The Ferrari Amalfi Spider Rips, Needs to Sing MoreZac PalmerForced to choose between a coupe or convertible, I'm picking the option with the wind in my hair and uninhibited exhaust notes filling my ears like surround sound every time. The natural weight and rigidity compromises of today's convertibles rarely make enough of a difference for me to care on the road. Which leads me to the Ferrari Amalfi Spider.I drove the Amalfi coupe last year, and what a splendid evolution of the Roma it was. Yes, there was stigma to driving the entry-level Ferrari in the awkward California years, that car having originally been designed as a Maserati. But it's gone now, and the Amalfi Spider is, on paper, the version of the front-engined V-8 two-door I would typically like the most.FerrariVisually, the Amalfi Spider gets off to a sterling start with its roof folded away. It's even easier on the eyes than the handsome coupe, my test car in Greece inviting me in with the apt, sunset-inspired Rosso Tramonto paint and its glistening Tecnico Ottanio weave softtop. Ferrari designers tell me they used a "speedform" design model when they started drawing the Amalfi refresh of the Roma, with the goal of creating a shape inspired by speed itself. Form your own opinion, but I find the restraint in the styling more appealing than the more radical design of some other recent Ferraris.AdvertisementAdvertisementOn some of southern Greece's bumpy beachside roads I tried my best to find any sense that the softtop lacked rigidity but quickly realized it wasn't there. The retractable fabric roof is the same one introduced with the Roma Spider, a five-layer piece made with acoustic-deadening fabric. This works—with the roof raised I genuinely forgot during certain points of my drive that I was piloting a convertible, which is about the greatest compliment anyone can pay a softtop roadster.Considering the 105-degree Fahrenheit temperatures up in Greece's canyon roads, I kept my roofless sprints short. The 13.5 seconds it takes for the top to go down electrically is simple work, and deploying the wind deflector is just as easy from the driver's seat with a switch that makes the odd partition between the two rear seats swing up. With this in place and the windows up, the cabin had such little buffeting that I was almost disappointed at how insulated from the environment I was. But pop the windows down and the Amalfi Spider's brutal pace through a technical road will ensure your hair is entirely out of place by the next stop.The Amalfi Spider's powertrain is identical to that in the coupe, representing respectable upgrades over the 2024 Roma Spider. The 3.9-liter twin-turbo V-8 shoved way back in the engine bay is good for 631 hp at 7500 rpm and 561 lb-ft of torque at 3000 rpm, all of that sent through an eight-speed transaxle, electronically-controlled limited-slip differential, and onward to the back axle. Ferrari finds the extra poke over the Roma by way of a more advanced turbo management system pioneered in other cars like the 296 GTB, this allowing greater independent control of each turbo.FerrariBut sound was disappointing, my test car exhaling through mufflers engineered for Europe's noise emission regulations. Sad to report, it was so quiet with the top down that very little Ferrari howl made its way into the cabin. There was just lots of rushing air, and when I was lucky enough to have a rock wall nearby for the exhaust to reverb off of, I only got a faint tinkling of the noise it was trying to make, not the roofless Ferrari song I was hoping for.AdvertisementAdvertisementThen when I put the top back up, I realized the car sounds far better. The bugle of an intake roar is sonorous in the cabin. It even sounds like there's more exhaust noise when I go top on, windows down, which may be the best way to drive the Amalfi Spider short of finding an aftermarket exhaust to fit. For the first time in a long time, I'm finding myself trending toward the coupe over the convertible.FerrariThankfully, there isn't a thing wrong with the way this Amalfi Spider handles compared to the coupe despite the convertible's 190-pound weight penalty. It has been given an extensive array of stiffening kit throughout the car to ensure rigidity isn't lost by going topless, and on the road, I couldn't tell much of a difference between coupe and convertible. The extensive suite of active dynamic systems helped the Amalfi Spider devour the road too.I found my confidence rising quickly on Greece's switchbacks. Comfort mode keeps the rear end planted and chassis forgiving. Sport introduces a fair bit of slip angle should my right foot demand it, and Race (with ESC on) makes it feel like it's just me and the 631 horses to tame. Ferrari gives a confident driver far more leeway to make things hairier with the systems technically on than virtually any other automaker. And with all that power sent rearward, I quickly realize driving the Amalfi Spider quickly requires a practiced, delicate hand. Mashing the throttle and letting the car figure things out is overrated anyway. The Ferrari kept me constantly experimenting with throttle applications as I wound the wheel, winning more pace as I traversed my way up and down the mountains. Each new corner was a learning experience in an addicting way, one that made me hope the road ahead never stops turning.FerrariThese California-esque canyons gave me plenty of opportunity to cycle up and down the eight-speed dual-clutch transmission, and I relished each pull of the carbon-fiber paddles. The brakes were even better than I recall on the Amalfi coupe, with the initial sponginess at the top of the pedal travel seemingly gone. It's the same ABS Evo system Ferrari introduced in the 296 GTB managing hard stops. As far as brake-by-wire goes, this system is one of the best.AdvertisementAdvertisementAnother unsung upgrade for the Amalfi Spider over its Roma predecessor is its new infotainment touchscreen positioning. The skyward-facing touchscreen in the Roma Spider was at an awkward angle should the sun be high in the sky, but I never had an issue reading the shrouded and low, landscape-oriented screen in the new car. This interior is a huge upgrade in all the beautiful, tactile ways the Roma should've been too. A real aluminum red start/stop switch sits on the steering wheel, and physical toggles galore on the wheel make easy work of complex menus and settings. That said, I could certainly go for more physical controls to make dialing up the ventilated seats and climate control settings more intuitive.FerrariIf the Amalfi Spider's being used as a grand tourer, both driver and passenger are going to fall in love with the car. Long highway drives with the roof raised are hardtop-like in terms of refinement, and the Ferrari maintains a perfectly damped ride from its semiactive dampers in Comfort mode. While it would be tight, you could technically fit two small carry-ons in the trunk for a long weekend away. Any other bags or items would sacrifice the two rear seats, but that's a fine compromise: I don't think any adult-sized human would ever want to sit back there.Yet I can't shake the feeling that I'd rather have the Amalfi coupe over the Spider. The lack of sound with the top down is a sad problem for a car like this, even if it is one Ferrari can't be directly blamed for in the face of tougher noise regulations. You will pay around 10 percent more for the Spider over the coupe, too, making the estimated starting price around $300,000. For that number, it's actually right in line with other ultraluxury convertibles like the Bentley Continental GTC and the Aston Martin DB12 Volante. Among that pack, the Ferrari is the driver's choice, delivering a level of involvement that is more sports car than plush grand tourer and demanding a precise touch to get the best out of it. And that's exactly the kind of car I want to be behind the wheel of.You Might Also LikeIf You Can Only Own One Car, Make It One of TheseThese Are the Most Popular Cars by State
