "normal" this car can also be almost comfortable too.

Mind you, a spirited approach to bends causes spectacular graunching noises as the underbody touches our bumpy B-road tarmac. My co-driver reckoned the rear diffuser's the culprit. Switching to "sport" reduced touch-down as the suspension firmed; fortunately Ferrari expects vigorous drivers to kiss the tar.

Why you'll buy one
You want a Ferrari that works in the real world, one that your sports-car-hating spouse can live with.

Why you won't
Ferraris should be hard-core and this one's just too easy to drive.