Three open-top grand tourers, and for once the point wasn’t finding the fastest way through a corner. Juliana picked the road herself before anyone touched a key — the lowest of the three coastal roads, not the most dramatic one, because this test was never about drama.
The oldest road of the three, and the right one for this test
Above Monaco, the Grande Corniche gets the cliff-edge views and the Moyenne Corniche gets the Hitchcock cachet, but the Basse Corniche — the oldest and lowest of the three, built in the 19th century — runs close enough to the water to smell the sea, through Beaulieu-sur-Mer, Èze-sur-Mer, and Cap d’Ail. It’s slower, more built-up, less obviously photogenic than its two siblings above it. It’s also exactly the right road for three convertibles built for the pleasure of the drive itself rather than for setting a pace.
Three drivers, three different open-top philosophies. Juliana takes the Ferrari Roma Spider, the newest of the three, arguing that a soft-top shouldn’t cost a driver anything the coupe offers. Ron claims the Ferrari Portofino — the more classically proportioned front-engine convertible, and the one he thinks has more actual character underneath the numbers. The Porsche 911 Cabriolet goes to whoever’s narrating — a car currently listed out of Los Angeles, Milan, and Rome in this fleet, not Monaco, which is worth stating plainly before the story goes any further.
The numbers, for anyone who wants them before the story
| Porsche 911 Cabriolet | Ferrari Portofino | Ferrari Roma Spider | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seats | ~4 | 4 | 4 |
| Engine | 3.0L twin-turbo flat-6 | 3.9L twin-turbo V8 | 3.9L twin-turbo V8 |
| Horsepower | ~385 hp | 600 hp | 620 hp |
| 0–100 km/h | ~4.2 sec | 3.5 sec | 3.4 sec |
| Top speed | ~294 km/h | 320 km/h | 320 km/h |
| Rental (per day) | ~€900 | ~€1,800 | ~€1,800 |
| Drivetrain | RWD | RWD | RWD |
This fleet’s own listing for the 911 Cabriolet has no horsepower, seat, 0–100, or top-speed data attached — the figures above are Porsche’s own published numbers for the base Carrera Cabriolet, hedged the same as any unverified spec. The bigger issue, as with a few other tests in this series, is city availability rather than numbers: the 911 Cabriolet is currently Los Angeles, Milan, and Rome only, while both Ferraris are Monaco and French Riviera cars.
First stint: Beaulieu-sur-Mer to Èze-sur-Mer, where Ron made his case
The Portofino went first, top down, along the stretch through Beaulieu-sur-Mer where the road runs close enough to touch the water. Ron’s argument built itself through the seaside villages: a car that doesn’t chase the newest badge in the range, a front-engine V8 with real character at a cruising pace rather than only at the redline. “This is the one that doesn’t feel like it’s trying to prove anything,” he said. “It’s just good.”
Juliana’s Roma Spider followed, and made a different, quieter case: 20 more horsepower than the Portofino, a newer chassis, and — her real argument — none of the compromises a convertible sometimes forces on a driver. “This doesn’t feel like the coupe with something removed,” she said. “It feels like the car it was always supposed to be.”
Second stint: Cap d’Ail, and the honest complication
The 911 Cabriolet came through last, along the final stretch into Cap d’Ail, and made a case that had nothing to do with outright numbers: at roughly half the daily rate of either Ferrari, with genuinely capable open-top cruising manners of its own, it’s a legitimate rival on value alone — if it were bookable here. That’s the honest complication with this test, same as a few others in this series: the car makes a real case, and the fleet’s current city listing doesn’t currently let it make that case in Monaco.
A bit of context on each car
The Porsche 911 Cabriolet remains one of the most accessible ways into open-top performance driving in this fleet, wherever it’s actually bookable.
The Ferrari Portofino is the more traditionally proportioned of the two Ferraris here — a retractable hardtop grand tourer built around long-distance character rather than being the newest thing in the range.
The Ferrari Roma Spider is covered in more depth as part of the Ferrari-in-Monaco road test against the Bentley Continental GT and Maserati GranTurismo Modena.
Practical considerations
The Basse Corniche runs through several small towns with lower speed limits and real pedestrian traffic — this is a road for a relaxed pace, not a spirited one, and both Ferraris are confirmed available out of Monaco and the French Riviera. The 911 Cabriolet, as noted, currently is not.
Our call: the Ferrari Roma Spider. Juliana’s pick edges it — the best combination of design, output, and genuine comfort over a longer top-down drive of the three. Choose the Ferrari Portofino if character matters more than being the newest car in the lineup; watch the Porsche 911 Cabriolet for Monaco availability if value is the deciding factor.
Both confirmed Ferraris are standalone rentals out of Monaco and the French Riviera. Get in touch and we’ll set one up.