Moreover, each down shift is accompanied by a glorious blip of the throttle. Switch the manettino dial to ‘Race’ and up shifts will even be quicker to the point that it’s faster than you can blink an eye while the box down shifts on its own even in automatic mode when slowing down. The upshifts are brilliantly fast and crisp as the gearbox bangs in gear after gear without any delays or pauses during acceleration even when the manettino dial set to ‘Sport’, making it one of the fastest shifting DCTs I’ve ever experienced. Like in the FF, the Spider’s box seems to be tuned to maximise gear change speed rather than for a fine balance between performance and refinement as in the California. Sending the V8’s power to the Spider’s rear wheels is a seven-speed F1 double clutch transmission (DCT) that is also utilised by the 458 Italia, FF and California. Its maximum torque of 540Nm is produced at 6000rpm. The award winning 4.5-litre (hence the ‘45’ in its 458 moniker) V8 musters an impressive 562bhp at a stratospheric 9000rpm, 500rpm higher than the 490bhp the 430 Spider’s V8 makes. Just like in the 430 Spider predecessor, the 458 Spider’s engine sits in front of the rear wheels for optimal weight distribution. Ride quality is relatively comfortable too at these mundane speeds for such a hardcore sports car. The drivetrain remains smooth while the previously blaring exhaust note has turned down its volume by ten notches. On the other hand, the engine is as docile as a well-trained pet at low speeds and when pottering along with traffic. Top down, you can certainly enjoy every decibel of the V8’s engine note and exhaust blare in the Spider, much less muted than in the fixed roof coupe. With the Spider, Ferrari has tweaked the V8’s exhaust note a tad so as to maximize the occupants’ aural pleasure when the roof is down. At this point, the LED gear change lights on the optional carbon fibre steering wheel light up one-by-one just like on a Christmas tree and the V8 noise will reach a higher octave and scream its heart out. Once past 6000rpm though, the V8 seems to pick up another gear and delivers even more brutal power and go all the way to its 9000rpm redline. Thankfully though, I’ve previously tasted the epic V8’s pedal to the metal prowess on Sepang’s straights and it’s Fast with a capital F, so much so that you’d need to adjust your senses to suit to the speed the 458 is capable of. With so much performance on tap, it’s near impossible to use full throttle without driving insanely on our public roads. There are tonnes of oomph in the mid-range. The engine’s power delivery is just so sensational – it pulls cleanly from as low as 2000rpm. 0-100km/h is quoted as less than 3.4 seconds with terminal velocity at 320km/h. The slightly more portly Spider is no less phenomenal in the way it performs in a straight line. Having first driven a 458 Italia over a year back at a tyre launch event in Sepang, I’m fully aware of its sublime straight line speed. Even at idling, this car has an exhaust note that is Loud with a capital L. Twist the key in the ignition press the red engine start button on the steering wheel and the whole world rumbles as the V8 comes to life.
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