Posted by Paul Regan at 1:00PM on Tuesday 13 May, 2008 10 Comments
Seen what Alfa has done this morning with its MiTo?
Their marketing chaps have lined it up next to the 8C to highlight the 'family resemblence'.
It's a timely comparison - with the big new Ferrari launch today our homepage this morning is now covered in hot-looking Italian metal.
So here's what it made me think: what happens if you line up the new Ferrari California against the 8C?
In exactly the same way the gorgeous Alfa manages to flatter the little Alfa supermini, it makes the Ferrari look a bit, well, awkward.
Doesn't the 8C look more like a mini-Ferrari GT should - especially in soft-top Spider guise?
I wonder whether those Maranello engineers have screwed up trying to force a folding hardtop into the California - it's something few manufacturers have managed to get right aesthetically and probably why there's so much debate this morning.
What do you reckon?
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The Ferrari looks ugly next to the 8C... Ferrari definitely have the roof/butt priority all wrong.
What would make a better comparison, obviously as you make mention to it, would be a shot of the 8C Spider next to the Ferrari. That I would like to see.
8C looks way better than the California (stupid name). Ferrari have lost their way with their styling.. I can't honestly say I like the styling of any of their cars since the 550. In my opinion Ferrari don't make automotive exotica anymore... they make expensive golf carts.
Alfa everytime. It's simply gorgeous, the drop-top is just as sexy. Makes the Ferrari look like a fancy new Hyundai.
Nothing wrong with an 8C... really.
But why is everyone so upset about the new Ferrari? It's just a 1000 times better looking than the Alfa.
Sod the 8C, I'd even take an Alfa Spider rather than the Ferrari GT. The 8C is just pornographic overkill. I wanted the GT to be a sort of Ferrari-fied Porsche, not a Peugeot-ified Alfa Spider.
I absolutely love the 8C, with or without roof. They both look gorgeous. On the contrary to what most people think, I also like the California. They've done a good job hiding the top roof and I like the lines of the new car. Hate the name though...
Heck, give me a Stingray any day... But this little Ferrari looks good to me...
The Alfa is certainly sexier and more elegant, with a smoother waist/shoulder line, but the Fezza, with it's extra flare, looks a bit sportier to me.
But what if it's not as sporty as it looks with the weight of that folding roof, and why on earth is it not made of carbon fibre to solve such a problem in advance?
Ah well, I'm sure it'll be fine. It is a Ferrari after all.
Never really liked the 8C's design and honestly can't see what makes it such a beautiful car... but even when you line-up the California (agreeing with others that the name is terrible) next to the 'ugly' Alfa, it still doesn't make the Ferrari look any better. As Bloitus said, Ferrari really lost it's touch in putting that soul into a car.
Nowadays a Ferrari is nothing more then a lightweight PC on four wheels, and because of those electronic gadgets, anyone is able to drive a Ferrari, unlike in the old days where only REAL men could handle a Ferrari.
The 8C is what Italian cars should be, fast and sexy. The California looks like a Maserati designed by Toyota USA to be a Japanese-American-Italian supercar with a Ferrari badge. But at least it's red enough to be one.
That's a tragedy and the authour of the text is 100 per cent right; the 8C represents the style, that a mini Ferrari should!
I'm really sad, looking at the first ugly car wearing a Ferrari badge. Enzo Ferrari would kill the designer.