Ferrari California T: The First Turbocharged Ferrari In 30 Years

The California T heralded the start of turbo charging that is sweeping across the Prancing Horse’s range.

- Dan Prosser

A CALIFORNIA IN KOTHRUD.

We were scouting for suitable locations for our convertible special and hotel porches and golf resorts came to mind, not the streets of a little suburb in Pune charecterised by fiercely territorial residents. They say a Kothrud guy (our very own snapper Gaurav is the perfect example of the excellence in fine arts from the area) will never leave Kothrud; the people of Kothrud being the conservative and sensible type, highly unlikely to potter around in something as ostentatious as a Ferrari, that too with its roof down. The question we are asking is not if the California will have corners for breakfast, but whether it can survive the narrow, leafy, laid-back streets and back alleys of one of Pune’s most quintessential localities.

That’s because the California is a disruptive car. Ferrari never made anything like the California in the past – an everyday Ferrari! – and Kothrud is the most everyday locality we can think of. The previous Ferrari California was, it could be argued, the most important new Ferrari of the last decade. If we consider the 458 Italia and Spider as distinct models, as the factory does, the California stands as Ferrari’s best-selling single model ever, with more than 10,000 units shifted during its five-year life span. It not only sold in big numbers, it also opened Ferrari up to a whole new market sector and attracted a great many new buyers to the brand: 70 per cent of California owners had never before owned a car with a Prancing Horse on its nose, so the car buying patterns of Kothrud can yet see some changes.