084 http://www.fastcar.co.uk
WILD CARD
Turning a Ferrari 458’s Manettino to Race mode is
like plunging through a wormhole in space, tumbling
into a distorted mirror and slamming straight through
the back of the celestial closet into whatever the
petrolhead alternative to Narnia is. Even in friendlier
Sport mode it’s a pretty brutal proposition: a 562bhp
V8 with a howling 9,000rpm redline, making a noise
like a tortured choir of wronged angels, mated to a
7-speed dual-clutch Getrag ’box.
This all runs hand-in-hand with smart E-Diff and
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function, drag-reducing deformable front winglets...
and when you click that little switch to Race mode,
all bets are off. Gear-shifts times are quickened,
suspension stiffened, traction control loosened, and
it’ll let you bounce off the limiter for giggles rather
than automatically shifting up for you. The thing just
wants to play. But it’s not a game for the faint of heart.
The breathtaking performance of this model
reframed what we thought we knew about road-going
performance cars when it was launched in 2010. It was
staggering, devastating, perhaps even tiptoeing up to
the warning sign marked ‘too much’.
But for some people, too much ain’t enough. You’ll
notice that the animal nature of this 458 Spider has
been ramped up by expanding the menagerie of
creatures involved; whereas the factory 458 is liberally
studded with equine motifs, in this instance the
prancing horse is joined by sheep. Lots of sheep.
Now, our woolly chums have never really been
associated with sporting prowess, but there’s
a shadowy clique of gearheads out in southern
California who are keen to challenge this viewpoint.
Sheepey Race is a company run by enthusiasts, for
enthusiasts. Otherwise known as Sheepey Built and
renowned for their tuning expertise and innovation
The view most people get to admire
Dare you press the big red button?
