I always laughed at people who drove convertible Ferraris. They might as well walk down the street wearing nothing but a sign saying “fat, middle-aged and bald” to advertise their mid-life predicament.

And I kept on laughing until a couple of days ago when I caught sight of an overweight man nobody would call young any more, not least because of his rapidly receding hairline.

He was sitting in the driver’s seat of a new Ferrari F430 Spider, adjusting the mirror when his depressingly familiar features hove into view. So now that I fitted the profile of the convertible Ferrari driver in all regards save bank balance, I laughed no longer.

After a day at the wheel the list of things I really didn’t like about the car could have been counted using one thumb. Okay, I felt like an idiot driving it, particularly with another similarly proportioned colleague at my side, but that was hardly the car’s fault. Had I been 10 years younger, many pounds lighter, somewhat more dashing in appearance and accompanied by someone called Natalya, I expect I’d have been just fine with it.

The Spider is the convertible version of Ferrari’s wondrous new F430 supercar, and anyone hoping the Maranello factory would trip up in the conversion process will be disappointed.

It contains the same 483bhp, 4.3 litre V8 engine that will take it from rest to 62mph in 4.1sec, a scant tenth of a second slower than the coupé thanks to the extra weight all convertibles carry compared with their hardtop sisters. And it won’t quit until it’s doing 193mph, at which speed you’re unlikely to be too distressed by the knowledge that the coupé will go a whole 3mph faster.

It even looks pretty good relative to the aluminium-roofed F430, which is never a given in the convertible business. Its styling is a little awkward with the roof up, but once you’ve hit the hood button (while doing less than 3mph), and waited 20 seconds for its seven electric motors to do their stuff, you’ll be guaranteed the undivided attention of anyone you’re likely to bump into on the Riviera or the King’s Road.

But those who detail the F430 Spider to showing-off duties only will be missing the vast bulk of its appeal. Sure, it’s a good enough looking car but it’s not a classic — not like the convertible Daytona or some cloth-capped Ferraris produced for the American market in the 1960s. Its real, stand-out talent is the way it takes the extraordinary driving experience offered by the F430 coupé and puts it into the hands of the Spider driver in almost undiminished form.

Convertibles are always compromises but I cannot think of another that better covers the engineering limitations inherent in its design.

Convertibles are structurally much weaker than coupés and should shake noticeably on broken surfaces, but unless you feel inclined to take your Spider off-roading, it’s not something you’re going to notice. Most convertibles, even those as illustrious as the new Porsche 911 Cabriolet, also feel less precise and give less confidence to the enthusiastic driver, but not this one.

True, the steering is a touch too light and could be a shade more communicative, but the same can be said of the coupé. Side by side down the same road, I don’t doubt I’d be able to spot where its performance, handling and ride have become degraded but, really, the differences are too small to detect.

In fact the only aspect of the car I truly did not like was its noise. This may seem a staggering thing to say about any Ferrari, not to mention a touch inconsistent, given that the F430 howls with the best of them, but the removal of the roof has changed its acoustics and Ferrari has fiddled with the Spider’s exhaust bypass valve so it makes more noise at lower revs.

The result is that if you drive it as fast as you can it still sounds glorious, but if you’re just pottering through town or trying to behave yourself on the motorway, it’s annoyingly, intrusively loud.

Nor is it even a chandelier-shattering pedigree Italian scream. It sounds more like an amplified bout of flatulence until you can break free from the lower reaches of the rev range and work the engine in the 4000-8500rpm bracket, where it’s clearly happiest.

Other complaints, such as the poorly detailed cabin, offset driving position and awkward rear styling have been carried over from the coupé and are not unique to the Spider.

But in the main this is a gorgeous car. Its secret is to offer the best of both worlds to two distinct types of Ferrari buyer: those who wish to be seen and those who simply want to drive.

How good is it? Sales start in June for a likely £127,000 (£133,000 with the F1 paddle gearshift). And when I see one on the road for the first time I won’t even snigger. Cars this good are no laughing matter.

VITAL STATISTICS

Model Ferrari F430 Spider
Engine type V8, 4308cc
Power/Torque 483bhp @ 8500rpm / 343 lb ft @ 5250rpm
Transmission Six-speed manual or semi-automatic
Fuel/CO2 15.4mpg (combined) / 420g/km
Performance 0-62mph: 4.1sec / Top speed: 193mph
Price £127,000 approx
Verdict Good to look at, better to drive
Rating 4/5

THE OPPOSITION

Model Mercedes-Benz SL55 AMG, £95,700
For Sledgehammer performance, folding steel roof, ease of use
Against A little heavy and cumbersome, lacks Ferrari exclusivity

Model Porsche 911 Carrera Cabriolet, £70,090
For Three-quarters of the Ferrari's fun for half the price
Against Awkward looks, handling less resolved than 911 coupé's