The Ferrari 458 Speciale Will Be Speciale Indeed

Forget about the stupid name! Yeah, they should fire the guy already, but as long as the engineering team comes up with a 458 like this, they can even call it the Ferrari Fiero as far as I'm concerned.

You know how it looks, and I'm afraid it's not good news. I find the front to be way too busy, and at the rear, gone are the triple exhausts. It's the same story as with that mystery Lexus LFA prototype. Then again, the V8 revs to 9,000 rpm, it's 200 pounds lighter, and 605 horses push you to 62 mph in 3 seconds flat. Imagine what John Hennessey could do with it...

You also get a sculpted carbon piece that can act both as a fake handbrake and a handrail for passengers. To make it more foolproof, Ferrari also put a Side Slip angle Control system into the 458 Speciale, which performs second-to-second analysis of the car's side slip, comparing it with the target value and then optimizing both torque management and torque distribution between the two wheels.

And due to Pirelli being way too busy ruining F1, the Speciale comes with speciale developed Michelin Pilot Sport Cup2 tires, giving it better grip in the wet, and a lateral acceleration of 1.33 g on track, the highest number ever achieved by a Ferrari.

What's not to like? I'll tell you once I got to the Frankfurt Motor Show in September...