Ferrari’s 488 Spider makes its South African debut

Following the fine custom of sonorous V8s, Ferrari particularly developed the 488’s engine to sound the part, with advanced exhaust headers and a flat-plane crankshaft.

However what can it really do? The Spider’s 3902cc turbo-charged V8, lifted straight out of the 488 coupé, presses 492kW and 760Nm, enabling it to sprint from 0-100km/ h in just 3 seconds flat and on to 200km/h in 8.7 seconds, which is not much more than the average hot hatch needs to get to 100. The top speed, they state, is more than 325km/h.

Like its sibling, the Spider is developed around a lightweight area frame, made from 11 various types of aluminium alloys, some integrated with other metals such as magnesium.