The Ferrari California offered a number of firsts upon its debut in 2008. The Ferrari California, premiering in 2008, takes its name from a 50-year-old classic while introducing some modern-day developments. It’s the first Ferrari to sport a retractable hardtop, to rock a dual-clutch 7-speed transmission, and the first to wield a front-engine V8. A dual-clutch 7-speed transmission, for those seamless gear changes. The $230,000 auto is called a “grand tourer” I suppose for this reason, though you’d better find some small friends or very young children if you want to do any grand touring without major leg circulation issues. Anyway who wants to deal with complaints from the backseat?

Ferrari can do many things other car companies cannot, including building a machine that links past with present and that tries, however successfully, to be the fastest car to the market and back. The Ferrari California, premiering in 2008, takes its name from a 50-year-old classic while introducing some modern-day developments. It’s the first Ferrari to sport a retractable hardtop, to rock a dual-clutch 7-speed transmission, and the first to wield a front-engine V8. A dual-clutch 7-speed transmission, for those seamless gear changes. And as a result of this transmission it presents at least one last: The last Ferrari to offer a manual gearbox. Anyway who wants to deal with complaints from the backseat?

Ferrari can do many things other car companies cannot, including building a machine that links past with present and that tries, however successfully, to be the fastest car to the market and back. The Ferrari California, premiering in 2008, takes its name from a 50-year-old classic while introducing some modern-day developments. It’s the first Ferrari to sport a retractable hardtop, to rock a dual-clutch 7-speed transmission, and the first to wield a front-engine V8. It’s also got something called backseats, which seems like a cute concept for a Ferrari — a “2+” is the technical term. And as a result of this transmission it presents at least one last: The last Ferrari to offer a manual gearbox. It’s a natural classic, all good looks and serious performance, and it’s got a foot in the present and the past.