FERRARI 458 Speciale Review

Still, let's not be hypocrites here. Presently we are fully indulging ourselves in the fiercer character of the 458 Speciale. To put it another way, we are flooring it up to the new 9,000 rpm redline and the sound is... rev-tastic.

To us, the normal 458 always felt... well... a bit underpowered and they've corrected that now. McLaren 650s and even 12C fans will point out that the British still do it faster, but nothing matches Ferrari's naturally aspirated character. The engine sounds even more Prancing Horse than before and when you're screaming through the revs, you fell this is all a truly noble sport.

The direct-injected aluminum unit sees its compression ratio taken from 12.5:1 to a whopping 14:1 and while the torque wasn't increased, engineers made sure more of it comes earlier.

As for the remastered soundtrack, this comes thanks to a new intake architecture. In addition to a new cam profile and other mods, we get a carbon airbox.

American V8s won't be all that bothered though, since the Ferrari's 398 lb-ft (540 Nm) torque figure remains unchanged. What this means is that the supercar doesn't change the way it delivers power, there's just more to dive into.

Various materials used for building the V8 were brought to the next level. For instance, the piston pins now use Diamond-Like Carbon for superior wear resistance. We must also mention the engineers have gone as far as modifying the crankshaft. Apart from the aforementioned output upgrade, the 4.5-liter V8 is also lighter. We're only talking 18 lbs (8 kg) here, but it's still highly impressive.

Ferrari, being Ferrari, couldn't help themselves and spiced just about every other technical area of the car. Even with the Prancing Horse, the racing references are marketing play on many occasions, but this is not the case though. The 458 Speciale actually borrows a race car's directness.

As a driver, it probably takes longer for you to react to a change than for the car to act on your thoughts.

Ferrari may not build its own dual-clutch gearbox, but they've surely gone wild with the implementation though. In the Speciale, the seven-speed unit needs 20 percent less time for its revs to adapt when you upshift. As for the downshifts, the rev-matching is done 40 percent quicker than before, so you can get to putting all that power down quicker.

Since we mentioned putting the power down, we're reached a pretty sensitive area. You see, the 458 was always a bit too tail-happy for our taste. What can we say, we just don't like the fact it seems to be involved in more oversteer-related crashes than a rear-wheel drive supercar should. In fact, we almost got bitten ourselves while testing the 458 Spider.

Well, Ferrari has now come with what we call Slip Anger Management. We are talking about a bit of software that's actually named Side Slip Angle Control (SSC). This is a new software that only works when you are in the Race or CT Off (traction, but not stability control off) Manettino modes.

We're working out way through a medium left-hander now, using the CT Off setting. What the new electronic wizardry does is offer a better use of Ferrari's E-Diff electronically-controlled limited slip diff and its F1-Trac control system.

The 458 has always been an exquisite drifter, but, like we said, it liked to bite too often. With the Speciale, they've solved that, albeit only partially.

The steering itself feels a little heavier than in the 458, dealing with the only complaint we've ever had for the otherwise insanely good Ferrari steering.

There's plenty of grip from the new Michelin Pilot Sport Cup2 tires and this is true for both dry and wet roads. 1.33 gs on the skipad is a lot. Once the grip runs out, the 458 Speciale smoothly lets the back out. The car lets you know exactly what happens and what is going to take place next. It now dances more sure-footed than before.

Alas, like we said, you have to make sure you are always feeding it with enough gas, even though sometimes this means risking to over correct the oversteer. No matter what you do, don't become scared and go off the throttle - doing this means reaching the limits of the car's seven electronic wonders and spinning out. You don't want to end up on the wrong side of YouTube, do you?

The best part about the Side Slip Angle Control is that the 458 Speciale still feels mighty organic, there's no artificial flavor here. The balance of the chassis is superb. It feels nimble on the road and the same is true for the track. Take it to the circuit and the 458 Speciale will deliver constant, high-tier performance.

The sharper response isn't here by chance. Oh no, Ferrari made the springs stiffer, also bringing a new algorithm for the magnetorheological dampers. While the handling is world class, the new shock absorbers control logic means that the ride isn't affected at all – this stays comfortable for a supercar, just like in the standard 458. McLaren still tops this area though.

And when you have to loose all that speed, you'll find a trustworthy partner in the upgraded brakes. Instead of boosting the size of the discs, which would've made the carbon ceramic units heavier, Ferrari increased the percentage of silicone used. The stopping distances are now shorter, while the system can take more abuse. From behind the wheel, what you feel is a certain amount of added confidence.

With the Speciale, the 458 makes an important step further then. You can feel every muscle of the car showing its new-found extra determination. Moreover, they all come together to offer one of the sharpest driving experiences out there. It is this directness that makes up the best part of the supercar.

You shouldn't rush to your Ferrari dealer in an effort to trade your 458 or 458 Spider in for the Speciale. That's because you can't use this everyday.

The 458 Speciale may have traveled much further than its predecessors, the 360 Challenge Stradale or the 430 Scuderia, but it still has a few elements that make it hopelessly impractical. The uncomfortable part of the story is found in the slimmer windows and stiffer seats. The combination means it doesn't take long for this Ferrari to become tiring. The passenger's opinion? You have to be kidding.

It's a pity then, since the car would've performed just as well without these racing-inspired inspiring gimmicks.

OK, this leaves the Speciale with the role of a track car. Well, we're sorry to disappoint, but there are sharper machines out there. We haven't thrown a stopwatch at them, but McLaren's 650S is definitely faster. And since we're focusing on the track, one can always turn to the much cheaper circuit toys, such as a Caterham, for example. This is definetly the worst part of the Speciale.

Ferrari's 458 Italia does hold the pure breed argument against the aforementioned machines. It does exude in character. Nonetheless, it doesn't seem wise to pay at least US$ 298,000 (MSRP) just for that. We're talking about a healthy premium over the 458 Italia's $230,000 MSRP. Thus, the Speciale gets a six in the value for money department. In Europe, the 458 Speciale comes with a starting price of EUR238,000, including 21 percent VAT.

By the way, all those who say the 458 is now old should enjoy its natural aspiration while it lasts - Ferrari has already been spied testing what should be a turbocharged successor for the 458.

If our favorite Horse would just Prance the Speciale's upgraded tech bits onto a 458 without the aforementioned exaggerations, the result would be absolutely brilliant. Something to keep the 458 fighting the fresh Lamborghini Huracan and the partially-new McLaren 650S.