I took the opportunity to go and welcome it in South Africa and have a look at the renovated dealership.
The newly renovated flagship showroom now focuses on welcoming ambience, authenticity and innovation, featuring a new atelier, heritage library and delivery bay. Speaking of the delivery bay, the main focus behind the visit was to lay eyes on the new F8 Spider and find out exactly what the new vehicle offers. Upfront the F8 Spider shares its design queues with the F8 Tributo which it is based on. It is a similar case with the rear of the vehicle although when viewing the Spider from the side and above, this is where some distinct differences can be spotted. These changes are due to the new retractable hardtop and resemble that of the first V8 powered, open-top Ferrari had on offer, the 1977 Ferrari 308 GTS.
The Ferrari F8 Spider is powered by a 3.9-litre turbocharged V8 which produces 530 kW and 770 N.m of torque. Sending its power to the rear wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch F1 transmission will see the Spider reach 100km/h in just 2.9 seconds and reach a top speed of 340km/h. This Ferrari does feature the latest in ABS and EBD technology to slow down the vehicle before a turn although it also features version 6.1 of Ferrari’s Side Slip Angle Control system which allows the driver to perform drifts with comfort in knowing that the onboard computers will assist in keeping them on the road and out of the ditch.
After inspecting every angle of the new prancing horse, I spoke to Chanelle Zackey, the national marketing manager of Scuderia SA. She was excited to share with me that Scuderia South Africa is hosting yet another internship programme for applicants aged in between 18 and 25 years of age that have recently graduated from a university or FET colleges. The internship will see the graduate gain invaluable experience on the management aspects of such an iconic brand. To apply applicants must post a recent picture of themselves next to their favourite Ferrari on Instagram and explain why they are the perfect candidate in 200 words or less and tag @scuderiaferrariza, @chanellezackey and @calebjschroeter and us the #ThePersuitOfExcellence hashtag.
Price
Ferrari F8 Spider – R 6 103 400
