Destined for “Set as Desktop Background” clicks around the world, pictures of Ferrari’s new 599-based roadster, called the SA Aperta, have been released. The car is set to debut at the Paris auto show. Ferrari says that the SA Aperta was built to celebrate the 80th birthday of the company's long-time partner, the design firm Pininfarina. We suspect it's also been developed because Ferrari flat-out said in the past that it wanted to sell a convertible version of the 599.
Although the name “SA Aperta” doesn't live up to the promise made by Ferrari capo Luca di Montezemolo that the 599 roadster would be called something “emotional” and “romantic,” it is a nice tribute: SA refers to Sergio and Andrea Pininfarina, patriarchs of the family business. Aperta is simply Italian for “open.” (At least it’s not called the SA Aptera; how embarrassing would it be to have your molto-expensive Ferrari mistaken for a rolling tadpole?)
To transition the 599 from coupe to roadster, Ferrari has fit a shortened windshield and integrated rollover protection into what the firm calls “aerodynamic fins” that extend behind the headrests. Ferrari claims that the SA Aperta won't suffer any of the typical negative side effects of rooflessness; the chassis structure was redesigned to offer stiffness “comparable to that of a closed berlinetta” and weight gain is said to be nominal. Part of the reason is that rather than a folding hardtop, a flip-back roof like the 575-based Superamerica’s, or a simple cloth top, the SA Aperta has an emergency, rainstorm-only roof, similar in concept to the Porsche Boxster Spyder’s.
