The next time you’re driving a 2021 Ferrari Portofino M near the Florida Keys, do we recommend a quick visit to the Monkey Jungle? One of the few and dwindling tourist attractions in Old Florida, Monkey Jungle is occupied by friendly people and hundreds of mostly friendly, faecal-free monkeys that date back to a science experiment in 1933, the same year that Enzo and his Scuderia Ferrari team took over the Alfa Romeo F1 Team and never looked back.
What’s a thin premise to starting a Ferrari Monkey Jungle story, but if Ferrari is launching a car in the Upper Keys, what are we going to do if we’re just driving the winding roads of South Florida? The damn state was laid out with a T-square, with curves that vary from a right angle to an even tighter angle.
Steven Cole SmithCar and driver
Steven Cole SmithCar and driver
First, monkey jungle: Naturalist Joseph DuMond, who believed the land near Homestead, Florida, was remarkably similar to Java, released six Java monkeys into the forest to see what would happen. What happened is that there are now 150 Java monkeys, 150 squirrel monkeys, a few capuchins, and a ton of other animals living free in the forest. To observe them, go through closed wire tunnels. You can enter the squirrel monkey habitat and feed them from a plate that, according to the actual count, can hold up to five squirrel monkeys. The 30-acre monkey jungle – “where people are locked up and the monkeys run wild” – still belongs to the DuMond family, and it’s a great time.
The Ferrari belonged to Ferrari of North America and is only available if you sign the usual form stating that if you scratch the Portofino M, you might as well keep going. Ferrari unveiled the Portofino 2018 in the winter of 2017 in southern Italy, a part of the country where the roads are potholed like Detroit. This tested the ride – which was and is pretty good – more than the performance which was pretty good too if we could find some decent tarmac.
The Portofino replaced the California T and has worked quite well as both an entry and exit model for the company. It’s an entry-level Ferrari as it is the cheapest model starting at $ 226,000 and descending as it is docile around town and quite roomy, with space for golf clubs in the trunk when it is padded. With the top down, you can’t put much more than a briefcase back there, but there are always the mostly theoretical rear seats, which are tiny and probably empty, unless you’re making some money on Uber on the side. That base price of $ 226,000 can easily go over $ 300,000 if you take advantage of the options. Our Portofino M cost more than $ 320,000 and not all options were required. I mean do you really need an electric neck warmer?
The Portofino M – the M is for modified – is a mid-cycle refreshment with streamlined design front and rear, an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission that replaces the seven-speed, a smaller and faster clutch assembly, and a revised exhaust that boosts power by 591 to 612. The top speed is still 199 mph, and we’re forecasting 3.1 seconds between zero and 60 mph.
The Manettino, the steering wheel-mounted dial that defines the personality of the car, has a new setting. In addition to the existing Wet, Comfort, Sport and ESC-Off modes, the Portofino now offers the Race mode. ESC-Off optimizes ABS response and electronic differential calibration and turns off all other electronic nannies. Race keeps all nannies but at their most relaxed calibration.
Inside, the Portofino M remains friendly and intuitive. The seats are incredibly thin but comfortable all day. Brakes with standard carbon-ceramic rotors are excellent. The view up or down is quite good. Incidentally, the convertible top still rises or falls in about 14 seconds. If it lands in the trunk in its place, the whole car shakes. You can operate the recharge while cruising up to 25 mph, which is roughly the average speed in the Florida Keys.
The revised design of the M requires a trained Ferrari eye to recognize the differences to the pre-refresh model. It’s certainly better than the California T, which, to make room for the convertible top, had a rear end that stuck out like a monkey in the heat. Ferrari doesn’t cry like a 720S McLaren does, but Ferrari has other models if you want to announce your presence in a louder voice.
In the 90s, we regularly encountered Ferraris who displayed temperamental behavior. In 1995 there was a 456 GT in which the fuse for the flip-up headlights had to be pulled regularly, as they only flipped up and down randomly, constantly and not in an orderly, syncopated manner, but from left to left to right – left to right -Right path that fascinated young children. A few years later we tested a 355 F1 with the new six-speed automated manual transmission that defaulted to neutral at a traffic light and no paddle change or restart or just keeping your mouth shut would get it going. Horns would boom because people assumed the ass in the red Ferrari just didn’t want to drive properly.
Steven Cole SmithCar and driver
Nothing since then. Ferraris have remained as handsome and invigorating as John Stamos and as reliable as a sober John Stamos. No unwanted drama. Idle at 20 mph on Highway 1, the A / C blows up even though the top is down and there is no overheating inside or out. If you want drama, try Alabama Jack’s, the quintessential local pub.
That’s on Card Sound Road, the only stretch of road in the Keys that could be as fun – like visiting Monkey Jungle.
Specifications
Specifications
2021 Ferrari Portofino M.
Vehicle type: front engine, rear wheel drive, 4 passengers, 2-door convertible
PRICE
Base: $ 226,000
ENGINE
DOHC 32-valve V-8 with two turbochargers and charge air cooling, aluminum block and heads, direct injection
Displacement: 235 in3, 3855 cm3
Power: 612 hp at 7500 rpm
Torque: 561 lb-ft at 3000 rpm
Transmission: 8-speed double clutch automatic
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 105.1 inches
Length: 180.9 inches
Width: 76.3 in
Height: 51.9 in
Boot space: 10 ft3
Empty Weight (C / D est): 3900 lb.
PERFORMANCE (C / D EST)
60 mph: 3.1 sec
100 mph: 6.8 sec
1/4 mile: 10.9 sec
Top speed: 199 mph
EPA FUEL ECONOMY (MFR’S EST)
Combined / City / Highway: 19/16/23 mpg
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