A Unique and Unrivaled Presence: Ferrari

My younger brother, who has appeared regularly on this blog before, recently bought a Ferrari F8 Spider, so I had the chance to drive it. After riding a Ferrari again for the first time in a while, I want to share my honest impressions comparing it to Porsche and other cars.

Ferrari as a brand dislikes being compared to other cars in the media. For example, on shows like Car Graphic TV, episodes featuring Ferrari rarely include other manufacturers’ cars.

Also, it’s well known that Ferrari does not publish Nürburgring lap times, reflecting their philosophy that Ferrari is a unique, unparalleled brand not to be compared with others.

But this is a personal blog. Without any deference or restraint, I want to write my honest impressions comparing Ferrari, Porsche, and other cars based purely on my own judgment and bias.

The Ferrari F8 Spider

The car in question is the Ferrari F8 Spider. The “Spider” designation means it’s a Ferrari with an open-top option, featuring a hardtop roof that can be opened or closed at the push of a button.

It’s painted in Bianco Cervino, a white tone, with a red-themed interior equipped with racing carbon seats. The steering wheel is carbon fiber, and the interior feels far more glamorous and luxurious than Porsche’s.

The engine is a 3.9-liter V8 mid-mounted, boasting 720ps, 770Nm of torque, and an 8000rpm redline.

The exterior is stunning. Despite its considerable width, it actually looks more compact than it is. I heard that the design is no longer by Pininfarina since the 488, but the low-slung front flowing into the rear lines is magnificent.

Surprisingly, the wheelhouse clearance is quite generous—seemingly more spacious than Porsche’s—yet it doesn’t feel tall at all, which is impressive.

If you’re someone who thinks “I want it!” just from the design alone, feel free to close this blog now without reading further. Ferrari’s greatest appeal is, after all, its design. This design satisfies both ownership pride and the desire to show off at the highest level.

Ride Comfort of the Ferrari

Starting the engine awakens the Ferrari with a roar. It has an automatic transmission but no traditional D mode; you start in first gear using the paddle shifters.

My first impression after setting off was that the ride comfort is better than the previous 488 and even better than the last GTC4Lusso I drove.

I wondered if my memory was off, so I asked my brother, who agreed: “I think so too. The ride is definitely better than the Lusso.” The stiff body shell effectively suppresses vibrations caused by the firm suspension.

Of course, it’s a sports car, so it’s not as smooth as a sedan—the ride is firm.

Compared to the latest Porsches, the 992 Carrera models have far better ride comfort, while compared to the 992 GT3, the Ferrari sometimes feels more comfortable depending on the road conditions.

To elaborate on the comparison with the Porsche GT3: on rough surfaces at low speeds, the Ferrari feels more comfortable due to less side-to-side sway, but on flat or mildly uneven roads, the GT3 feels smoother.

The GT3’s dampers are more supple and absorb shocks faster, but the Ferrari’s suspension has more travel, reducing vibrations from large inputs or low-speed bumps.

Overall, the Ferrari’s ride is good. There are no unpleasant jolts or harsh vibrations, but on some surfaces, the shock absorption can lag slightly, causing a rattling or rumbling sensation.

If you put a spouse or girlfriend who isn’t interested in cars in the passenger seat, I think it’s just about acceptable without complaints.

Handling Characteristics of the Ferrari

Driving through the city and heading toward mountain roads, the handling manners are completely different from Porsche. The steering lock-to-lock is just over two turns, and unlike Porsche’s suspension and weight transfer-based cornering, Ferrari feels like it turns primarily with the steering wheel.

So, at first, it feels like the steering is more responsive than expected.

Compared to the previous 488, it feels milder. The 488 amplified driver inputs more, but the F8 is a bit gentler and much easier to drive. This was a very positive point for me personally.

However, beyond a certain steering angle, the Ferrari tends to oversteer and dive into the corner, which is typical Ferrari behavior. This requires some steering corrections and is a major difference from Porsche.

Porsche never does more or less than the driver intends. It’s a faithful setup, but Ferrari tends to go ahead of the driver’s intentions.

This is part of Ferrari’s charm—the thrilling unpredictability and excitement.

Impressions on Winding Roads

Taking the Ferrari onto mountain roads, I increased the pace in the normal ‘SPORT’ mode.

Even on mountain corners, the initial steering feel seems milder than the predecessor. While chatting with my brother about how much easier it is to drive, I operated the paddle shifters to downshift. The shift shock remains relatively strong compared to modern dual-clutch transmissions.

As someone used to Porsche’s ultra-smooth, lightning-fast PDK shifts, I honestly felt a bit of a disconnect. It spoils the charm of the smooth, high-revving engine.

I noted this with the Lusso as well and wonder if it could be smoother. Both upshifts and downshifts have some shift shock in manual mode. Of course, Ferrari likely includes some theatricality in gear changes, but this is one area I hope improves.

