A return to form: Say hello to Banana MK2, the Italian Prancing Horse (Ferrari 458 Italia)

Gibbo · 21 May 2019 at 11:57

Hi there

Just timed some of the acceleration runs as the speedo is within 1mph of GPS:

0-60 = 3.3s
0-100 = 7.0s
30-130mph = 9.5s
60-130mph = 8s

For a RWD NA stock car I am so impressed with how quick this thing is, from a dig it is on par with the SVR but once rolling particular above 60 it certainly as the edge.

Gibbo · 22 May 2019 at 17:11

Hi there

Well I am stoked!
Ferrari sent me an invite to have a brand new Portofino or the new Lusso for two days and to stay in a 5 star hotel in St. Andrews.

My reply was yes, but who covers accommodation and food/drink.
Their reply was we cover accommodation, food, drink and fuel.

So I cheekily reply, can I bring my Mrs, so I need a double room, and her food/drink covering, response yes that is fine.

So I am now doing NC500, shall drive to St. Andrews in the 458 with Mrs, then take their Portofino from 14:00 until 18:00 on day one, then on day two I get it from 09:00 until 12:30, they fill it, I drive it on roads they say I can unleash its true potential and me and my Mrs can thoroughly enjoy it. Then I shall take the 458 further north and do some NC500 and book a hotel for friday and saturday nights, then drive back down on the Sunday.

Gotta say the Ferrari experience is more than just owning the car, excited we are.

wedrum · 22 May 2019 at 18:31

Gibbo said:
Hi there

Well I am stoked!
Ferrari sent me an invite to have a brand new Portofino or the new Lusso for two days and to stay in a 5 star hotel in St. Andrews.

My reply was yes, but who covers accommodation and food/drink.
Their reply was we cover accommodation, food, drink and fuel.

So I cheekily reply, can I bring my Mrs, so I need a double room, and her food/drink covering, response yes that is fine.

So I am now doing NC500, shall drive to St. Andrews in the 458 with Mrs, then take their Portofino from 14:00 until 18:00 on day one, then on day two I get it from 09:00 until 12:30, they fill it, I drive it on roads they say I can unleash its true potential and me and my Mrs can thoroughly enjoy it. Then I shall take the 458 further north and do some NC500 and book a hotel for friday and saturday nights, then drive back down on the Sunday.

Gotta say the Ferrari experience is more than just owning the car, excited we are.

That is awesome Gibbo..
Ooooooh space for one more

V_R · 22 May 2019 at 21:03

That's amazing!

flea.rider · 22 May 2019 at 21:45

well that's just out of this world .. good on ya .. but WE WANT PIC'S

Gibbo · 22 May 2019 at 22:07

flea.rider said:
well that's just out of this world .. good on ya .. but WE WANT PIC'S

Yeah we will get some pics of the cars together and hoping they give me a red one.

I looked up the Portofino and never realised their entry level convertible packs 600HP and 560lb/ft which is pretty insane. Went for it over the Lusso as it makes sense to have a convertible as I don’t own a convertible and hopefully we will get to enjoy two days of roof top down action and sun.

Chris1712 · 22 May 2019 at 22:51

Tough choice though! Assuming the Lusso was the V12 variant I think I’d have to go for that. Have you driven a convertible in anger before? be interesting what you make of it, I hear even the Speciale Aperta suffers a bit with scuttle just like my lowly Z4.

Gibbo · 23 May 2019 at 09:42

Chris1712 said:
Tough choice though! Assuming the Lusso was the V12 variant I think I’d have to go for that. Have you driven a convertible in anger before? be interesting what you make of it, I hear even the Speciale Aperta suffers a bit with scuttle just like my lowly Z4.

Yes, driven Mustang convertible, absolutely had scuttle issues and just generally feeling floppy.

Owned an S2000, had no such issues really!

Also driven other stuff like M4 convertible, but never liked M4's full stop.

Just want some roof top down action, I am sure I can maybe even blag a go in a Lusso anyway whilst I am there.

Funky-Melon · 23 May 2019 at 10:07

@Gibbo is all this 'just because' you bought a car from them?

Or does this kinda stuff just come with owning a supercar?

Genuine question...

Simon · 23 May 2019 at 10:11

It’s a method to get the customer ready for the next purchase

flea.rider · 23 May 2019 at 10:12

Funky-Melon said:
@Gibbo is all this 'just because' you bought a car from them?

Or does this kinda stuff just come with owning a supercar?

Genuine question...

top service with a top price tag ..they know his money history from doing the checks .. up sell in a higher bracket is not like "is that a lrg fries "

Gibbo · 23 May 2019 at 11:03

Funky-Melon said:
@Gibbo is all this 'just because' you bought a car from them?

