Ferrari 458 Speciale Spider Spotted!

Spotted by our trusty TS spies is the new 458 Speciale drop top, snapped just outside the company’s headquarters in Maranello, Italy. The harder-core 458 sun-worship machine, features the convertible body of the 458 Spider but with a number of elements exclusive to the 458 Speciale.

These include a more aggressive front bumper, new side sills with an aerodynamic fin, and dual exhaust tips. The regular 458 Spider has a three-pipe exhaust design and more streamlined side sills.

We’ll likely see the 458 Speciale Spider introduced at the 2014 Paris Auto Show in early October (a private showing already took place during last weekend’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance). The car is likely to have a unique name (heard to be the 458 LS), just like the previous 430 Scuderia Spider 16M, which was the convertible version of the hardcore 430 Scuderia.

Apart from the convertible roof and potential name change, the 458 Speciale Spider should be almost identical to the 458 Speciale coupe. This means a 4.5-litre V-8 tuned to deliver 597 horsepower, an optimized seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, and the innovative Side Slip Angle Control system.