Ferrari California closes in

Ferrari has lifted the lid even further on its all-new supercar, the California. Following official pictures of the baby GT with its roof down (Issue 1,013), the Italian firm has now released more showing the model’s electric hard-top in place – and in action.

As you can see, it’s made up of two pieces – the roof itself and a separate opening section that comprises the bootlid and most of the rear end. According to Ferrari, the hood stows in only 14 seconds at the flick of a switch. The California is also practical. Conceived as a more usable alternative to the F430, it has luggage space behind the front seats, and 360 litres of capacity roof-up, 260 roof-down.

The model is smaller than the 599 GTB, but not exactly compact. Measuring 4.56m by 1.9m, it’s nearly 300mm longer than a Lamborghini Gallardo and just as wide. These pictures show the car in Azzurro California blue, the colour used for the original car’s appearance at 1962’s New York Motor Show.

This version gets a 454bhp 4.3-litre V8 with a seven-speed dual clutch gearbox, which is claimed to deliver 21.4mpg combined and CO2 emissions of 310g/km. The 0-60mph sprint is dispatched in four seconds.

The company also claims the California’s body develops 70kg of downforce at 125mph, while the technical highlights include Launch Control, a system which manages rear wheel slip electronically, resulting in maximum standing start acceleration.

According to Ferrari, the newcomer has recently been put through its paces by company president, Luca di Monte-zemolo, at the firm’s Fiorano test track. He described it as “supremely flexible in terms of usage”. The model will go on sale towards the end of 2009, priced around £130,000.