Review: Ferrari California T 'Handling Speciale' in the UK

It’s a Ferrari California. What’s new?

This car has the optional 'Handling Speciale' pack fitted. There’s no change to the power or performance – the twin turbo V8 still produces 552bhp and 557lb ft of torque, which is ample to waft the Cali to 62mph in 3.6secs and on to a 196mph top whack. No, the £5,568 HS pack is all about handling.

But isn’t the Cali Ferrari’s soft-core GT car?

I’ll come on to that in a bit - let me deal with what’s changed first. For your money, the HS pack gives you stiffer springs (16 per cent at the front, 19 per cent out back), a new ‘strategy’ (Ferrari’s word, not mine) for the magnetorheological dampers, revised management for the F1-Trac stability system, modified gearbox software (upshifts are now 30 per cent faster, downshifts 40 per cent) and a new exhaust system that’s claimed to be 3db louder and deliver a fuller, richer sound. There’s also a plaque inside and the grille and diffuser are painted a shade called Grigio Ferro Met.

What’s that?

Grey. Anyway, the changes do make a positive difference to the handling. The trouble is that they’re starting from a low base level. The standard Cali is a bit confused about what sort of car it is. Ferrari has tried to position it as the natural upgrade step from a Merc SL63 or 911 Turbo Cab, which means that not only does it need to be fast, it needs to be agile.

To ensure it is, the steering rack is super-fast and it has a super-responsive front end that darts into corners. However, without the HS pack it doesn’t have the suspension smarts to keep pace. The body control is all over the place and there’s an odd lateral shimmy. It constantly undermines your confidence.

But the HS pack changes all that?

Most of it. The stiffer springs have successfully reduced vertical jounce and usefully tightened up the body control so it no longer feels like the cabin is shimmying about on top of the grippy chassis. The noise is a bit bassier and more invigorating.

However, the flat plane crank V8’s over-riding sound is still a rather flat blare that doesn’t keep you well informed enough about just how fast you’re accelerating. Which is very. The Cali T may be long geared, but it chomps through each of the seven ratios in short order. It’s one of those cars in which you accelerate a little, glance down at the speedo and see that you’re doing a lot.

Do you like the engine, though?

I think it’s probably the best thing about the car. I love the way Ferrari restricts the torque at low engine speeds, so that the delivery feels more natural as the revs rise. The throttle response is fantastic too and the gearbox definitely shifts faster now.

The Cali T may be long geared, but it chomps through each of the seven ratios in short order

The problem is that in Sport the HS shunts the shifts, pops them home artificially hard, causing a bit of head-nodding in the car. It’s just not necessary in a drop-top boulevardier. It’s better in Comfort, but actually, if you’re by yourself in the car, have it in Sport with the hard dampers. That way the chassis makes a better fist of matching the eagerness of the steering and the Cali T feels at its most cohesive and together.

It’s fast, and rarely feels its weight (1625kg dry with ‘optional lightweight equipment’, which probably means close on 1800kg normally). But the back axle is a bit numb coming out of corners, there’s not a great deal of feedback and even with everything wound up tight I wouldn’t say this is a very satisfying car to drive fast. Even with the HS pack it’s too disjointed.

Why is that?

The steering never settles down, making the whole car feel nervous and more hyperactive than it ought to be. It’s constantly fidgeting and getting at you. Now this is fine when you’re by yourself and on a good road. I took it out early this morning to get these pictures and actually enjoyed it, but when you have passengers in the car...

They can’t relax. Even in Comfort mode you have to put in a lot of effort to drive smoothly, when you should be able to just waft about with one hand on the wheel. It’s not the HS pack that’s at fault (only 20 per cent of buyers specified it on the original Cali, but if you’re considering a Cali T, I think you should have it), but the basic positioning of the car, the need for a Ferrari to be sportier and more aggressive than its rivals.

And possibly the physics, too. I know the centre of gravity dropped considerably from the old Cali to the new Cali T, but it still feels too high, the HS having to work hard to keep the body in control. Then you upset this by twitching the steering...

It’s one of those cars where you spend a lot of time adjusting your line through corners. You almost always put too much lock on, so take a bit off, but that was too much, so you put some back on...

It doesn’t dance to your tune. Some of your inputs seem to get lost in translation and although it’s undoubtedly, deeply fast, it’s not a car that you feel at one with. The lines of trust and communication are too tangled.

Are you saying it doesn’t need to be so sporting?

Hmm, tricky one. As it stands at the moment, it’s clearly been a struggle to engineer the California to fit Ferrari’s desired handling parameters. They want it to be fast and agile, but the underpinnings are struggling to deliver that.

The HS pack improves matters, but long term I don’t think it’s the best Ferrari can do.

How’s the cabin?

Not that well packaged. The rear deck is huge and high (in fact you sit deep, relative to the high sides all round) and if you try and tuck a 10 year old in the back seats, well, your front passenger will be embedded in the dashboard.

It’s very well built, has a lovely leather odour and feels expensive. But like the car itself, it’s always trying to assert itself. You sit low, the steering wheel is high, and even when you’re familiar with it, the controls are a bit of a fiddle. On the plus side, this means you always know you’re driving a Ferrari.

Any other points?

The hazards flash even under relatively light braking – although you can deselect this in the options menu, and the roof can’t be operated on the move, which is a pain. You need to stop to do it and the whole process takes a little under 20 seconds. Roof down, there really isn’t that much space in the boot.

The Cali T costs £160,812 with the Handling Speciale pack fitted. This one, as tested, was £215,011. So, £55 grand’s worth of options, which included £2,400 for Apple Carplay, £4,320 for the two-tone paint, £4,032 to have front and rear parking cameras, a carbon fibre cup-holder costs £1,440 and all the carbon interior trim adds up to £12,576. I know: ouch.

So would you have one?

No. It may have the rarity value and the fabled badge, but I’d have a Conti GT convertible or a 911 Turbo S cab over this car. I understand what Ferrari is trying to achieve with the Cali T, but even with the HS pack I don’t think it quite reaches the superlative heights of the rest of the range. The 488 is magnificent, the F12 sublime, the GTC4Lusso is a lovely, lovely thing. It pains me to say it, but the Cali T is the poor relation.