The classic grand touring formula
Ferrari has been doing grand tourers for far longer than its mid-engined line. So although the F8 Tributo, its entry-level mid-engined model, is an excellent two-seat supercar comfortable enough to use every day, the Portofino is closer to defining the GT breed.
A 3.9-litre twin-turbocharged V8 produces 592bhp with 561lb ft and is mounted in the nose, there are plus-two rear seats that adults can just about squash into courtesy of 5cm extra rear legroom versus the California T, and then there’s that folding hardtop that lowers in just 14 seconds at speeds up to 25mph, letting you bask in the Italian sun (or shelter from the Welsh rain) – and surely nothing better complements the GT brief than the ability to remove the roof, a pleasure denied to McLaren GT customers because of its curious rear loadbay.
You climb into the Ferrari through doors that open in the normal way, and the new central 10.25-inch infotainment screen is crisper and easier to use than the Honda or McLaren’s, and doubles as a rear-view camera with an image so clear it’s like watching HD TV – a peripheral detail maybe, but key to the Portofino’s daily driveability, though driver aids like lane-keep assist haven’t made it to Maranello yet.
The focus on usability, the position of the engine and the height of the Portofino – 20cm loftier than the NSX – means Ferrari must sacrifice some dynamic finesse at the altar of versatility against our mid-engined opposition. But it makes a damn good fist at clawing back the deficit.
It starts with a strikingly low-set driving position, and a buttoncovered steering wheel much like you’ll find in any Ferrari, and with the familiar if unusually fast ratio and generous assistance. The latter gives the Portofino energy to dance off the extra kilos lying up front, even if there’s very little road surface information actually flowing through the helm – the McLaren, with its more languid ratio, offers more nuanced communication.
There’s also a highly responsive feel through the pedals, especially compared with the McLaren. Factory-fit carbon-ceramic brakes (no other car here is supplied with them as standard) have a far tauter, more immediate response, and throttle response in Sport mode is like stepping on an electric fence after the muted McLaren – though it can always be softened in Comfort.
The outright punch of the V8/dual-clutch powertrain is blunted after the more powerful, lighter McLaren and the e-boost and endless gears of the similarly powerful though heavier NSX, but what it lacks in thrust it makes up for with driver engagement. Hardly sluggish, either, as 0-62mph in 3.5 seconds and 200mph flat-out attest.
Turbo lag is non-existent (nobody has mastered forced induction like Ferrari) giving a bandwidth to the performance that begins with low-rpm flex and rises progressively towards 7500rpm almost like the good old days of natural aspiration, not the sudden turbo kick of the GT. And neither Honda nor McLaren can shift gears with quite the pop of the Ferrari – pulling the paddleshifters is more like whipping the V8 on for extra speed than changing gear, though again you can dial back the blam-blams for less Italian driving.
There’s a vitality to the way the Ferrari steers and revs that makes it feel lighter than it actually is, and in some ways Ferrari has approached the Portofino from the opposite end of the spectrum than McLaren in trying to make a GT feel like a sports car, not the other way round. It’s a car you drive with fingertip delicacy and gentler inputs, not scruff-of-theneck harries, not in these conditions anyway.
In fact, the Portofino actually deploys its power well, especially given how much work the fast and reasonably soft front end asks of the rear. Partly that’s thanks to the trick e-diff carefully marshalling power, partly thanks to supple damping (courtesy of rather cheeky optional adaptive dampers here) that helps the Ferrari gather itself up neatly after crests and ride serenely over the primary undulations as our test roads take us over boggy, uneven moorland.
But it’s not perfect: play with the Ferrari more aggressively and there’s a far brisker transition to oversteer in the wet and more of a shimmy as it comes back in line. Over secondary ripples there’s also what feels like a structural shimmy from the rear.
The Portofino remains a compelling drive, and represents the car on test that best fits the grand-tourer criteria simply because nothing else here covers more bases. ⊲
Pulling the paddleshifters is more like whipping the V8 for extra speed than changing gear