The story
The 458 Italia was an evolution of the F430 and 430 Scuderia under new Pininfarina bodywork. Its flat-plane-crank V-8 gained direct injection and grew from 4308 cc to 4497 cc, raising output from 503 to 562 hp at a heady 9,000 rpm. Car and Driver noted Ferrari’s claim of a world record for per-liter output from a naturally aspirated piston engine, and called its seven-speed dual-clutch automated manual quite simply the best it had encountered.
In Car and Driver’s European supercar test, the 3,451-pound 458 reached 60 mph in 3.3 seconds and ran the quarter-mile in 11.5 seconds at 125 mph, and it was the clear winner on the Reno-Fernley road course. Ferrari quoted a 202-mph top speed. Base price was $229,925; the test car came to $270,790.
Sources: Car and Driver, 2011 European Supercar Super Test; Car and Driver, Tested: 2010 Ferrari 458 Italia.