Forty grand turismo

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Red manettino dial on the right of the wheel usually has five settings; here it has just three. An indication of California’s lack of hardcore ambition Sources in Stuttgart report that signing off this interior was the real reason Ferdinand Piëch was forced to resign But if you want to uncork more than a handful of those 552 prancing ponies, you could be disappointed. The engine is technically accomplished, but lacking the raw emotion of the old naturally aspirated V8. You simply cannot feel turbo lag, and the staggered peak torque from third to seventh gear encourages you to chase the 8000rpm redline like we did in the good old days when CO2 was an odourless, naturally occurring gas that plants gulped for fun. The fgures bear this out: the Porsche drops its torque pants at 2100rpm, the Ferrari teases you to 4750rpm. Hence you do less short-shifting in the Ferrari than you do in the Porsche. But ultimately the new, cleaner V8 falls short, because when you do really rev it, the power delivery feels thin, and the sound efects taper of. At high revs, it’s not particularly characterful at all, which happens to be the point where the old 4.3 would soar and wail and come over all F1 car (before they too, were turbocharged, and ruined). At least the gear shifts remain incredibly incisive, and a farty little trill between ratios augments the drama. The California’s chassis is lowered 10mm and features spring rates some 15% stifer than before, but still it rolls like a P&O ferry in a churning sea and you’ll have a family of illegals running for the gaps between arch and body when you try to get back through Calais. There’s actually a good front end on this car, and plenty of low-speed traction given the signifcant extra hit of torque, but the very quick steering feels at odds with such a rolly body. Tip it into a corner and you can feel the chassis lag behind, giving a disconnected lack of precision, compromised traction and the need to take numerous nibbles at the steering. Sometimes it’s fun to unstick a car’s rear end, but at high speed and with soft suspension, the Cali just feels alarming. And that’s with the stifer setting selected. A still-too-intrusive Sport stability control setting doesn’t help: sprint cross-country and you’ll be constantly thwarted by that wadingthrough-mud frustration. The alternative is to turn everything of, but the lack of outright control, amplifed by the turbo torque, makes this an often unappealing proposition. That night, we head back to the hotel, the rain thumping down on bucking B-roads. CJ’s up front in the 911, and I can hear him getting on the throttle early and the Turbo just digging in and powering away. I feel much more hesitant in the Ferrari, and even the awkward wiper buttons on the steering wheel take too much mental capacity when trying to cover ground quickly. In so many ways, the two cars really are polar opposites. The Porsche is a relatively simple fx: it needs more low-speed comfort and refnement, and its engine and steering could be more characterful. It’s just unfortunate that this is so crucial to typical daily use, and that you need space to tap the Turbo’s brilliance; think about how much of that performance you’ll use before buying. The California T is more of a conundrum: it isn’t good enough to drive to feel like a true Ferrari, yet that sacrifce isn’t mitigated by levels of luxury you might fnd in a Mercedes SL. Ferrari has proved it can strike this balance with the incredible F12, a luxury GT with driving dynamics to make you whoop. The California should feel hewn from similar stuf; it doesn’t. But if you’ll only ever use six tenths of the performance and you’re a sucker for attention, there’s a high probability it’ll ft your requirements better than the 911. For me? 911 Turbo S Convertible gets the nod; California T gets the bullet. @IamBenBarry 98 SUBSCRIBE & SAVE UP TO 66%! GREATMAGAZINES.CO.UK/CAR | June 2015
Cabrio test: 911 Turbo S vs California T SPEC FERRARI CALIFORNIA T Price £154,490 As tested £200,628 Engine 3855cc 32v V8 bi-turbo, 552bhp @ 7500rpm, 557lb ft @ 4750rpm Transmission Seven-speed dualclutch auto, rear-wheel drive Suspension Double-wishbone front; multi-link rear Performance 3.6sec 0-62mph, 196mph, 24.1mpg, 273g/km Length/width/height 4570/1910/1322mm Weight/made of 1730kg/aluminium Rating ★★★★★ PORSCHE 911 TURBO S CONVERTIBLE Price £149,668 As tested £152,703 Engine 3800cc 24v flat-six bi-turbo, 552bhp @ 6500-6750rpm, 553lb ft @ 2100-4250rpm Transmission Seven-speed dualclutch auto, four-wheel drive Suspension MacPherson front; multi-link rear Performance 3.1sec 0-62mph, 197mph, 29mpg, 321g/km Length/width/height 4506/1880/1292mm Weight/made of1750kg/steel, aluminium Rating ★★★★★ It can be great fun doing this, but not in a California T. Wallowy and a bit scary If both engines shot sideways and swapped cars from this position they’d both be in a better place, ie, mid-mounted June 2015 | CARMAGAZINE.CO.UK 99
Page 1 and 2: 14 cars tested, starring BMW 7-seri
Page 3 and 4: And you don’t even get the TT’s
Page 5 and 6: £150k, 552bhp turbo cabrio aces th
Page 7 and 8: Behold the first turbocharged Ferra
Page 9: A lightweight magnesium roof frame
Page 13 and 14: Mercedes C220 BlueTEC AMG Line BMW
Page 15 and 16: ORGET THE X-TYPE, the made-over F M
Page 17 and 18: KEY TECH: JAGUAR XE Aluminium chass
Page 19 and 20: Do not touch It may look like an iP
Page 21: Jaguar XE R-Sport 2.0D Price (as te

Forty grand turismo

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