2010 Ferrari California First Test

The California is a car filled with firsts for Ferrari: the first front-engine V-8, the first use of direct injection, the first seven-speed transmission, the first true launch-control system, the first retractable hardtop, and the first stacked exhaust. But fear not, all these firsts have not changed the purity of Ferrari; they’ve just expanded its range.

There have been front-engine sixes and 12s, but this is the first front-engine eight and with it Ferrari has managed to make the entry-level California a true supercar in every sense of the word. The direct injection helps improve mileage and decrease emissions but because the California is heavier than the F430 it shares its engine architecture with, the tuning is optimized to boost torque by 14 lb-ft at the expense of 29 horsepower, for a total of 454 hp and 357 lb-ft.

The Getrag dual-clutch seven-speed automated manual gearbox is nothing short of absolute perfection, worlds better than the old single-clutch F1 automated manual found in most current Ferraris. The speed in which shifts are made has always been a bragging point for the Italians, and the nanoseconds have slowly diminished over the years to the point where they are now basically immeasurable. In addition, the neck-snapping caused by the old F1 gearbox is gone. All you’re left with is a constant acceleration accompanied by a sweet-sounding bark between shifts.

Other Ferraris have had “launch-control” systems, but those were nothing more than a way to quickly smoke away a few hundred dollars’ worth

of tire. The California has a true launch-control system. So how does it work? Turn the CST traction control off, foot on brake, launch button pressed, wait for the beep, and then mat the gas. When the revs hit around 3000 rpm, lift off the brake. All you need do now is just hang on and keep the car pointed straight. The California’s new transmission, set up in launch mode, auto upshifts for you until you run out of gears. So what does she run? We got 3.5 seconds to 60, while the quarter mile ticked away in 11.9 seconds at 117.4 mph. That’s damned impressive for a car weighing 3916 pounds with only 454 horsepower.

source: motortrend