The job of configuring a new Ferrari 296 just got a whole lot harder with the announcement of an open-top GTS that joins the existing GTB coupe. Sharing the same basic aluminum chassis and 819 hp hybrid-assisted 3.0-liter V6 as the fixed-roof car, the GTS features a retractable hardtop that can be opened or closed in 14 seconds at speeds of up to 45 km/h.
Flick the switch on the console and the
roof splits into two parts, and goes to hide beneath the engine cover, while a
height-adjustable glass screen behind the two seats helps minimize buffeting.
The price of those theatrics is a 70 kg weight penalty versus the 1,470 kg dry weight of the GTB, but performance doesn’t appear to
suffer much. Ferrari still quotes the same 25 km of electric
driving range when in EV mode, which is good for 135 km/h, and
although the roadster’s 7.6-second 0-200 km/h time is 0.3 seconds
longer, both the GTS and GTB get to 100 km/h in the same 2.9 seconds.
The 8,500 rpm V6 engine is carried over from the GTB and makes 654 hp,
to which Ferrari adds 165 hp of electric power, the resulting 819 hp total driving the rear wheels only.
That combination sounds like plenty of
fun, but for drivers more interested in burning rubber than burning arms draped
over the side of the door as they cruise around in the sun, Ferrari offers the
GTS with the same Assetto Fiorano package available to coupe buyers. Seen here on
the red car, the driver-focused upgrade brings a greater use of carbon fiber,
lightweight door panels that reduce weight by 8 kg, and aero
winglets on the front bumper that increase downforce by 10 kg. Ferrari
says an AF-equipped GTS develops 360 kg of downforce at 240
km/h.
Opting for the Assetto Fiorano pack is
also the only official way to get the front-to-rear stripe package, and the
super-sticky Michelin Pilot Sport Cup2R tires, though both of those gems will
set you back even more money. We’re waiting to hear about U.S. prices and
delivery times, but we expect it to cost in the region of US$ 30-40,000 more than
the US$ 323,000 296 GTB.
