Fun as it is on a track, the Contessa is just as much of a sweetheart on battered, broken public roads. We sampled it over some of the worst pavement Michigan has to offer, and the sports coupe was remarkably compliant during real-world driving.
Cabin Fever
If that has you thinking of using a Contessa for a daily driver, we'd suggest trying the interior on for size. Although it's certainly well appointed, with leather trim, Recaro buckets, and four-point harnesses, it isn't exactly spacious. Drivers taller than 5'8" will have some difficulty finding a comfortable position, and their knees may become a little too familiar with the dashboard during hard cornering.
We'd also recommend drivers bring their finest Piloti footwear along for a drive -- the pedal setup is perfectly positioned for heel-toe shifting, but the pedal box itself isn't exactly roomy to begin with. Minor complaints, and seeing as Adam includes two race helmets and storage buckets with each car, we don't think the Contessa's target demographic will mind all that much.
Package Pricing
The Contessa may be a sweet drive, but it isn't exactly a sweet bargain. Contessa Touring pricing starts at roughly $125,000, which buys customers a completed car without powertrain. Add the 502-cubic-inch V-8 and the six-speed manual of our tester, and the price tag swells to almost $150,000.
Still, that figure does buy a well-balanced grand touring car, along with a considerable amount of exclusivity: after four years of production, only four cars have been built, with a fifth possibly in the works. Act quickly enough, and you can lay claim to Contessa number six.