2007 Ferrari 430 Spider on 2040-cars

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Autoblog Podcast #397

Episode #397 of the Autoblog Podcast is here, and this week, Dan Roth, Steven Ewing, and Seyth Miersma talk about the leadership change at Ferrari, the Mercedes-AMG GT, and we give a report on the Long-Term Garage. We start with what's in the garage and finish up with some of your questions, and for those of you who hung with us live on our UStream channel, thanks for taking the time. Check out the rundown below with times for topics, and you can follow along down below with our Q&A. Thanks for listening!
Autoblog Podcast #397:
Topics:

Tax The Rich returns with reckless driving in a Ferrari 288 GTO

Tax The Rich, the YouTube channel that exists mainly to terrorize ultra-rare, ultra-expensive cars like the Jaguar XJ220, Ferrari Enzo and Rolls-Royce Phantom, has come out with its first video in two months, starring one of the rarest Ferraris of the past 40 years - the 288 GTO.
Now, by Tax The Rich standards, its treatment of the 288 is better than what the Enzo or the Rolls (especially) got in their videos. The most cringe-worthy parts are in the very beginning, before transitioning to actual roads (yes, we know the 288 was originally meant as a Group B rally car, but that makes zipping about on grass and dirt in a very rare Ferrari no less difficult to watch). After that, it's more of the stuff we wish collectors would do with their cars - drive. Seeing and hearing this 288 GTO at full clip is a thing of beauty, and something we wish were a far more regular occurrence.
Take a look below for the latest video from Tax The Rich.

2015 Ferrari 458 Speciale

Where the current roadgoing Ferrari coupe with its rear-mounted V8 can go beyond this Speciale edition, I don't know. The 458 Italia and Spider already hold a very dear place in the hearts of anyone who has driven them on a sunny day over great roads or tracks, and I was pretty sure nothing could beat the heady sensory combo presented in the 458 Spider when I first drove it back in 2011. I may have to change my opinion now.
Companies like Ferrari are in the enviable position of sprinkling performance dust on their already-great base cars, all just to make them a skosh better and grab us again by the loins for one more model year. Some perspective: in 2002, the legendary Enzo set its personal best around Ferrari's 1.9-mile track at Fiorano, pulling a 1:24.9. This 458 Speciale with four fewer cylinders and more weight beats it with a time of 1:23.5, and not once during my laps did I feel as though I might die if my slightest judgment behind the wheel was less than on the money.