The transmission is not trash, I love it... Shifts quicker than anything out there... 60ms?

BTW if you order now and tak delivery this year, you will receive a 2013. Pretty sure the 2013's are all that are being produced now. I have a new one on order thats being delivered in October according to FNA.

Take a look at some of the tripple layer paint options (20K+)

Ditch the electronic upgrades, back up sensors, gps, front lifter, upgraded soundsystem, all a waste.

Spend it on a CF driver zone / Wheel, sport sills (go grey), Wheel upgrade.

the only trouble i've had has been with the airconditioning, had the dealer recharge it, fine now.

Experience? 2500 miles on the 2011

 

Can you be specific of why the electronic upgrades are a waste? Is it because they are not any good, or because you would like to have some cost containment and spend it on the CF instead?
What is the MSRP of your build? Sounds like it would be around 250 to 260 with those upgrades.
I am planning on ordering one in the fall or winter, and want to hold off on much of the CF. Will get the CF steering wheel and driving center but thats it. I will also get the light weight sport wheel upgrade. I would assume that the front lifter and parking sensors would be very useful to prevent any silly damage.
Thanks for your input

 

Some of those electronic upgrades are not a waste at all. When you are parking/reversing a 300k+ car you are going to want the parking sensors to help protect your investment. Almost all of the 458 owners I know get their cars speced with the front lifter too; you would be a fool not to get it especially if you live in a city where there are speed bumps at places like malls.

Now the hi-fi premium sound system I will agree is a waste (its a 11 speaker JBL system). Maybe if Ferrari got Bang & Olufsen to do their sound systems like the SLS AMG, then sure, but the factory upgrade is atrocious. I would recommend the ipod integration though; they charge you up the ass for the option (800 bucks!!) but its very useful especially if you like listening to music while driving like me.

Navigation system may or may not be a waste. If you go on road trips a lot then it could be useful. But you are better off just buying a nice third party GPS unit from Tom Tom.

The CF drivers zone is a nice touch; I really like the convenience of having the LED's on the steering wheel which tell you when to shift.

 

One item on the list is the front lift. Had this fitted to my Porsche 4s, as it has Aero Kit fitted. You need this for everyday driving etc, otherwise it's a pain that you are limited to where you can take the car.

 

no worries,

A number of reasons from person preference to financial reasons to practicality... (i know laughable with a $275K car) The back up sensors, trust me on this, you will be more aware of where your ferrari is and what it's backing up to than any other car you've owned. It also alters the bumper line taking away from the seamlessness of it. I really doubt you will ever be in a situation where you need it, unless you are driving around the small streets of italy The Front lifter... I live in dallas, and we have plenty of obstacles. Never had a problem. With older model ferraris some had issues, but the 458 has 6-8 inches of clearance everywhere.. if you take a trip over to ferrarichat you wont find anyone that really has purchased it or if they have they don't use it. I have not bottomed out the car. I've not even heard of people with steep driveways having problems. The nose just doesnt stick that far out over the wheels. Porche's are a differen't story as someone mentioned here.. I had a 996 c4.. and I wish i had a lifter on that. GPS, well you have an iphone dont you? It's better than the standard gps system and ask anyone who owns one right now... interfacing with the electronics while operating the car is tedious.. On the sound system... the upgrade is garbage and yes for the skeptics i have changed every sound setting possible (the iphone equalizer options give it a bit of an upgrade) I do recommend the priciest iphone cable hookup in the world. If you want to burn $6K on a sound system, upgrade the speakers on your own, aftermarket, but then again when you are in the car it's so loud you don't really have time to listen to music. I do a lot of cruising... with the windows down More over if your sort of protective like me, you're not going to have the music up loud too often as 90% of the time I'm driving, im driving defensively because people are rolling up to me, taking video while driving, and snapping pictures... beware... for what it's worth, i still ordered the premium sound on my next one (i know, im not even following my own advice)

Now financially speaking you wont see as much of a return on the electronic investment, keep the car as close to base price as possible, better to be on the bottom end of the spectrum in terms of price range than higher. Now... again im being a hyprocrite here because of my paint choice, but the paint i ordered is very rare, and desirable. Right now you should get what you paid for the car even if you put a couple 1,000 miles on it. Why? Because demand is so high. In fact most of the cars appreciate the second you drive it off the lot. I have no idea how long this will last, so beware. You will likely enter into a soft agreement with your dealer around the topic of resale... just make sure to cycle it ever 1.5 years or so and you should stay ahead of the depreciation.

As for CF... Im not a big fan of the CF Driver zone my self, but if you want the paddle shifters to be CF you have to order the driver zone that way. I'm sure i could specify for a fee to go custom CF on every part, but it's not worth it. I'll live and my interior is nero. Now the CF wheel... is awesome. Go see a few and look at the difference at the dealer, the RPM LEDs that tell you when to shift are something i miss from the California. So this time around im splurging.

The sports sills really put a nice touch on the car, i highly recommend getting the standard grey.

As far as rims go all the cars are now shipping with the 20's, this is personal preference, but im a huge fan of the 5 star spoke w/ diamond finish, its an upgrade, but going to look amazing.

Anyway you cut it you will get a beautiful car, but if your worried about resale, stick towards keeping the car as stock as possible, you will fare the best

Happy to answer any other questions I can, i've actually taken a factory tour so I've seen them being assembled.

 

Hi ZZZSpeed,

Can you be more specific please? - I guess this doesnt apply to GT2 owners..- right?

Interesting thread here..never really thought of the 458..but reading some info about it interesting..

Before I would own one I would need to drive one - thats clear. And didnt you mention that your like the GT2 more then the 458..- since you drove both of them?

I hope your 458 will be an addition..and that you will not trade in your GT2..

PS: Im not married yet...but maybe soon..

 

Dont worry, will not be selling my GT2 for anything but a CGT, maybe not even for that. The 458 would be additional, wife (and rational thinking) is biggest obsticale to that right now. In my mind there is very few places I would feel comfortable parking or being seen in such a car. The GT2 does not get that much attention, people just think its an aggresive looking porsche, but do not know what it really is. I can drive it just about anywhere. And the attention from girls is more then say a minivan or family sedan, but nothing like a 458 would be.

Yes, I felt my GT2 was quite a bit faster and handled much better then the 458. But I only drove the 458 on a track, so maybe will enjoy it more then my GT2 on the streets. The GT2 is very hardcore, the 458 would be more comfortable around town, probably.
The 458 has such an amazing exhaust and being able to rev a NA engine to 9k rpm, and I could just look at it in amazement.

 

They're beautiful and will turn lots of heads, thus causing many accidents within your radius.


Other than that, they're fine.

 

I agree Hotsauce on the electronic goodies, a friend has the upgrade Sound and the lifter both are a total waste ...

 

Hi ZZZ,

Yes - the 458 engine is probably the main advantage over the GT2 - not that this one is bad - on the contrary - but it doesnt rev so high..and with the 458 you can probably relax more, as you say.

Ah - so I see your wife might have some issues with it...yes - there are many beautiful girls in SoCal..maybe thats the reason..

I fully agree- the GT2 is pure understatement...most people dont know what it is - the only thing that looks a bit weird for some people is the wing. But that actually somehow attracts attention too..little story here - me a friend once drove by a nightclub to look for partking. He has a 997 - plain normal - completely unnoticed - the GT3 was however noticed..afterwards even some girls started asking questions about the car..and my GT3 is basalt..his 997 was white..so..

what about getting a 2nd hand 458?..instead of a new one..? I wouldnt buy a new one..Ferraris loose quite quickly value today too-.--the 458 is however still the best one in this regard I think.

Let us know what you will do..