Ferrari Roma Spider 2025 review – lifting the curse of the California for good

evo verdict

There is plenty to like about the Roma Spider, a great deal in fact. It feels bespoke in that way only Ferraris do, with distinct character traits that deliver an all-encompassing and rewarding experience. That it appears to suffer next to no downsides over the coupe from having its roof removed only goes to strengthen its appeal. 

If there was a suspicion that Ferrari had broken the curse attached to its entry-level cars with the Roma coupe, that the Spider brings no compromises only confirms it. Here is an entry-level Ferrari of the same stature as any above it in Maranello’s range.

Engine, gearbox and technical highlights

27

• Welcome change from folding metal to fabric roof
• Revised damping response to account for extra weight
• 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8 with 611bhp and 560lb ft

With development starting after the Ferrari Roma coupe’s launch, the Spider transformation has required a little more work than simply finding a solution to replacing the fixed roof while retaining the simple, ’60s-inspired design of the car overall. Basking in Summer sun the latest Spider certainly exudes an elegance and simplicity of design that was lacking in both of its predecessors. It has a more confident posture and, crucially, is more comfortable on the eye.

A switch from a folding metal roof to a canvas one has been of great help to its looks and is a huge technical change compared to the Portofino and California it succeeds. Not only does the soft-top, according to Ferrari, provide a more warming approach to the car’s design compared to the technical and cold style of a folding metal roof, but it also eliminates the packaging issues that a folding hard-top creates, which resulted in the bulky and heavy-handed rear design that afflicted both the California and the Portofino. 

For the Spider the canvas roof only partially slips away out of sight, allowing the Roma to keep its hips trim and in shape. This new roof and the requirement for additional stiffening along each sill, the A-pillars and boot floor account for the Spider’s 84kg weight gain over the coupe. 

27

Under the long, sculpted bonnet lies a familiar 3.9-litre twin-turbocharged V8, producing 611bhp from 5750rpm and 560lb ft from 3000-5750rpm. That power is sent to the back wheels through the same eight-speed dual-clutch transmission and electronic differential as the coupe. It’ll sprint to 62mph in 3.4sec on the way to a 199mph top speed.

In its transition from coupe to Spider the Roma’s control systems for the engine and gearbox responses have been adjusted only to match the increased weight; there are no changes to adapt the car’s characteristics. The same approach has been taken with the Spider’s chassis. 

The spring rates remain the same as the coupe’s, so too the core settings for the active damper system. What has been altered is how the dampers react, to compensate for the weight increase; while the weight gain may equate to no more than always driving with a passenger in a Roma coupe, the change in weight distribution called for more detailed finessing. 

Performance, ride and handling

27

• Excellent ride and body control
• You’re never left wanting for potency from that V8
• Bridgestone tyre not the last word in precision and feedback

Such is the ferocity of the Roma’s twin-turbocharged V8 that the weight gain is neither here nor there, both in a straight line and through the more interesting sections of road. The 611bhp that arrives with a bang at 5750rpm gives the 3.9-litre V8 its screaming head as it rampages through to the 7500rpm peak, shift lights racing through to the red zone. The transmission as the coupe rips through the ratios with intense energy, landing you in the heart of the engine’s 560lb ft of torque as you set off in a bid to reach the horizon once again. It’s intoxicating, frantic and mesmerising as only the best engines are able to be.

In a world of hybrid assistance and torque fill, the Roma Spider’s V8 feels moderately old-school in its set-up, but it remains a mighty power unit with a wide operating window that allows the car to play its dual GT-supercar role. With 80 per cent of its torque available from a lowly 1900rpm the Spider is always on with its senses primed, although in Comfort mode and with the gearbox left in auto there can be times when you’re expecting quicker downshifts when you spot an opportunity to pass slower traffic or need to make progress, but they don’t come. 

> Ferrari F80 2025 review – near-1200bhp tech tour de force tested on road and track

The need to reduce emissions means the time it takes for the command from your right foot to result in the desired forward propulsion has an unexpected lag to it. Twist the manettino round to Sport and the issue is eradicated. Switch the eight-speed to manual and interact with the brilliant paddles and you’ll never give it another thought.

27

As a result there’s a softer edge to the Spider when the dampers are in their mildest setting, with more pitch and roll on turn-in, more compression to lean on through a corner, and a rear that squats harder before settling. However, as with the powertrain, wind the chassis up to Sport and the Spider connects to become sharper, more responsive and lighter on its toes. 

The Roma takes to rutted UK roadways like a duck to water, its adaptive damping system having the measure of most surfaces you throw at it. Bumpy road mode is still available in the Roma Spider with a press of the Manettino switch (rather than having its own button) but it’s no longer necessary, in this Ferrari at least, for civilised progress in the UK. Rather, you can dart between Comfort and Sport without even thinking about it, perhaps winding the dampers and that last level of freneticism back when mucking about in Race and ESC off. For the most part, it’s controlled, considered, composed, riding beautifully at a cruise and instilling confidence when you grow horns.

Before committing to a turn you’re struck by steering that is very un-Ferrari-like. Where we have become used to super-quick reactions from the company’s mid- and V12-engined cars when it comes to steering inputs, with a light but direct weighting, the Roma Spider’s steering is appreciably slower and heavier (heavy for Ferrari that is). It suits the Spider’s nature better, the calmer actions more measured and requiring a less laser-focused approach to every fourth-gear sweeper or city roundabout. When pushed and with the systems set to ‘let’s see what it will do for the camera’ mode, there’s a wide sweet spot of balance to work with before you need to be quick with your hands and the throttle. Perfect for those experiencing their first Ferrari before they strap themselves into a 296 GTS. 

