Ferrari ROMA

I really really like the open cockpit feel of the other Ferraris. Not a fan of adding more clunk into the center to make the seating area tighter.

Overall though it is a cool car, but I already have the best front engine couple they've made.

 

I am sure the outside look will grow on me, but I never liked crowded interior.

 

I like it. A bit generic yes but I am glad to see their design going back to less convoluted (exemplified by the entire design of 812, part of F8 and 80% of the design of SF90). The silhouette is more similar to F12 which is a good thing. The grill pattern is my least favorite and I think the car may look better with it blacked out. I hope that the replacement of 812 will be more similar to monza SP2 than 812. Probably the ugliest Ferrari in many years imo (worse than FF and it is on par with the original California)

 

The interiors of the Ferraris remained the only elegant ones. Light, airy, extremely sporty, yet refined and functional. But the market and marketing impose certain choices. They are the people who wanted all this. This debatable ipad between steering wheel and glove box. There was no need to have a screen full of fingerprints to regulate the climate. I would have kept the old knobs tight, perhaps with touchscreen implementations. Centro Stile has masterfully integrated these screens into an elegant interior, but take a look at the cleaning of the 812 superfast dashboard!
Another piece of heart goes away with the tachometer with the hand. I know. The full screen behind the steering wheel is really well designed, but the charm of the splashing hand is completely lost

 

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photo: Top Gear

 

Some new presentation pics from Ferrari in Roma

https://www.instagram.com/p/B45hGvGBrze/?igshid=gapgyfpxosy9

 

The 550 Maranello introduced the wrap-around cockpit to an extent, this is just a more evolved version of that concept. Agree re the screens, they will just be blank hollows when this is shown on the lawns of Pebble Beach in 50 years.

 

Ah yes, you're right. I totally forgot about the 550. Even though it doesn't separate the driver and the passanger as much as the Roma, it's a similar styling for sure. I think a floating dashboard is more suitable for GT-cars like the Roma, while the individual seating style with that big giant split in the middle, should have been reserved for more extreme vehicles with racing and performance in focus.

 

What does it say next to Qao? Is it a number code?

Very interesting as this new and bespoke colour seems to have been dubbed "Roma" by Ferrari themselves.

 

Elegant, restrained exterior styling usually ages quite nicely. I like it. I'll reserve judgement on the interior until I actually sit in one.

 

You forgot this Marcel, we got this also

View attachment 2969554

 

Right and good meeting you in Rome. Hope you had a safe trip home.

Marcel Massini

 

As posted twice already before (earlier):
Chassis #248047 Blu Roma (QA016028) with Tortora 130426 interior.

Marcel Massini

 

Many years ago the romantic Luca di Montezemolo declared , "I find wings vulgar." . Vulgar or not vulgar the fact is that rear wings can reduce lift and improve the aerodynamics of a car, specially at high speeds. Porsche has been using variable rear wings for years in some of its models but Ferrari has always resisted to incorporate such aids, until now. Montezemolo's worries that wings could make Ferraris look like tuned cars have been taken into account in the Roma. The Roma wing is totally stealth while the car isn't moving and I presume that it only announces its presence after a certain speed or acceleration is achieved.




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Is the car presented by the representatives of Ferrari to the President of Italy the same car?

 

TTBOMK Yes.

Marcel Massini

 

Very nice. But I suppose quite expensive...

 

I think youre right about emissions rules, but its also a somewhat irrelevant Hp war, you know each model has to be "faster" on paper, hard to do with NA.
Lambo still makes a NA V10(but its slower) and Porche still does a great epic flat 6 in the GT3(its slower than the turbo). It is also a function of what the mnaufactuerer and customer value in their car. It seems that ferrari is all about being in the front end of paper specs, noise and looks. Driving pleasure as we knew it is not a ferrari priority. As you say people also get what they want, and ferraris current customer base is otherwise so motivated.

I'm pretty sure if ferrari had a 500hp NA v8 and heaven forbid a stick, the current ferrari customer would be confused why they built a slower harder to drive car. Its a space and customer base ferrari has abanbdoned.

So the future electric ferrari is not far off. Electric is both High tech, and higher performance(in terms of paper numbers), plus its relatively easy to do and makes governements happy. At this point all that would be lost from the current ferrari offering is engine sound. Considering all the dynamic feedback points enginered out already its not a huge step. Plus performance as its valued today will increase markedly. The 488 I drove mimicked an electric pretty well.

Poissibly the ferrari will see a value in producing a "classic" series of cars for those of us whoa re luddites.

 

Agreed. I think the 430 passed the point where a stick worked.
But the new turbo motots rev far lower, and have lots of low down Tq, so ironicaly can lend themselvs to a stick.

