Don't fear the turbo
The Ferrari California T hits 60 mph in an estimated 3.5 seconds. Photo by Ferrari.
What is it?
It's fast, loud and sexy, a replacement for the best-selling Ferrari. It's also the first turbocharged road car from Maranello in 25 years.
The 2015 Ferrari California T is big on a couple of counts, and, as the second automotive century progresses, it reinforces a wider trend: the seemingly inevitable creep toward turbocharged engines. At Ferrari, the story starts with the car the California T replaces. It's not quite as sexy as the hardware itself
The current California was unveiled in Paris in September 2008 to fill a void in Ferrari's lineup -- a car for people who could afford a Ferrari but had previously found none to meet their needs. The California was the first front-engine Ferrari with a V8, the first with direct injection and the first with a multilink rear suspension and a retractable metal roof. Elementally, the California was a cover-all-bases, everyday-usable Ferrari GT in the mold of a Mercedes SL. Or maybe an SL 63.
It worked. When the last California rolled from Maranello in late May, production had surpassed 10,000, making it the top selling single-model series in Ferrari history. One in three has come to the United States -- a higher rate than Ferrari as a brand.
More than 70 percent of California owners are first-time Ferrari buyers. They drive their cars 30 percent more miles annually than other Ferrari owners, through 50 percent more trips. They carry a passenger 65 percent of the time.
When it came time to replace the California, Ferrari wasn't inclined to mess with the formula. But the company has never been terribly fond of turbos, either, building less than a handful throughout its 65-year history -- most recently the 288GTO in 1984 and the F40 in 1987. The high-performance renaissance had begun, and turbos were the best way to make the power required of supercars. The rationale behind the California T V8 is only slightly different, rooted in an increasing green consciousness among elite buyers--and government mandates to reduce CO2 emissions.
Forced induction remains the best -- and maybe the only -- way to reduce displacement and maintain the horsepower increases necessary for a brand like Ferrari. Supercharging was also considered, according to Vittorio Dini, Ferrari's head of powertrain development. The ultimate decision was close.
Why start with the California? Ferrari says the Silicon Valley types who buy it are most likely to appreciate and to embrace the turbo's benefits. Unspoken is the thought that, as the highest-volume Ferrari, the California T will have the biggest impact on CAFE numbers and CO2 emissions. In any case, Ferrari has spent four years developing a new V8 that minimizes the turbocharger's less desirable characteristics and emphasizes things Ferrari buyers expect -- things like appropriate Ferrari sound, top end, throttle response and acceleration progression.
Ferrari
The heart of the 2015 California T is a 3.8-liter (well, closer to 3.9-liter) turbocharged front-mid-mounted V8.
The California T's 90-degree V8 has been called a 3.8, but, at 3855 cc, it's closer to a 3.9. It displaces .4 liters less than the California's normally aspirated engine. Its block is identical to that in the Maserati Quattroporte GT S, and it is cast at the same Maranello foundry as Ferrari's F1 engines. It's shorter than the California's block -- and lighter, with a lower deck height -- and its guts and cylinder heads are entirely different than the Maserati's.
The California T has a flat-plane crankshaft, high copper content in its piston alloy and two oil-cooling jets for each cylinder. The cam chains are on the flywheel end rather than the front. Cam tappets have been replaced with roller-finger followers, reducing friction by 20 percent, and the variable-pressure oil pump has been refined to reduce operational draw by 1.5 hp. Two IHI twin-scroll turbos deliver maximum boost of 19 psi.
The result of Ferrari's engineering is 553 peak hp (nearly 144 per liter) and 557 lb-ft of torque. That's 70 hp more than the California's 4.3. and a whopping 50-percent increase in torque. Then there are the efficiency improvements.
Powertrain chief Dini claims the California T turbo delivers the best specific fuel consumption of any high-performance V8. As for road mileage, the car averages 15 percent better fuel economy than the California for an equal decrease in average CO2 emissions. The gains on the highway -- where California drivers do the most miles -- are greater.
Yet Dini frankly points out something you'll rarely hear when manufacturers pitch their highly efficient direct-injection turbo engines: If you keep your foot in it and use all 553 hp (it's a Ferrari, after all) the efficiency gains disappear.
