The latest Ferrari Roma Spider was designed to provide a contemporary take on the chic, pleasure seeking lifestyle of Italy in the 1950s and 60s. With smooth curves rounding out the porporation, svolumes and specifications of the Ferrari Rom V8 2+, plus an innovative soft top – this is one beautiful spider.
It retains the Ferrari Roma’s excellent dynamic characteristics with a best- in-class weight/power ratio thanks to its soft top, all-aluminium chassis and 620 cv V8. The engine is coupled with Ferrari’s 8-speed DCT, known for incredibly fast shift times.
The Ferrari Roma Spider is designed to be a both rewardingly easy to drive, and extremely dynamic and responsive for superb standards both around town and on longer journeys – all with the burble of the Ferrari V8 soundtrack in the background.
For those who insist on some practicality …. the Roma Spider has a category-topping boot size which includes a hatch via the rear seat backrests to allow larger items to be carried.
The bespoke finish with two-tone weave draws on a palette of four colours highlighting the refined, haute couture nature of the fabric. The optional technical fabric developed specifically for this car gives it a sporty yet very sophisticated allure with an innovative weave creating an extremely striking iridescent red finish that further enhances the roof’s 3D surface.
The large rear glass screen is fully integrated into the soft-top geometry. The five-layer fabric dampens wind and road noise, making it quiet even at high speeds.
The soft top boasts acoustic comfort on a par with retractable hard tops and can be opened in just 5 seconds at speeds up to 60 km/h
The fastback cabin volume is compact and set back, ending in a subtle wing beneath which the designers have created a modern take on the signature Ferrari tail. The Ferrari Roma Spider’s long rear overhang, which is a characteristic of the Ferraris of the 1950s and 60s, has been re-proportioned here, resulting in a low, compact volume which hugs the rear axle.
Redesigning the coupé’s tapering, fastback roofline meant modifying the rear screen to incorporate it into the soft top so that it can fold below the tonneau cover when open. On the Ferrari Roma Spider, the original styling theme has become a body-colour band running across the base of the roof that divides the carbon-fibre active spoiler from the roof and rear screen, creating a seamlessly integrated tonneau cover. When the soft top is lowered, the active spoiler visually connects with the rear bench and head rests.
A new material has been used for the Ferrari Roma Spider’s soft-top, giving it a sophisticated air. Special fabric weaves were selected and developed in colour combinations that highlight the car’s twin souls, one more elegant and the other sportier.
Two separate spaces, one each for driver and passenger, were created in an evolution of the dual cockpit concept, which has its roots deep in the marque’s history with cars from the 1970s. The innovative look of this dual cockpit was achieved by extending the philosophy applied to the dash to the entire cabin. Hence, the vision of two modules that wrap around driver and passenger and that extend and integrate with the two rear seats.
The Ferrari Roma Spider is powered by a 3,855 cc power unit that can punch out 620 cv at 7,500 rpm, the equivalent of 161 cv/l, which it combines with the flexibility of low-end pick-up, thanks to 80% of the torque being available at just 1900 rpm.
It delivers instantaneous throttle response, facilitated by a flat-plane crankshaft, which is more compact in size with lower rotating masses to improve fluid-dynamics. Compact turbines have a lower moment of inertia; twin-scroll technology that directs the exhaust gases from each cylinder through separate scrolls and increases the pressure of the exhaust pulses for maximum power; and a single-piece, cast exhaust manifold with equal length pipes to optimise pressure waves in the turbine and reduce losses.
The Ferrari Roma Spider also utilises Variable Boost Management, a control software developed by Ferrari that adjusts torque delivery to suit the gear selected, delivering increasingly powerful pick-up as revs rise, whilst optimising fuel consumption. As the car goes up through the gears, the amount of torque delivered by the engine increases, continuing all the way up to 760 Nm in 7th and 8th gear. This allowed the use of longer gear ratios in the higher gears, which helps keep fuel consumption and emissions down, while adopting a steeper torque curve through the rev range in the lower gears for a feeling of smooth, consistent pick-up.
The gearbox is based on a dual-clutch oil bath architecture and is derived from the 8-speed gearbox first introduced on the SF90 Stradale. It has longer gear ratios and the introduction of a reverse gear. The new layout and component integration has optimised gearbox size and its installation in the car.
With eight gears and optimum transmission efficiency, fuel consumption in urban and motorway contexts has been reduced without compromising on performance. In fact, there is a noticeable improvement even in sporty driving.
Every Ferrari engine has its own unique soundtrack and the Roma Spider is no exception to that rule. In addition to the flat-plane crankshaft, which synchronises engine firing, and equal-length exhaust headers, which equalise the sound, the Spider adopted the Ferrari Roma’s entire exhaust line that eliminated the two rear silencers in favour of new geometry for the by-pass valves. The continuous and progressive by-pass valve control underscores the engine sound and performance depending on the driving situation.
If you’re ready for a perfectly proportioned Spider to take up residence in your garage, go to Ferrari for more details.
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