Link to full video: https://youtu.be/TdaDURSOy0w?si=a43tsv5jR-NpiSfd
Myself and my brother Dom have been making videos for a few months now. Our channel is called “Manual Motion” if you’re interested.
This wasn’t our first Ferrari, but our first hybrid one, and I was genuinely impressed. It’s got all of the drama and speed, but now presented in an extremely refined package. The steering is the best Ferrari steering I’ve felt, and Ferrari steering is among the best in the world. The hybrid is there simply to make you faster, and you get that sense immediately. The sound isn’t lost with the V6 either, in fact it sounds like a baby Ferrari V12, a compliment in my opinion. It’s fast, fun, dramatic, and above all else, a true Ferrari.
The Verde Kers on this one is particularly special, as it’s a very rare paint option. Video can’t do this car justice as you can just dive into the paint. It didn’t start that way however. This car was detailed by Larry at AMMO NYC who had to do a lot to get this paint right. Check out his video here: https://youtu.be/iuDLyquXWHg?si=LDmArqmLLEFvMjWV
The hallmark of any Italian super car is a healthy list of compromises, and indeed the 296 keeps that tradition. Comfortable would not be an adjective I would use to describe this car. The super stiff carbon buckets are almost too hardcore for frequent use. Speaking of wanting to not use something frequently, the infotainment. Laggy, bad controls, and haptic buttons make this infotainment check all the boxes on what NOT to do. Apple CarPlay doesn’t help either, as I’ve been told it takes up the gauge cluster, robs you of your tachometer, and is equally hard to use as without it. Ferrari may want to impress you with the “fancy” screens, but in practice I recommend just ignoring the screens and focusing on the drive.
That’s just a short summary, we had a lot more to say in the full video. Check it out and let me know what you think!
The non-Assetto Fiorano cars are arguably some of the best driving, if not the best driving, supercars currently on the market in terms of actual ride quality. One of the very few performance cars that are made for real roads - they all roll, pitch and dive and have a delicacy and finesse to their chassis tuning you simply can’t find anywhere else apart from the Alpine and Lotus cars. The steering rack is a bit too quick for my taste but feel-wise it’s definitely better than in the F8 and 488 GTB.
The AF car with its Multimatic dampers is a different story but I would say it still feels at least 10% less stiff compared to something like a 992 GT3. So if you are fine with the ride quality of the current GT3, you can also handle the 296 with AF option.
You are right about the UX, it’s absolutely terrible. The same applies to the lack of real buttons. There is also an emotional factor to this - pressing the start button on a Ferrari should be a great experience- it isn’t with the 296.
This is all subjective but I don’t agree with the argument about the carbon racing seats. I’ve had them in 3 cars and find them comfortable enough not only to do long distance drives but also to daily drive the car.