2008 Ferrari F430

A Ferrari is a Ferrari forever. They breed envy and respect from passersby, pointing and jubilation from little boys and phone numbers from potential hot dates. A Ferrari will always be cool -- but of course, the newer, the cooler. Although neither the flashiest nor the most expensive, the 2008 Ferrari F430 carries the torch for all the lithe V8-engined Ferraris that came before it.
The F430 takes that torch and runs with it, although "flies with it" is probably more apt. With a screaming V8 placed just behind the driver's shoulder, the F430 produces 483 horsepower capable of sending it to 60 mph in a blistering 4 seconds. Its top speed hovers around 200 mph. Like any Ferrari, though, the F430 is more than just a bullet poised to be fired down an empty stretch of arrow-straight pavement.
A finely balanced chassis and ultra-communicative steering make it a finely sharpened tool for carving a serpentine road. To allow the driver to maximize the car's potential in any situation, the "manettino" steering wheel knob moves among five driving modes that adjust suspension settings, stability and traction control thresholds, F1 gearbox shift changes and the electronic rear differential that maximizes grip out of a turn. With all this performance capability, if you confine your F430 to cruising the Sunset club scene or lazy drives to the country-club scene, you're treating the car incorrectly.
With a price tag in the territory of $200,000, the 2008 Ferrari F430 is obviously in a rarefied class inhabited by a select few, where rational comparisons mean very little. If that unending Ferrari appeal draws you to it like a prancing horse to the Triple Crown, then no other supercar will suffice -- except for maybe a 599 GTB. Of course, there are rivals that strike different chords for different supercar shoppers, such as the Aston Martin DB9, Lamborghini Gallardo, Nissan GT-R and Porsche 911 GT2 and GT3. It all depends on what you're looking for. But if what you're looking for is something that will forever be cool, a Ferrari F430 is a pretty good bet.