Ferrari California

THIS LOOKS A BIT FAMILIAR...Yes, it's the Ferrari California again, but this time with the

roof up and in 'Azzurro California' blue which was the colour of the 250 GT California shown at New York Show in 1962 . There are also pics of the roof mid-fold.ANY MORE NEWS ON THE CARFerrari President Luca di Montezemolo has been around the Fiorano circuit in a prototype model and declared it sensational, which isn't that surprising.THAT'S THE BEST YOU CAN DO?No, we also know that the roof takes just 14 seconds to do its thing and Ferrari calls the seating arrangement a 2+, which means the rear seats are pretty useless by and large.ANY TECHNICAL LOW DOWN?The aerodynamics produce 70kg of downforce at 200km/h and a new seven-speed dual clutch transmission will be standard. No manual will be offered. The car is 4560mm long, 1900mm wide and has a wheelbase of 2700mm and the boot has a 360-litre, roof-up capacity and 260 litres down.REMIND ME AGAIN ABOUT THE ENGINE...The F430's 4.3-litre V8 is mounted up front but behind the front axle, effectively making it mid-engined. Expect 460hp and 480Nm of torque, while the combined economy figure is 13.2l/100 km with CO2 emission levels of around 310g/km.EMISSIONS? ARE YOU MAD?Ferrari is subject to the same legislation as everyone else so economy and CO2 output is as important as 0-100km/h times (less than 4 seconds, by the way) and top speed (300km/h+) these days. Direct injection, electronic auxiliaries and advanced materials are key here.