Or does this kinda stuff just come with owning a supercar?

Genuine question...

Yes in short because I am a customer.

Simon said:
It’s a method to get the customer ready for the next purchase

Probably, shall see if any push to sell, they have not pushed at all.

[ui]ICEMAN · 23 May 2019 at 11:32

Gibbo said:
Probably, shall see if any push to sell, they have not pushed at all.

They already have, it’s just not in an obvious way. This is how these brands do it.

There’s no rush or urgency with Ferrari as the cars sell themselves.

The Portofino is a very quick car, and a huge step up from its predecessor.

alx · 23 May 2019 at 20:21

Gibbo said:
Yeah we will get some pics of the cars together and hoping they give me a red one.

I looked up the Portofino and never realised their entry level convertible packs 600HP and 560lb/ft which is pretty insane. Went for it over the Lusso as it makes sense to have a convertible as I don’t own a convertible and hopefully we will get to enjoy two days of roof top down action and sun.

It's Scotland, the sun comes out only twice a year

Regy53 · 23 May 2019 at 21:36

Assume your only be invited once...

Sounds great though, it certainly wont hold up sales on their cars.

MartinPrince · 23 May 2019 at 22:33

[ui]ICEMAN said:
They already have, it’s just not in an obvious way. This is how these brands do it.

There’s no rush or urgency with Ferrari as the cars sell themselves.

The Portofino is a very quick car, and a huge step up from its predecessor.

Indeed and when it costs $4000 to add Apple Carplay (which comes free in many Honda Civic's) then these hospitality events will pay for themselves.

Have a great couple of days Gibbo and hope you have some good weather!

Gibbo · 24 May 2019 at 10:57

MartinPrince said:
Indeed and when it costs $4000 to add Apple Carplay (which comes free in many Honda Civic's) then these hospitality events will pay for themselves.

Have a great couple of days Gibbo and hope you have some good weather!

Yes were praying for good weather, considering I took the convertible.

Our plan is as follows:
13th June:
Leave house around 05:30am to get to St. Andrews by midday.
14:00 - 18:00 test drive on road
18:00 - 20:00 go to spa
20:00 - Dinner, then sleep

14th June:
09:300 Drive to private airport where we can test the cars full potential in a safe environment, top speed, handling etc.
12:30 Lunch
14:00 were then gonna do our own thing like a Helicopter tour or horse riding.
15:00 Drive to Loch Ness / Inverness, need to find a hotel to stay in this area.

15th June:
Start NC500, drive to Jon O Groates, then do more of NC500 route, get a hotel somewhere along the NC500 route or close too.

16th June:
Drive back either down remaining NC500 or find something else to drive through.

Any recommendations for must have places to visit? We love castles, beach, sea and just great scenery.

Sonea Fifer · 24 May 2019 at 17:32

Some of the back rounds around Fife are a fantastic drive - you'll love it

I'm guessing it maybe the private airfield near Crail (near St Andrews) they've booked to allow you to test the full potential!

The A82 around Loch Lomond is very scenic. The A83 will take you to across Rest & Be Thankful up to the viewpoint at the top which would make for some awesome photographs

melchy · 24 May 2019 at 18:01

Not so much places to visit, but more points of interest you'll pass depending upon what routes you take. If you use the Queensferry crossing you may get a look at the Aircraft Carrier in Rosyth. If you head north using the Tay Bridge the new V & A museum can be seen as you head across the bridge.

Eilean Donan castle seems to be fairly close to the bottom of the NC500 route if I'm reading the map correctly.

You could always head to the beach while in St. Andrews

it will take you past the Old Course. You could also try putting on the Himalayas

. If you go a walk around St. Andrews there is a ruined castle and cathedral. The castle has a mine you can go down into where attackers tried to undermine the castle wall. There is also a tower you can climb. If you happen to find yourself in Anstruther during your coastal drive, try the haddock and chips. The secret bunker is also worth a visit. It's a cold war era nuclear bunker, it's fairly near St. Andrews and potentially on or near the route you may drive in the car.

If you like castles I'd suggest going to Stirling and doing both the castle and the Wallace monument, don't know how far out of the way this would be for you. Doune Castle is also in that neck of the woods, its where Outlander, Monty Python and the Holy Grail and I believe a tiny bit of the pilot of Game of Thrones was filmed (Winterfell).

If you are going to Loch Ness, you could go to Urquhart Castle.

Fort George is also worth seeing, it's NE of Inverness.

You could also go to Dunnet Head which is west of Jon O'Groates and actually is the most northerly point on the UK mainland.

Spit · 25 May 2019 at 15:45

I’m totally in love with the Portofino and working towards getting one!