And when you put your foot in it, it has to go, sound and feel like a Ferrari, which means joy at crazy high revs without a significant drop in thrust. To that end, Ferrari devoted much of its development to un-turbo-ing the turbo. The California T's horsepower and torque peaks present a thumbnail of the results. At 7,500 and 4,750 rpm, respectively, both sit only 250 rpm below the naturally aspirated California.
But that wasn't the end of it. Individual scrolls on each turbo are fed by two staggered cylinders to keep exhaust pulses precisely even and minimize lag. The exhaust runners are accurately tailored to equal length, and they resemble a swarm of boas constricting around the turbos. The pattern helps maintain the higher pitch of a screaming, naturally aspirated Ferrari V8.
Ferrari
The turbocharged 2015 Ferrari California T manages to be lighter than its predecessor, thanks in part to the extensive use of lightweight materials.
Then there's Ferrari's version of variable-torque management. All ratios in the California T's dual-clutch automatic, which the company refers to as the “F1,” are higher than those in its predecessor. But Ferrari also manages torque flow depending on the gear. The ECU adjusts boost and fuel flow to give the engine a different torque map and peak in each of the seven forward gears. From first through third, the maximum torque is capped at about 455 lb-ft. The 557 lb-ft peak comes only in seventh.
The point is to generate progressively stronger acceleration with speed and to replicate the longitudinal acceleration curve of a normally aspirated engine.
Chassis calibrations are all new, compared to the California. The steering rack, boosted with a conventional belt-driven hydraulic pump, is 10 percent faster. The springs are 12 percent firmer, and Ferrari's magneto-rheological suspension -- still supplied by Delphi and tuned in Marenello -- enters gen III. It now uses three vertical accelerometers and shocks that reduce friction 35 percent, generating a 50-percent reduction in response time. All chassis parameters (max lateral g, roll angles, etc.) improve compared to the California, according to Ferrari, while the variable-dampening shocks maintain the GT ride quality.
New material is provided for the brake pads and standard carbon-ceramic discs, with new control software for the ABS. Ferrari says braking distances drop three feet from 62 mph, but the pads should last the life of the car -- under street use only. The standard wheels measure 19 inches, with Pirelli P Zeros. Twenty-inch rims are optional.
Despite an engine that's 66 pounds heavier with its charge coolers, the California T's curb weight drops six pounds compared to the California, thanks largely to strategic application of new materials. Aerodynamic refinements intended to increase airflow through the engine bay and meet the turbo's greater cooling demands ended up improving overall aero efficiency 5 percent. Ports in the lower front valance feed the intercoolers, while two vents release pressure from under the hood. The center of gravity drops half an inch compared to the California, but the T retains Ferrari's preferred 47 front/53 rear weight distribution.
The California T's aluminum top still opens or closes in 14 seconds, but it gets some subtle (we say welcome) styling tweaks—including new light clusters and some Testa Rossa-inspired pontoon action and badges along the front fenders. The rear deck lip drops slightly. The exhaust tips are now horizontal rather than stacked vertically, and they're wedged into a more pronounced rear diffuser.
The first North American California Ts should reach port by the end of September, priced at $198,000 before delivery or options. Perhaps to incentivize turbo acceptance further, Ferrari has dropped the price $4,000 from the outgoing California.
Either way, more turbocharged Ferraris are certainly on the way, probably starting with the next update of or replacement for the 458 Italia. Yet with the California T, there's another milestone as noteworthy as the return of the Ferrari turbo, one possibly more ominous: the demise of the Ferrari with a conventional, manual transmission.
The outgoing California was the last to offer a manual with clutch pedal. The take rate was so low that Ferrari has given up.
Ferrari
True to the spirit of the Prancing Horse, the 2015 Ferrari California T's top drops in a speedy 14 seconds.
How does it drive?
It drives like a Ferrari GT – a good one – and with that comes an inevitability: People will always be looking at your California T, even in the most subdued color. Get used to it and realize that the lookers include the law.