 

But it has always been that way. Enzo himself said that it was all about the V12, engine power and speed.

You mean the manual gearbox? I thought we had agreed on that one.

 

Agreed, but given the velocity at which it thrills the places and opprotunities where thats dobale are extremely limited, the rest of the time theyre pretty bland, and need not be, thats my issue. the Roma may be bland too, but for 99.99% hows that different.

Yeah just guiding a nannied missle it to me one step away from a roller coaster, its also very limited opportunity as said above.

Accleration is a thrill on its own, its just a thrill though, and one can get that from a hellcat challenger or corvette. Cant coment on the 355 never driven one.
But Im an 100% sure a F8 will smoke a F40 and Im 1000% sure Id rather have the experience of driving a F40 than an F8.
See the thing is fast cars are about the experience, and the modern experince is either ease of comfort or Thrill, to me I look for a more complete and imersive experience. But them my drives are either early suday am on back roads where flow is everything, or track.

The elie is crudly built and rattly, the motor sounds like a bucket of bolts and is not especialy smooth, its fundementaly an inexpensive machine and therefore has limitations, but its focused on the drive experience. It is a highly focused and evocative machine, every control speaks to you and is a pleasure to use, tha machien becoes an extension of your mind and will, similar to a good motorcycle.. As for breaking traction, my elsie on yoko slicks on track I can loose the front comming off acorner paex by applying power too fast and even drift the rear at will. Its a function of blanacing the car at its very limit, as opposed to driving a car at say 75% and then abusing power to obverwhelm the rear.
Hp is also an inetresting number its actualy all about power to weight and gearing. My track exige has 400hp and over 300 ftlbs of Tq and weights 2200lbs wit the rigth gearing, tahst beign said there is still this incredible pelasure to be had in driving the slow elsie on track, I always make sure to track it a few times per year.
Whats interesting is how lazy one becomes driving the more powerful grippy cars, you end up over braking into corners and then just adding power, as opposed to really using all what the car has to offer.

Thats all fine and good, but my issue with moderns is when you're below 8/10ths. I like a machine that is an extesion of my mind soul and body, a modern can do that in a way when past 8/10ths but is so lacking/bland elsewhere and it dosent have to be that way. I dont see how the Roma is different in this regard, it just looks nicer.

I dont think of it as brakign for a corner. Rather the brakes are there to settle the car for the corner. The rules from the 50's to now are not much different, well the big change was trail braking but not everyone can pull that off.
We agree there is a thing called drivign art, and to me the moderns bland too much of that out.

I see your point about the guilded missile, thats the more modern "thirll", but the places of application are really limited and the rest of the time the car is too bland.
Thats why i admire the Gt3, it covers all the bases in a way I have yet to see/experince in a modern ferrari. Maybe thats not what ferrari is about. From what i see ferrari these days is very much about some dude impressing themselvs with their sucess in a car thats easy to drive and asks for little from the driver but is actualy also really capable in the right hands if you can find a place to drive it at the limit on road. As is aid before besides South Africa the middle east or Argentina where are those places, and below that limit the moderns are bland. Those who have modern ferraris also tend to drive something else at the track.

Maybe if ferrari made something like the pista as other than a collectors piece I might see the brand diffferently.

I like the Roma because it looks good and is honest about what it is. Its also a return to elegant design while still cutting edge. As theyre going after niches, maybe ferrari will make an evocative edgy car again too,

Its all good, were all into cars. I just think ferrari is these days a binary experience, eitehr bland and easy or a thrill when near the limit. I dot see the Roma as different.

 

There was a member here who had both manual and F1 430's for a while, and he stated flatly that the manual really didn't work very well in it.

One of the reasons I decided on a 360 manual, which is hard enough to rev match while shifting.

 

^^^^this. I also find it incongruous that Ferrari, with all its emphasis on having controls on the steering wheel so you don’t have to divert your attention, would switch from knobs and physical buttons to virtually all touch screen (even for the ignition!), thereby forcing you to look down or across. Glad this isn’t true in my Porto.


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He also said the goal was immediate speed, and were moving from the NA V12. .




You mean the manual gearbox? I thought we had agreed on that one. [/QUOTE]

No manual gearbox could be fun with the right setup and motor, but a gearbox is but one part of adynamic feedback look in car. Theres everything from what you feel through the wheel, sound, dleicay of control, what your body feels though the seat.

I thiunk the new A110 nails dynamic feedback in modern package and it has paddles. What would a ferrari similarily inspired be like.

 

It works in a Porsche GT3 Touring very well. And in a 575 too.