Grand Tourers have always been the trendsetters for driving long journeys in luxury, comfort and speed. Ferrari has always been up there as the ultimate Grand Tourer, with the FF, the Portofino and the GTC4 Lusso. Their most latest release, the Roma, is their newest and most high tech compact GT (Grand Tourer). Ferrari’s marketing team described the car as ‘an F1 car in evening attire’.
Looks is where the Roma catches our eye, but not meaning to draw too much attention, it does look somewhat similar to the Aston Martin Vantage only slightly. However I digress, the car itself seems jawdropping and stunning. Come to think of it most of their vehicles over the past years have been gorgeous and stunning in design, the front grille is slightly controversial. Some like it while others don’t, but one thing for sure it will turn heads no matter the opinion. Timeless elegance is what the Roma was designed upon, and immediately you can tell that it will be a future classic. There are no bulging wheel arches, no razor-sharp edges, fixed spoilers or ridiculously designed exterior with wrath. Everything about the surface reflects the driving aspects it associates with, purity. The only slight sense of sportiness you see is the mobile spoiler which is integrated with the rear window and only pops out at high speeds for downforce, most of the time, it remains hidden making the Roma look clean, neat and smooth.
The interior follows along with the purity, touches of the 21st Century, infotainment system and digital speedometer are all well and truly present there. However, the overall layout and design isn’t messy or engraved with unnecessary emblems, stitches and designs. It’s simplistic and yet cosy; the only irritating thing is the touch buttons. There are no physical buttons for the settings, so get ready to wipe down the screens a lot from the sticky fingers. So it is a cosy and comfortable environment, but it will take some getting used to first and probably a lot of patience as well.
Just because the Roma looks comfortable and soft doesn’t mean that it is, as with most Grand Tourers power and performance are also its bread and butter. Equipped with a 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8 producing 612bhp and 561 lb-ft of torque, ensures that 0-62mph is quickly achieved within 3.4 seconds, with 124mph achieved in under 9.3 seconds, and it will keep on going onto a steady 199mph.
So there you have it, the Ferrari Roma a future classic and a sophisticated yet complicated interior. The Roma is both elegant, timeless and versatile yet complicated, sophisticated and advanced at the same time. Well back in the day aristocrats, pioneers and philosophers were the ones who mainly set off on epic cross country trips commonly known as the Grand Tour; perhaps the Ferrari Roma aims to bring back its original clientele from decades past?
Sources:
https://www.ferrari.com/en-LS/auto/ferrari-roma
https://www.topgear.com/car-reviews/ferrari/roma/driving
Images:
https://www.topspeed.com/cars/ferrari/2020-ferrari-roma-ar187346.html
Bleeding Edge Digital 
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