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New 2019 Ferrari F8 Spider drops roof and drops in with 710bhp

The new Ferrari F8 Spider is the latest model to don the Spider name tag, and it the matches hard top F8 Tributo for acceleration and speed

The new, 710bhp Ferrari F8 Tributo already has a drop-top alternative. Called F8 Spider, it continues Ferrari’s strong mid-engined supercar heritage, packing the same punch as its hard top Berlinetta sibling but with open air thrills to boot. Prices have not yet been confirmed, but an asking price of £215,000 upwards seems likely. 

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Redesigned to accomodate a folding hard top roof, the F8 Spider features a totally flat, redesigned rear deck and gains a pair of proper B-pillars, while Ferrari has totally changed the rear spoiler too. It’s larger and reaches all the way round to the taillights. Sitting ahead of the new engine cover, a pair of wings emerge from the middle of the car and behind both seats.

New Ferrari F8 Tributo review

Ferrari has focused on making the roof as compact as possible. As a result, it divides into two parts and stows directly on top of the engine. The retractable hardtop takes 14 seconds to retract or reappear, and can be operated while the car is moving at speeds up to 28mph.

The front end of the car remains defined by slim LED headlights and a large S-duct sitting above the sculpted front apron, while down the flanks the F8 Spider retains strong shoulders and a large rear vent feeding from behind the door. Ferrari claims that the F8 Spyder is 10 per cent more aerodynamically efficient than the 488 Spider it replaces. 

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The interior is carried over entirely. That means that the F8 Spider features a driver oriented cockpit with no central infotainment screen. Instead, all information is presented to the driver through the large, partially digital instrument panel. An optional seven-inch display mounted on the passenger side of the dashboard is available.

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Under the metal it retains the turbocharged 3.9-litre V8 of the F8 Tributo, still developing 710bhp, 770Nm torque and revving out to an 8,000rpm redline. Ferrari quotes a dry weight of 1,400kg - an advance of 70kg on the dry weight of its hard-top relation. However, quoted performance figures are identical. Despite the loss of the roof, Ferrari still claims 0-62mph in 2.9 seconds, with a top speed of 211mph. 

It’s also 18kg lighter than the 488 Spider, being a tenth of a second faster than the car it replaces, and advancing on its predecessor’s 203mph top speed. 

Drive is sent exclusively to the rear axle through a seven-speed dual clutch gearbox, while all the usual Ferrari electronic control systems and driver aids are present and accounted for. Freshly developed Ferrari Side Slip Control version 6.1 appears. While previously, Side Slip Control would manipulate the limited slip differential to allow for a certain amount of slide, the latest version works with Ferrari Dynamic Enhancer too, bringing automatic manipulation of the brakes into play too, once the car is flicked into ‘Race’ mode on the steering wheel mounted manettino switch.

Do you like the look of the new Ferrari F8 Spider? Let us know your thoughts below...

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