Ferrari 488 GTB review

The conclusion of our Ferrari 488 GTB test drive? It’s like a 458, but way, way faster. Worried about turbo lag? Well, bear in mind that the 488’s 3.9-litre bi-turbo V8 (totally revised from the similar-sounding motor in the nose of a California T) delivers maximum response to full throttle 0.8 seconds after your toe hits the firewall. That’s just a tenth behind the non-turbo 458, while a 99bhp leap in power and a colossal 163lb torque surge over the old car deliver neck-snapping, hypercar-territory response.

It’s sometimes all too much for the rear tyres, but an even-cleverer version of Ferrari’s drift-o-matic Side Slip Angle Control, which now talks to the suspension as you slide, will encourage, not scare you, from smearing fresh Pirelli from here to the Stelvio. Steering remains super-fast, now with a bit more feel.

What about the noise? It’s very, very different to the 458, trading some of the frenzied tightness for something more linear, controlled and industrial – a bit like a modern F1 car. Not as atmospheric, then, but still the best-sounding turbo road car out there. Besides, the era of natural aspiration is, like it or not, reaching its end. The 488 represents the very forefront of the turbo charge.