The F430 Spider joins the F430 as the latest addition to the new generation of Ferrari V8-engined sports cars. The F430 Spider's innovative aerodynamics, honed to generate dynamic air flows to increase down-force and improve cooling, and the F1 gearbox featuring upgraded software, are just two examples of how Ferrari's technological excellence has been transferred from the track to road. The F430 Spider's all-aluminium bodywork and chassis have also been carefully strengthened, to guarantee both occupant safety and the structural rigidity demanded by a car of such high performance. All these refinements make hiring the F430 Spider an dream drive and ideal self drive choice.
Two very robust steel roll-bars are integrated into the windshield structure to guarantee maximum occupant protection. The electric hood is fully automatic and folds away under its own flush-fitting tonneau cover, allowing Ferrari engineers to hone the aerodynamics of the car with the hood down.The F430 Spider's interior is both innovative and sporty. The instruments are housed in a new binnacle, and this design together with the layout of the dashboard underlines the care that has gone into grouping all the major controls around the driver within easy reach. In the driver's direct line of sight are the rev counter, which features new graphics with a choice of either a red or yellow background and a new metal surround, the digital readout of the gear selected (F1 version) and a multi-function display.
Engine on Display
The sensational F40 of 1987 was the first Ferrari to put its engine on public display. Its Pininfarina shaping required a gradually sloping rear roof shape to provide good airflow over its rear wing, which could only be accomplished by making the rear deck and the window one and the same. Made of the tough plastic Lexan, the F40's window was pieced by vents for cooling of its turbocharged engine.
Similar requirements applied during the aerodynamic development of the 360 Modena. Its creators wanted to avoid the detaching of the airflow that occurred over the recessed rear window of its predecessor the F355. The aim was a smooth flow over the entire rear deck until an abrupt break was reached at the top of its high, cut-off tail. Instead of a rear wing or spoiler, downforce was generated by the 360's fully enclosed underbody.
The solution again was to provide a glazed area set into the smooth rear deck that served as the rear window and, by the way, also provided an excellent view of the four-camV8 engine. This 1999 innovation was carried forward to the Enzo in 2002 and to the F430 as well. It's an apt and appealing way to flaunt a feature of every Ferrari that is, after all, at its very heart.
Engine
- Type90° V8
- Bore/stroke3.62 x 3.19 in
- Unit displacement32.9 cu in
- Total displacement262.9 cu in
- Compression ratio11.3:1
- Maximum power360.3 kW (490 CV) at 8500 rpm
- Maximum torque465 Nm (343 lbft) at 5250 rpm
Performance
- Maximum speedover 193 mph
- 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph)4.1 s
- Fuel Consumption
- Combined15.2 l/100 kmCO2
- EmissionsCombined345 g/km
As with all our performance cars, this model is fully loaded to the highest specifications, including the engine, craftmanship and finish. Created by Pininfarina, the F430 Spider is inspired by the car's exceptional engineering and Formula 1. The nose, which is characterised by two distinctive air intakes, draws inspiration from the Ferrari 156 F1 that Phil Hill drove to his F1 World Championship title in 1961. The Enzo Ferrari was the inspiration for much of the rear styling of the new F430 Spider, and the Ferrari meticulous aerodynamic detailing is reflected in the design of the nolder incorporated into the engine cover and the new rear diffuser integrated into the bumper, which boasts race-derived dimensions.
Extreme care has also been lavished on designing the exterior details. The wing mirrors now have specially profiled twin mounting arms that channel air flows to the engine intakes, and the F430 name has been embossed on the back of the driver's side mirror. Even the finish of the engine bay is a work of art in terms of its distinctive shape and materials.
Design & Styling
As with every Ferrari,Pininfarina quite rightly took inspiration from the cars'exceptional engineering and performance. Long hours spent in the wind tunnel working with Ferrari's aerodynamics specialists greatly influenced the muscular lines of both the coupé and spider versions. For instance, two distinctive elliptical air intakes channel air into the generously dimensioned radiators that cool the powerful engine.
Their shape was inspired by the Ferrari 156 F1 that Phil Hill drove to his F1 World Championship title in 1961. The two intakes are linked at their lower edge by a spoiler that directs the air towards the car's flat underbody, thus greatly improving downforce.