27

Another difference on our test car from the coupe Romas we’ve driven before is the tyres. The coupe was launched with the choice of Michelin’s Pilot Sport 4 S or Pirelli’s P Zero, neither of which had been through a dedicated tyre development programme specific to the Roma, only Ferraris in general. While these are still available, both coupe and Spider can now be had with a Bridgestone Potenza Sport that has been developed specifically for the model. However, where the French and Italian rubber provided the response, crispness and stability expected of a 611bhp, rear-drive Ferrari, the Bridgestone lacks precision and feedback.

> Ferrari 12 Cilindri 2025 review – has the Aston Martin Vanquish rival gone too soft? 

You can feel the tyre roll on its treadblocks during the initial turn-in phase before it settles and starts to work its grip, and while it’s doing so you’re getting muffled messages through the steering, resulting in a moment of uncertainty in your mind as to whether you need to apply more or less lock. Trust your instincts and the Spider responds accordingly, but let your confidence slip and either apply an additional degree or two of lock or wind some off and you inject uncertainty that requires further management from the driver’s seat.

It’s not unruly, far from it, and it’s only at higher speeds when firmer commitment is required, but it reduces your focus until you’re confident that you have secured a bond between you, the car and its Bridgestones.

27

The Ferrari Roma Spider, like its predecessors, isn’t a car in which to set a lap record at Fiorano (or any circuit for that matter), and when you dial the speed back and allow it to settle to its natural rhythm it makes for an absorbing driving experience, roof up or down – although down feels more special even if the sound from the outside offers little to write home about.

Driver’s note

‘The Roma Spider masters a delicate dance between convertible grand tourer and sports car. It’s more confident in both its cruising and sporting abilities than the Aston Martin DB12 Volante but also more practical and spacious inside than a Vantage Roadster. The ride and response from the adaptive dampers are perfectly suited to UK roads, the Roma working just as well on a refined, long-distance schlep as it does a point-and-squirt B-road dissection. Save for the theatre of a screaming V12, it should be all the Ferrari you could ever need.’ – Ethan Jupp, evo web editor, who tested the Roma Spider against the Aston Martin Vantage Roadster on the road in the UK.

Interior and tech

27

• Good quality, special feel
• HMI improved but still frustrating
• Back seats not of huge use

The 2+ concept of the Spider means the rear seats are best used for carrying objects rather than people, and should you want to benefit from the innovative wind deflector the rear buckets are only useful for bag storage anyway. This is because the deflector is also the backrest for the rear seats, which arcs upwards to provide an extension to the rear deck that mostly covers the space above the back seats. 

An opening at the deflector’s trailing edge then draws turbulent air in and away from the cabin. It’s remarkably effective, too. Roof down, windows up and deflector in place the cabin is calmer and quieter than being in a fixed-roof car with its sunroof tilted open. Drop the windows and there’s little additional buffeting over a rival convertible with its roof down and windows up.

You might be driven mad by the HMI system, however. Never a strong point in modern Ferraris, some upgrades have been carried out to improve the interface and the driver interaction. The steering wheel buttons are now recessed in the spokes of the wheel, but there still remains a great number of controls on the wheel that need to return to their natural positions. And the touchscreen, while less laggy and not so counterintuitive, remains only a mild improvement on what’s gone before.

27

The Roma Spider is also the recipient of the latest Advanced Driver-Assistance System (ADAS), which includes lane-keep assist that became mandatory from summer 2024 on all new cars sold. Thankfully Ferrari provides a shortcut to turning the hateful software off, and even a way to configure and fine-tune the ADAS to suit your requirements. But it’s still a process every time you get in the car to go for a drive – one that none, not even Ferrari, can escape.

Ferrari has since backpedaled on its policy of indiscriminate digitisation, with the Amalfi (the Roma coupe’s successor) getting buttons in the place of the Roma’s haptic controls, as well as a proper physical start button. If that sounds like something you can’t live without but you need a soft top, an Amalfi Spider is as yet unconfirmed but almost certain to join the lineup as this car’s replacement before too long. 

The Amalfi’s is a much more conventional and open cabin than the Roma it replaces – more homogenous with the rest of the range. Some might see it as less special than the Roma’s, which is an ensconcing and quality-feeling sports GT interior.

Price and rivals

27

In the UK Roma Spider prices start from £210,838 – a fair whack more than the Roma Coupe, now off-sale. The Amalfi is expected to cost from £210k when it goes on sale in the UK next year, That puts it in line with Aston Martin’s DB12 Volante, a comparison that’s favourable to the Ferrari. Factor in the new Vantage Roadster however, which is £35k cheaper than a standard Roma, a more invigorating sports car and still a very talented GT and the Roma doesn’t look so hot.

Bentley’s Continental GT convertible starts at a similar price but is a very different driving proposition to the Ferrari (and Astons for that matter), focusing on luxury and opulence over dynamics and engagement. There will be a new Porsche 911 Turbo S Cabriolet once the 992.2 arrives, likely with over 700bhp and a price of over £190k.

The Lexus LC500 Convertible used to be a bargain alternative to the more established premium and exotic options but is sadly off-sale now. Its naturally-aspirated V8, sharp design and high-quality interior (and genuine exclusivity) makes for a leftfield alternative, but you’ll need to venture to the used market to get one.

Ferrari Roma Spider specs