As one of the most exotic car rentals in the world, the Ferrari F430 Spider is the very heart and soul of the Ferrari brand. Founded in 1947 by Enzo Ferrari, this Italian sports car manufacturer has been delivering the world’s greatest, fastest and sexiest cars for close to 65 years. Enzo Ferrari has sadly long passed on, but his spirit lives on in his final creation, the F40 series. The F40, F430 and F430 Spider are amongst the greatest supercars ever built, and it is your duty to drive one in your lifetime. Be it with luxury car hire or a straight purchase (market value: £120,000 or R1.7 Million), you owe it to yourself to be behind the wheel of a racing car fit for the gods.

Firstly, some statistics:

The engine is a muscular V8, 4.6L beast that tops the speed gauge at a blisteringly fast 300km’s per hour. A paddle-shift transmission mimics the six-speed 'F1' electro hydraulic gearbox, delivering smooth performance with that racing car ‘click’ every time you change gears. You will literally be pulled back into your seat as you zoom to 100kms per hour in under 4.8 seconds. And there can be only one colour - fiery red. As red as the heat of the sun and as red as the blood that pumps through our veins, it is the colour of success and the colour of this magnificent racing stallion.

Now, marvel at the design:

Curvaceous, shapely and ergonomically designed to glide on the road with as little resistance as possible, the F430 blows other luxury car rentals out of the water. The downforce (downward pressure created by the aerodynamic characteristics of a car) has also been greatly reduced from previous models. The history of Ferrari is etched into literally every inch of the F430, with a 60’s style ‘sharknose’ design in the front, large Testarossa driving mirrors and oversized openings giving it the look and feel of a classic car with a modern coat.

But, how does it drive?

Like the wind, my friends. Every great driver, from reviewers such as Jeremy Clarkson to world-class driver such as Michael Schumacher, have proclaimed the F430 to be a, ‘a car so nimble, that anyone can achieve record setting times with it’. The moment you sit in the driver’s seat of your exotic car rental and wrap your shivering fingers around the leather-clad racing wheel, the sense of power and entitlement is delivered straight to your cerebellum, commanding you to race! Other incredible features include ‘Launch control’, borrowed from F1 racing cars (launch control catapults your F430 from the starting grid, so to speak).

Other versions of the F430 exist, such as the F430 GT2 and GT3, which are specifically designed for the Le Mans racing circuits. A larger exhaust and minimal weight creates a driving experience that is more akin to floating then driving, which is all well and good on the Le Mans circuit. Other versions include the Scuderia, which was aimed to directly compete with other sports cars such as the Porsche RS and the Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera (super light-weight).

So what have we learned from the Ferrari F430? That we can truly be defined by our choice of luxury car rental and that Ferrari will always make the leading supercars of our time.