Ferrari California: Green and clean but still outrageous

The efficient Ferrari California draws 25Nm less power from the motor. Photo / Supplied

What is it?
Ferrari's California HELE uses a suite of fuel-saving technology to cut fuel use and tailpipe emissions. The Italian supercar brand also wrought miracles at the factory, which now generates all its own power and has cut carbon emissions by 40 per cent.

As for the car, it's fitted with infinitely variable fans, an air conditioning unit that disconnects from the power when not in use, a more sensitive adaptable shift pattern and continuous control of fuel pumps, plus a stop-start set-up Ferrari has set conservatively. Tested in busy Sydney traffic, it never switched off at inconvenient moments, and though we'd dispute the quarter-second restart claim, the move from brake to accelerator found power on tap, the system beaten only by left-foot braking shenanigans (during which you'd hit the "disable" switch anyway). Overall, the systems draw 25Nm less power from the motor, making the car more efficient - Ferrari says the combined fuel figure fell from 13.1l/100km to 11.5, and CO2 from 299g/km to 270g/km.

Ferrari drivers arguably care little about fuel economy - certainly in terms of cost. But those who put the kids' nanny in a Prius will like the reflected eco glow they'll get from ticking the $2650 options box, small change to this sort of buyer.

We like
That a company like Ferrari is thinking about environmental issues, and making changes which don't compromise the cars' outrageous flavour.

We admire that a Ferrari California HELE's carbon footprint beats Holden's SS Commodore, Ford's XR6 Falcon and even the Hiace van.

We loathe
Electronic glitches - this was a small but vital one; the brake pedal stopped talking to the ECU governing the engine, so the stop-start didn't initially work. Such a glitch takes the shine off your eco-veneer, but not for long - the 10-minute fix soon had it going (or should that be stopping?) and it didn't affect the car's normal running.

Shame there's no "average fuel use" reading so we could see how well it all worked.