My brother said the AT control is much smarter than the Lusso’s. For example, when downshifting from 7th to 6th for overtaking on the highway, the Lusso annoyingly tries to upshift back to 7th against your will, but the F8 has improved this.

The handling is, naturally, excellent. It corners well and performs without issue. But if asked “Is it fun?” or “Does it feel good?”, I’d say it’s fun in a different way.

I recently wrote about test-driving the Mercedes E200 Coupe and how impressed I was driving it in sport mode.

Asked if that feeling exists in the Ferrari, I didn’t sense it.

I know it’s strange to compare the E200 Coupe and Ferrari F8 directly. In terms of speed, Ferrari wins hands down.

But I’m talking about feeling, not numbers. When you look ahead into a corner, ease off the throttle, apply weight, and turn the wheel slightly, the car responds instantly and smoothly, creating a very pleasant sensation.

That feeling was present in the E200’s sport mode, making me smile, but it’s different with Ferrari.

With Porsche, you get a lot of feedback from the car and feel like you’re part of a team with it, while Ferrari always anticipates the driver’s inputs and tries to turn more vividly. On corner exit, when you open the throttle hard, the rear gets twitchy, almost as if the Ferrari is daring you: “Try to push me if you dare.”

Rather than being a team effort, it feels like you’re taming a living creature with its own will called Ferrari.

If you can appreciate this as “interesting” or “fun,” Ferrari will be the perfect partner.

Impressions on the Highway

Switching to the highway, I drove the Ferrari at cruise. At 7th gear cruising, it feels very calm, and you might forget you’re in a 720ps Ferrari. The engine noise is surprisingly quiet, but road noise is somewhat loud, so you’ll want to raise your voice a bit to hold a conversation.

When gently opening the throttle from steady cruise in 7th gear, the response feels a bit sluggish. It accelerates with a slight delay—a phenomenon I also noticed in the 488. The pickup from low revs when easing on the throttle is slow.

I wondered if this was turbo lag or simply a lack of low-end torque. Later, I found that Ferrari claims “zero turbo lag.”

But at least in this situation, my impression was quite different.

On the other hand, the response is outstanding once the revs are up, so perhaps that’s what they mean.

When the road clears, I floored the throttle. Needless to say, the acceleration is furious. No 911 Carrera stands a chance. It reaches the target speed in no time, or rather, you realize you’ve already exceeded it.

The acceleration phase is so brief that there’s no time to feel speed or fear. Of course, it’s stable at high speed, but it’s an exhilarating acceleration experience.

Incidentally, Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari once said:

Those who choose Ferrari crave instantaneous acceleration more than absolute top speed.

This perfectly reflects the philosophy behind Ferrari’s car design even today.

Now, about the engine sound everyone wonders about.

Compared to the 488, probably due to the GPF (Gasoline Particulate Filter) installed to meet Euro 6d regulations, the sound is relatively quiet and somewhat muffled. While the 488’s V8 turbo seemed to rise in pitch as revs climbed, the F8’s sound range feels narrower.

If you expect the high-revving, wind-in-the-pipes sound typical of Ferrari engines, you might find it a bit underwhelming.

Horse and Rider Separate

After driving the Ferrari in the city, on winding roads, and on the highway, one phrase came to mind: ‘Horse and rider separate.’

‘Horse and rider as one’ is usually a compliment, so this might sound like criticism, but it’s not. I deliberately chose ‘horse and rider separate’ to express Ferrari’s charm.

This is because I think Ferrari’s kind of ‘fun’ is the polar opposite of Mazda’s Roadster, which uses ‘horse and rider as one’ as its slogan. The Roadster is probably the best example of a car with the opposite kind of fun to Ferrari.

The Roadster’s lightweight body, modest power, and slightly soft suspension let you control weight transfer and enjoy becoming one with the car. Ferrari, with its huge power, sensual engine sound, and somewhat risky handling, offers fun by making the driver confront and wrestle with the car.

In other words, the fun is in taming the ‘prancing horse’ that doesn’t obey commands. That’s why I describe Ferrari as ‘horse and rider separate.’

Even with the F8, which is much more driver-friendly than previous models, the Ferrari bloodline remains strong.

It’s still very much a ‘prancing horse,’ in my opinion.

Before I bought and drove a Porsche, like many others, I thought Porsche and Ferrari were rivals. Of course, they are rivals in business to some extent, but the more you get to know both, the more you realize their car-making philosophies are vastly different, and they belong to almost completely different categories.

Like the Roadster, they are almost polar opposites.

So, when people say “After Porsche, it’s Ferrari,” remember that it’s not a step up on the same path, but a move to a car with a completely different kind of driving enjoyment and performance.