7 Things You Might Not Know About the Ferrari SF90 XX Spider

The Verde Minerale SF90 XX Spider from the If You Don't Know series

Here at Romans International, we see a lot of fast Ferraris. Very few arrive with a fixed rear wing, nostrils on the bonnet and a badge Maranello had never before put on anything you could drive to the shops. The Ferrari SF90 XX Spider is one of those cars, and the Verde Minerale example featured in our "If You Don't Know, Now You Know" series with Tom Jaconelli is about as special as they come.

Ferrari's XX programme has always been a members' club for the track. This is the first time that club has been let out on the road with the roof off. It is lighter and more powerful than the SF90 Spider it is based on, but as Tom points out in the video, the real story is the aerodynamics, and the details you only spot up close.

So, without further ado, here are seven things you might not know about the Ferrari SF90 XX Spider...

Fact 1: The SF90 XX Spider Is the First XX You Can Drive on the Road

Number 32: the SF90 XX Spider is an XX car with number plates

Since the FXX of 2005, Ferrari's XX programme has offered a small circle of expert clients the most extreme cars the factory builds, with one catch: none of them were homologated for the road. The FXX, the 599XX and the FXX K lived at the circuit and only came out for organised track events. The closest most people got was the road-going version of the 599XX, the Ferrari 599 GTO.

The SF90 XX changes that. Ferrari fused its Special Version formula (think 458 Speciale, 488 Pista and 812 Competizione) with the XX programme to create a car that is homologated for the road yet wears the XX badge. In Spider form it is also the first XX that lets you take the roof off, in 14 seconds and on the move at up to 28 mph. A road-legal XX with a retractable hard top. Who saw that coming?

Fact 2: It Is the First Ferrari Road Car With a Fixed Rear Wing Since the F50

Tricolore end plates on the first fixed wing Ferrari has fitted to a road car since 1995

Ferrari spent the best part of thirty years avoiding fixed rear wings on its road cars, preferring clever underbodies, ducts and active spoilers to do the work quietly. The F50 of 1995 was the last to wear a proper wing, right up until this car arrived.

The wing was developed on the track-only XX cars and works with a redesigned "shut-off Gurney" behind it. In its low-drag setting the mobile element lifts to let the car breathe on a straight. In high-downforce mode it drops and uncovers the fixed section, pushing the tail into the tarmac. Ferrari quotes 530 kg of downforce at 155 mph for the Spider, roughly double what the SF90 Spider manages. On this car the end plates are painted in the tricolore, which is a lovely touch.

Fact 3: Only 599 Spiders Exist, So It Is Rarer Than the SF90 XX Stradale

The plaque every owner sees on the way in: Limited Edition, 1 of 599

Ferrari built 799 SF90 XX Stradale coupes and 599 Spiders, 1,398 cars in total, and every one was allocated before the covers came off in June 2023. The little plaque on the door panel makes the point each time you climb in: Limited Edition, 1 of 599.

That makes the Spider the scarcer car by a clear margin, and the only way to have an XX with the roof down. Rarity plus open-air V8 noise is why, whenever these cars change hands, the Spider tends to be the one collectors ask us about first.

Fact 4: Those Front Nostrils Cost You the Luggage Compartment

Air in through the nose, through the radiators and out over the bonnet

The most distinctive feature of the SF90 XX is the pair of nostrils on the bonnet, and they are not there for show. Air comes in through the nose, passes through the radiators and is channelled up and out over the bonnet, which improves cooling and adds downforce at the front axle.

The trade-off is that the front luggage compartment has gone. Lift the bonnet and instead of somewhere for a weekend bag you find exposed carbon fibre, the hybrid electrics and a little manual prop to hold it all up. Ferrari ditched the hydraulic struts to save weight, which tells you everything about the mindset behind this car. The upside? You get to read the spec plaque, and on this car there is rather a lot on it.

Fact 5: There Are Louvres Everywhere, Even on the Door Panels

Louvres on the front wings, the rear wings and, if you look closely, inside the doors

Look along the flanks and you will find louvres cut into the front wings to pull hot air out of the wheel arches. Keep going and there are more on the rear wings, helping the engine bay breathe. Ferrari liked the theme so much that it carried on inside, with the door panels picking up the same louvre motif. It is the sort of detail you only notice once you have spent time with the car, which is rather the point of this series!

Fact 6: The Rear Window Drops on Its Own, So You Can Hear the V8 With the Roof Up