The GT theme is obvious inside the California T, where nearly every square inch is covered with stitched, high-grade leather -- including the roofliner. It's well crafted, and it feels like wealth. The rear buckets can fit a child seat.
There are ergonomic improvements, too, including longer shift paddles. They're closer to the steering wheel spokes and stay better under fingertip when the wheel goes well off-center. There's a new, more manageable infotainment system, in addition to something called Turbo Performance Engineer. TPE is an information display in a third duct between the center dash vents, and the operator can cycle through a range of information by tapping the aluminum ring around it. If your first ride came in a 308 or even a Mondial, it all seems quite un-Ferrari-like.
Certainly more so than the turbocharged engine. Boot the California T to full boost and it sounds fabulous, like the aggressive mechanical orchestra of a screaming Ferrari V8. There's more drone with steady revs at part throttle, to be sure. It's a more turbo-y, low frequency hum. Cruising with the top closed actually makes it sound better, presumably because it filters the hum. The California T doesn't sound bad in any circumstance, but that steady rev hum is the only hint that there might be a turbo engine under the hood.
You won't find lag, at least during a road drive. Slam the gas pedal and the longitudinal acceleration comes at close to one g, in long, Ferrari-appropriate swells that make passengers suck breath and shake equilibrium-disrupting cobwebs from the head. There's no letup before it hits the redline and shifts; the longer you can keep it floored, the better. The California T's 0-60 times are more than quick enough for bragging rights, but, thanks to the variable-torque management, they don't even get you to maximum torque. The higher the gear, the stronger the pull. This turbo engine just keeps accelerating toward the horizon.
Ferrari
Say goodbye to the Ferrari California's manual transmission option -- no one was buying them, anyway.
The dual-clutch transmission is fantastico, going quick or going easy, even if the end of the Ferrari manual and gated shifter is disturbing. Steering is quick, but it's also on the light side. On road, the California T's limits make it difficult to load the front tires enough for it to get heavier. The balance front to rear is apparent, and the ride was never anything but supple, at least on the two-lane roads of Tuscany. The carbon-ceramic brakes are almost indistinguishable from conventional cast iron or steel, based on noise or vibration.
It will take an extended road test (or ownership) to determine the depth of the turbo V8's purported efficiency gains. Engine chief Dini's point is well taken: If you use all 553 hp, you're using 553 hp worth of gasoline and generating 553 hp worth of carbon emissions. On the other hand, on the road, with all those people watching, only a true sociopath will use all of the California T's power most of the time. At a more sedate pace, the opportunity exists for better mileage than Ferrari's V12s or normally aspirated V8s can deliver.
If your primary desire in a Ferrari is a track car, you're probably not choosing the California T to begin with, though it should fare well in the effort. Development driver Fabrizio Toschi reports that the 458 Italia manages 1:25 around Ferrari's Fiorano test track, as opposed to 1:29 for the California T. That makes the T a hair quicker than Ferrari's last turbo, the F40.
Scanning the databank for appropriate characterization or comparison, we keep moving past the Aston Martin Vantage Volante and back toward the SL 63 AMG--or maybe a BMW M6 convertible. The California T is marginally comparable to an M6 convertible, only lighter and more lithesome. And Italian.
Perhaps the best characterization is Marenello's own. The California T is an everyday usable Ferrari.
Ferrari
Do you want the 2015 Ferrari California T? Hell yes you do -- it's a Ferrari, and that still means something.
Do I want it?
Yes, you do. Ferraris are freaking cool, if you haven't noticed, and it's not all mythology or hype. The California T delivers Ferrari-ness in spades, with an engine that should keep it viable as the legislative screws tighten.
Yes, you could choose an SL 63 or an M6 convertible or maybe that DB9, and you could go fast and be happy. But they ain't Ferraris.
2015 Ferrari California T base price and specifications
Base price: $198,000
On Sale: Late September 2014
Drivetrain: front-mid-mounted 3.9-liter turbocharged V8, seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission
Output: 553 hp, 557 lb-ft
0-60: 3.5 seconds (est.)
Curb Weight: 3,814 lbs.
Fuel Economy: 22 mpg (converted from EU cycle)
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