The meticulous work that has gone into optimising airflow through the car has given rise to a number of carefully contoured scoops and vents along the cars' sides and rear. In fact, even the wing mirrors now have specially profiled twin mounting arms that channel the airflow smoothly towards the engine intakes. The cars'muscular stance has been further enhanced by stylistic and functional elements including the Enzo-inspired tail-lights which protrude from the bodywork, and the generous nolder incorporated into the engine cover.
The models' vertically stacked headlights are extremely compact too, thanks to the use of Bi-xenon technology. The F430 Spider is the only uncompromising mid-rear engined drop-top to boast a compact, fully automatic electric hood that allows the engine to be seen at all times. This stylistic flourish comes courtesy of a soft top system designed to take up very little space indeed.
Manettino and Vehicle Set Up
Just like in Formula 1, F430 and F430 Spider drivers can change various areas of the set-up of their car using a single selector set on the steering wheel. The manettino, as it is known to the Scuderia Ferrari drivers, is a commutator switch that has been adopted directly from racing. This switch quickly and simply controls the electronics governing suspension settings, the CST stability and traction control, E-Diff and the change speed of the F1 transmission, as well as F1 gearbox shifting times. The manettino enables car settings to be changed to suit personal preferences, road surface conditions and available grip. The settings available to the driver have been concentrated in five different strategies, enabling them to be changed to suit personal preferences, road surface conditions and available grip.
Transmission & F1 Gear Box
The 6-speed gearbox incorporates multicone synchronizers, while both the 6th gear and the final drive have been lengthened to make the most of the greater power and torque of the new engine. Thanks to that ongoing development, Ferrari's F1 gearbox for the F430 is state of the art, introducing a number of important modifications: thanks to inputs from the engineers on the Gestione Sportiva racing side, the F1 gearbox management incorporates a new control strategy which further perfects gearchange speed and smoothness under hard use. Changing gear takes just 150 milliseconds, as measured by the "hole" in acceleration during the change. As well as increasing the speed of changes during hard driving, the new software improves smoothness in the fully automatic mode (actuated by a button on the central tunnel), making the F430 a true all-rounder. At the opposite extreme, the F43's LAUNCH CONTROL (not available in North America) gives maximum performance away from a standing start with suitable road conditions (for example, on the track).
Shaped into Ferrari Wind Tunnel
The wind tunnel testing carried out to hone the F430 and F430 Spider's aerodynamics use exactly the same criteria as employed for the F1 single-seaters. Thus Ferrari's engineers have been able to modulate the air flow both around the car, as well as under it, to perfection. The result is a highly efficient configuration that channels air flow for maximum downforce and thus grip. Similarly air is channelled to the engine to increase power as well as optimise the cooling of the transmission, and to the brakes for maximum response even under the heaviest use. Perfecting the cars' aerodynamics has brought about a 50% increase in downforce compared to the 360 Modena.
Lengthy development of the shape and the angle of attack of the new spoiler at the bottom of the front bumper resulted in an impressive increase in downforce over the front axle - up to 130 kg for the F430 and 125 kg for the F430 Spider-which contributes in no uncertain manner to longitudinal vehicle stability and steering precision. Similarly the nolder on the trailing edge of the engine cover works in conjunction with the new diffuser between the rear wheels to increase downforce over the rear axle.
The diffuser features similar fences (deflectors) to those used on Ferrari's single-seaters, and increases the speed of air flow under the tail of the car creating an area of depression and ground effect that pulls the car down. The two intakes for the engine are positioned over the driven wheels in an area of high flow pressure, thus guaranteeing a greater volume of air to the intake manifold. At high speeds, in fact, ram-effect induction accounts for 1% of the engine's maximum power (490 hp).
E-Diff Electronic Differencial
The electronic differential has been used for many years on F1 single-seaters to transfer massive torque levels to the track whatever the surface conditions. In competition, in fact, the E-Diff guarantees maximum grip out of bends, eliminating wheel spin.
On the road it is a formidable technological refinement that improves roadholding and stability. Torque is continuously and optimally distributed between the wheels via two sets of friction discs (one for each driveshaft) controlled by a hydraulic actuator.
The amount of torque actually transmitted to the driven wheels depends on driving conditions (accelerator pedal angle, steering angle, yaw acceleration, individual wheel rotation speed) and brings considerable advantages in terms of performance, direction stability, active safety and handling feedback.
Capote
The electric roof is fully automatic and folds away completely, so that the engine is always visible, despite the Spider’s uncompromising central-rear engine layout.
