There is little variety when it comes to the Ferrari F430. You get either the hardtop coupe or the soft-top Spider. My choice for this drive was easy. I wanted to experience the full flavor of this Ferrari with the wind blowing through my hair and the trumpeting of its exhaust in my ears. Driving with the top down is the only way to get the full experience of such a fine automobile.

With a base price tag hovering just under $210,000, the adage “if you have to ask the price, you can’t afford it” is meant for this car. Although most Ferrari F430 buyers opt for another $20,000 in options on top of the price of entry, those added features are mainly for personalization in terms of leather, trim, and color. A conventional six-speed manual transmission with that classic Ferrari shift gate costs just as much as the Formula 1 paddle-shifter, and Ferrari offers a ceramic braking system that is one of the most sought-after options for the F430.