December 27, 2024

The 2021 Ferrari Roma is a gorgeous head-turner and you can win one here

Roma #Roma

Autoblog may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page. Pricing and availability are subject to change. No donation or payment is necessary to enter or win this sweepstakes. See official rules on Omaze.

Sure, the Ferrari Roma may be considered by some to be entry-level, but don’t let that fool you; it has 612 horsepower thanks to a twin-turbo V8 and gorgeous looks to match. Plus at over a quarter of a million dollars, the price tag sure screams exclusivity. Unless you win this one from Omaze, with all taxes and delivery fees covered.

Win a 2021 Ferrari Roma – Enter at Omaze

Here’s what we thought of the Roma when we first drove it last fall:

“This Roma coupe is definitely more than a gloss on a Portofino convertible, as its 70-percent-new parts count attests. The two-plus-two Roma has even more luggage space — our three good-sized bags fit in the trunk alone — and cool stuff. That includes 21 more horses (with a revised flat-plane crankshaft) a broader torque curve, and an eight-speed transmission versus the Portofino’s seven. Additional features include vortex generators up front, a deployable rear spoiler, and the latest Side Slip Control 6.0 to let experienced drivers get sideways while still laying down epic power. Kick the five-position manettino switch into Race, and the Ferrari Dynamic Enhancer hydraulically adjusts individual brake pressures to further regulate yaw angle.

“That latest dual-clutch, eight-speed transmission, which debuted in the SF90 Stradale hybrid, trims 15 pounds of weight while delivering 15-percent-faster upshifts and a 21-percent edge in downshifts. It’s spectacular, challenging Porsche’s PDK for the World’s Best Automatic title, paired with the must-have option of a carbon-fiber steering wheel whose rim flashes LED alerts as the 7,500-rpm redline approaches. Gearchanges are managed through familiar rabbit-eared, carbon-fiber paddle shifters, and unfamiliar, bright-metal console sliders that nod to the gated Ferrari stick shifts of yore. Ferrari claims higher fuel efficiency as well, though that demands a shift strategy that has the car upshifting relentlessly into higher gears. The Comfort mode especially might better be called “EPA mode,” as it has the Roma stubbornly choosing seventh gear at as little as 35 or 40 mph. (Putting the Ferrari into Manual paddle-shift mode is the quickest solution.)

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“The flowing, wraparound cabin is striking, with sculpted rear jump seats that are great for designer luggage or shopping hauls, less great for humans beyond toddler-scale. Ferrari’s optional, right-hand Passenger Display keeps wingmen and women in the game with performance readouts, while letting them control audio and navigation functions. Paula, like most everyone who encounters the screen, got a huge kick out of it; whether that impression is worth $5,608 is up to you.

“Only one thing breaks the Ferrari’s romantic spell: A human-machine interface that goes overboard with trendy capacitive, haptic-feedback controls — the kind everyone despised on various Cadillacs, Hondas, et al. That includes an engine start/stop “button” on the steering wheel that’s not really a button. Worse, the flush-mounted thingy didn’t always work on the first attempt. Personally, I’d like my six-figure Italian GT to rumble to life when I press a switch, every time. I also accidentally triggered the voice-control button switch on the steering wheel on numerous occasions.

“A central, 8.3-inch screen that resembles a freestanding tablet leans into the console, capped with carbon fiber and Ferrari script. It’s operated via a steering-wheel touchpad that actually works better than, say, the awkward chiclets of Mercedes’ MBUX units. But there’s no volume knob, no analog climate or mirror controls, and no steering-wheel stalks for turn signals or wipers, the latter in keeping with every Ferrari of recent vintage. I especially missed the physical, F1-fantasy of the chunky, red-metal manettino switch, replaced with a haptic dial whose pastel readouts seem a mite precious: A video-game simulation of a Ferrari control, when we already had the real thing.”

According to Omaze, “no donation or payment is necessary to enter or win this sweepstakes.” If you do choose to donate, $10 will get you 100 entries, while $50 will get you 1,000 entries and $100 will get you 2,000 entries. Donations benefit the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project. Per Omaze, “the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, fiscally sponsored by Entertainment Industry Foundation, has a mission to invest in African youth to keep them safe from HIV/AIDS. The Project supports community-engaged organizations that provide critical resources like access to youth-friendly health care, sexual and reproductive health education, life skills, and psychosocial support—all of which empower young people to keep themselves and their peers HIV-free.”

If you want this head-turning Ferrari in your driveway, enter here. The deadline to enter is September 9, 2021, at 11:59 p.m. Pacific.

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