Ferrari 458 Italia Spider 2012

The 458 Spider was introduced at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. This convertible variant of the 458 Italia features an aluminium retractable hardtop which, according to Ferrari, weighs 25 kilograms (55 lb) less than a soft roof such as the one found on the Ferrari F430 Spider, and requires 14 seconds for operation. The engine cover has been redesigned to accommodate the retractable roof system. It has the same 0–100 km/h (62 mph) acceleration time as the coupé but has a lower top speed of 320 km/h (199 mph) due to the added weight.


The Ferrari 458 Italia (Type F142) is a mid-engine sports car produced by Ferrari. The F458 is the successor of the F430, and was first officially unveiled at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show. It was succeeded by the 488 GTB (Gran Turismo Berlinetta), which was unveiled at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show

In Ferrari's first official announcement of the car, the 458 was described as the successor to the F430 but arising from an entirely new design, incorporating technologies developed from the company's experience in Formula One.[8]

The body computer system was developed by Magneti Marelli.

The 458 is powered by a 4,497 cc (4.5 L; 274.4 cu in) engine of the "Ferrari/Maserati" F136 V8 family, generating a power output of 570 PS (419 kW; 562 hp) at 9,000 rpm (redline) and 540 N⋅m (398 lb⋅ft) of torque at 6,000 rpm[9] with 80% torque available at 3,250 rpm.[8] The engine features direct fuel injection, which is a first for Ferrari mid-engine setups in its road cars.

The only transmission available on the 458 is a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox by Getrag, in a different state of tune shared with the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG. There is no traditional manual option, making this the first mainstream model to not be offered with a manual transmission.

The car's suspension has double wishbones at the front and a multi-link setup at the rear, coupled with E-Diff and F1-Trac traction control systems, designed to improve the car's cornering and longitudinal acceleration by 32% when compared with its predecessors.[8]

The brakes include a prefill function whereby the pistons in the calipers move the pads into contact with the discs on lift off to minimize delay in the brakes being applied.[10] This, combined with the ABS and standard Carbon Ceramic brakes, have caused a reduction in stopping distance from 100–0 km/h (62-0 mph) to 32.5 metres (107 ft).[11] Tests have shown the car will stop from 100 km/h (62.1 mph) in 90 feet (27 m) or in 85 feet (26 m) with run flat tires, 85 feet (26 m) from 60 mph (97 km/h) and 80 feet (24 m) from 60 mph (97 km/h) with run flat tires.

The adaptive magnetorheological dampers were co-developed with BWI Group.

Ferrari's official 0–100 km/h (62 mph) acceleration is 3.4 seconds.[12] The top speed is over 325 km/h (202 mph).[12] It has fuel consumption in combined cycle (ECE+EUDC) of 13.3 L/100 km (21.2 mpg‑imp; 17.7 mpg‑US) while producing 307 g/km of CO2.

In keeping with Ferrari tradition, the body was designed by Pininfarina under the leadership of Donato Coco, the Ferrari design director during 2009.[13]

The interior design of the Ferrari 458 Italia was done by Bertrand Rapatel (Director of Ferrari Interior Design), a French automobile designer.

The car's exterior styling and features were designed for aerodynamic efficiency, producing downforce of 140 kg (309 lb) at 200 km/h (120 mph).[8] In particular, the front grille features deformable winglets that lower at high speeds, in order to offer reduced drag.[14] The car's interior was designed using input from former Ferrari Formula 1 driver Michael Schumacher; in a layout common to racing cars, the new steering wheel incorporates many controls normally located on the dashboard or on stalks, such as turning signals or high beams.[8]

According to British car magazine Autocar, the 458 Italia's design has drawn inspiration from the Enzo Ferrari and its Millechili concept car.[15] It has been designed to be Ferrari's sportiest V8-engined car, to distinguish itself from the entry level California.