(23)
Price as tested: £160,000 (estimated)
Date tested: November 2009
Road tester: Russell Bray
Ferrari has transferred even more of its Formula One technology into its latest two-seater super-sportscar, in a bid to stay ahead of rivals. So how have they done?
Just as hot hatches have got faster over the years, Ferraris too have become even more furious. So it's not without a little anxiety that you flip the door catch and slide into the 458's body-hugging seat.
Twist the ignition key, thumb the 'Start' button on the steering wheel and the new 562bhp 4.5-litre V8 springs to life and sounds... remarkably quiet.
The 458 is only offered with a Getrag seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox which works as a full automatic or sequentially via paddles behind the steering wheel; there's no manual option.
One of the 458's steering wheel-mounted switches, the 'Manettino' as Ferrari calls it, offers the latest thinking for the car's amazingly complex electronics and decides how much the stability and traction systems and electronic differential 'talk' to each other if you use the enormous power.
Ride comfort is exceptionally compliant, and if the road surface is rougher you can prod another steering wheel button which lets you keep the razor-sharp reaction to the accelerator pedal but with more absorbent suspension.
Around town the 458 is docile and practical; a decent-sized front luggage bin is complemented by a shelf for coats and squashy bags behind the seats.
At only two turns lock-to-lock the steering is quick without being nervous, but you need discipline to keep your hands close to the textbook ten-to-two position to get the best out of it.
Mash the accelerator to the floor and the V8 screams to 9,000rpm; the noise is amazing. It sounds like a Ferrari F1 car but with the volume turned down to ten.
Use the launch control system and 0-62mph takes a claimed 3.4 seconds, while top speed is 202mph; you'll see 14mpg round town and 19mpg on a run.
The ceramic brakes are stunning - Ferrari claims the 458 can stop from 125mph in 128 metres (422ft).
Compared to the brilliant 430 Scuderia, the 458 feels next-generation; its superior power gets it round Fiorano in exactly the same time as the Scuderia, in the hands of Ferrari test drivers.
The 458 is less raw and more refined but if you want to be a track day hero the Scuderia is still the weapon of choice. And with both the question you have to ask is: Do you want to do the driving or let the computers take care of it? There is no question, though, that the 458 Italia sets the new benchmark for the class.
