Portofino Takes A Racier Turn

ONCE a quiet fishing village, tourism has become the major industry in Portofino on the Italian Riviera coastline, as fancy homes, luxury yachts add to a boisterous waterfront packed with restaurants and cafes.

Now the Ferrari Portofino adds to the vigour of the place. And by the end of next year, there will likely be a few of them prowling the streets of the colourful town.

The new V8 GT drop-top is quite a fiery number. Replacing the California T, the Portofino is lighter but stiffer, thanks to modern production technology. It also sports the third-generation electronic rear differential integrated with the F1-Trac to give it biting grip.

The aggressive styling of the Portofino includes peformance enhancing touches like a large radiator grille opening. A new full-LED headlight assembly hides an air intake that vents into the front wheel arch and exits along the flank.

In the cabin, it’s all about creature comforts as you prepare to fire the rocket. A 10.2″ touchscreen gives you the lowdown of how your beast is faring. And when the hard top is out of the way, a new wind deflector cuts air flow inside the cabin by 30% so your screams can be heard as the car flies from 0-100kmh in 3.5 seconds