Ferrari California T (2014-2018) review - Reliability and Safety
Safety seems well covered, and there’s a strong warranty to keep reliability worries at bay
Modern Ferraris are now beautifully made and a far cry from the temperamental older models - and there have been no major issues reported with the California. It should be strong in a crash too. Multiple airbags are fitted as standard, and in the event of an accident roll over hoops are deployed immediately to protect passengers. The standard-fit carbon-ceramic brakes provide enormous stopping power and resist fade even when worked hard.
That said, you won’t find many driver assistance type aids on the Ferrari’s options list, so look elsewhere if you want cross-traffic and blind spot alerts, lane-keeping assistance or radar-operated cruise control. It might be the most usable Ferrari, but it is supposed to be a driver’s car, after all.
Warranty
Ferrari outdoes most of its premium and exotic rivals with a warranty package that lasts four years, as long as you keep to the recommended dealer inspection regime.
Servicing
As part of its drive to make ownership as pleasurable and easy as possible, Ferrari includes an incredible seven years of ‘free’ servicing for its new models, although you do still have to pay for consumables such as oil, brake pads and filters. So it’s unlikely you’ll drive away from your Ferrari dealer service thinking ‘that was cheap’… especially if you’ve been talked into a retro-fitted Handling Speciale kit, or other upgrades.