The F430 Spider has been developed using exactly the same engineering approach to computer development models and Wind Tunnel testing as used by the F1 team. Ferrari engineers have been able to modulate the air flow both around the car, as well as under it, and the result is a highly efficient configuration that channels air flow for maximum down-force and grip. Similarly, air is channelled to the engine to both increase power as well as optimise cooling of transmission and brakes, even under heaviest use. Perfecting the F430 Spider’s aerodynamics has brought about a 50% increase in down-force compared to the 360 Modena, thus increasing high-speed stability and the car’s active safety. At 200 km/h, that figure equates to 45 kg more down-force than the 360 Modena; this becomes 85 kg at 300 km/h, amounting to a total of 280 kg. The significant progress made in the car’s aerodynamics is also reflected in the improvement of the ratio between the coefficient of down-force (Cl) and the drag coefficient (Cd), with a 40% improvement over the 360 Modena. This result was in part achieved by including a new spoiler at the bottom of the front bumper where it cleaves ‘clean’ air, i.e. air that’s undisturbed by the turbulence generated around the body of the vehicle. Lengthy development of the shape and the angle of attack of the spoiler resulted in an increase in down-force over the front axle – up to 130 kg – which contributes to longitudinal vehicle stability and steering precision.
Increasing Downforce
The nolder on the trailing edge of the engine cover works in conjunction with the new diffuser between the rear wheels The latter features similar fences (deflectors) to those used on Ferrari’s single-seaters, and increases the speed of air flow under the tail of the car creating an area of depression and ground effect that pulls the car down. In this conformation, the underbody actively helps increase downforce to a maximum of 150 kg over the rear axle. Aerodynamic development also had a part in extracting the maximum performance from the new 4.3-litre V8. The two intakes for the engine are positioned over the driven wheels in an area of high flow pressure, thus guaranteeing a greater volume of air to the intake manifold
Interior & Personalisation
The interior is exceptionally innovative as well as sporty. The instruments are housed in a new binnacle, and this design - together with the layout of the dashboard - underlines the care that has gone into grouping all the major controls within easy reach of the driver.
In the driver's direct line of sight are the rev counter, which features new graphics on a yellow background and a new metal surround, the digital readout of the gear ratio selected (F1 version) and a multi-function display.
The same uncompromising approach to driver control was the inspiration behind mounting the starter button and manettino on the steering wheel.
The cockpit is noticeably bigger and the already excellent passenger comfort is improved still further by a slimmer central tunnel which houses the gear lever turret on the manual version or the F1 console on the paddle-shift version.
The seats have been redesigned for greater lateral containment too. Electric seats are available on request as is a racing version featuring a four-point safety harness (depending on market).
Each Ferrari to emerge from the factory at Maranello is absolutely unique, not just because it is hand-built, but also because a virtually endless combination of personalisation options is offered to each new owner.
The Convertable that feels like a coupe
Ferrari's new drop-top includes a number of important technical features which give hints of the car's F1 pedigree, starting with the innovative electronic differential - first developed by the racing division for the Scuderia's all-conquering F1 cars ' which improves traction and roadholding under all conditions. The Spider also features the steering wheel-mounted commutator switch, known to the Scuderia's drivers as the 'manettino', which allows the car's set-up to be adjusted easily and quickly. Formula 1 is thus again the inspiration for the development of the company's road cars. Designed by Pininfarina, the F430 Spider's sinuous lines, in fact, were fine-tuned using state-of-the-art computer aerodynamics simulation programmes usually employed exclusively by the F1 team.
The F430 Spider's shape is the result of lengthy testing and features a pronounced nolder which is integrated into the end of the engine cover, new bigger rear air intakes that emphasise the car's muscular stance, and a new rear valance that incorporates a diffuser of competition derivation. The engine itself is attractively set below a glass cover.
The interior reflects the advanced technology and materials employed in the car's construction, and features new sails and inserts on the dash which can be personalised in carbon or aluminium. Exclusively in the F430 Spider the same materials have now been extended to the front part of the tunnel, to enhance the ambience further. A plaque bearing the model name also takes pride of place at the centre of the dash.
The cockpit is noticeably bigger and the already excellent passenger comfort is subsequently increased thanks to a slimmer central tunnel which houses the gear lever turret on the manual version or the F1 console on the paddle-shift version. The interior details are completed by catch netting on the large rear bench and two electrically operated compartments for oddments storage, one in front of the passenger and one on the rear firewall. A driving experience you will remember forever.