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Ferrari 488 Pista Spider drops its top in the sun at Pebble Beach

Ferrari, as Ferrari does, has been moving fast. In the space of just five months, we were introduced to the new Ferrari 488 Pista at the Geneva Motor Show, had the chance to drive a Pista prototype and then a production version of the $345,300 supercar, and finally we were tantalized by the mere-mortals-can't-have it Pista Piloti Ferrari. Now Ferrari has its latest Special Series variant at Pebble Beach, the Ferrari 488 Pista Spider concept. Ferrari says it is the 50th convertible in company history and has the lowest weight-power ratio yet in a droptop at 1.92 kg/cv (or about 4.22 pounds per horsepower). That equation is helped in no small part by 710 horsepower, driving a car with a dry weight of just 3,036 pounds — it's that slight if you've checked all the boxes for lightweighting options, that is. That's about 200 pounds more than the coupe, but Ferrari says this car still does 0-to-62 in 2.85 seconds and has the same 211 mph top speed. Ferrari says it maintained the aerodynamics of the coupe, and the convertible also shares the coupe's lightweighting from gobs of carbon fiber and simplification. The driver's door handle is a mere strap. This species of Spider can be identified by a central stripe down its back, which, Ferrari says in its announcement, "recalls the movement of the airflow and exalts the lines of the car." The blue stripes over a white body also happen to be traditional racing colors of the United States, another nod to the car's debut site and America's love of convertibles. Assisting the car's at-the-limits driving dynamics is a new lateral control system called the Ferrari Dynamic Enhancer. The Spider has 20-inch diamond-finish alloy wheels with berlinetta rims, though you can opt for one-piece carbon-fiber wheels offering a 20 percent weight reduction. No mention of whether the 488 Pista Spider will enter production, but Ferrari notes the popularity of its droptops in the U.S., so we're going to assume it's happening. And if Lamborghini can do a droptop version of its hardcore Huracan Performante, why shouldn't Ferrari with the Pista? Related Video: Featured Gallery Ferrari 488 Pista Spider at Pebble Beach View 16 Photos Related Gallery Ferrari 488 Pista Spider Image Credit: Ferrari Design/Style Ferrari Convertible Performance Supercars Pebble Beach

Topiary Joe sculpts the ultimate in green cars

Efficient cars are all the rage these days, but Joe Kyte has made a business of crafting some of the coolest green cars around – literally. Kyte is better known by his nickname Topiary Joe, and in addition to being a talented artist, he is also a real gearhead. Kyte has been creating topiaries for the last 20 years. It began when he was marketing greenhouse products to Walt Disney World and saw their plant sculptures. He realized that he could do that and since then, has done around 3,400 pieces. His most intriguing creations are the rolling sculptures that move and turn. Prices for those start at about $18,000 and can be as high as $30,000. While, the wheels are machine-bent, Kyte said all the other parts are done with a table vice and a Lincoln Electric arc welder. Topiary Joe is taking the Porsche (pictured above) to Palm Beach later this year to sell or says he may donate it to Porsche North America. If you really want it, the sculpture is currently on Craigslist for sale for $24,000. Topiary Joe has also had a life-long love of cars. "I was driving my first MG Midget before I was 14," he told Autoblog. He grew up in Oak Ridge, TN, where the Manhattan Project was partially developed. He says the town was full of recent college grads driving Mercedes, and he caught the bug. His automotive mentor was a nuclear physicist who taught him to repair and restore the Mercs. Kyte has completed commissions for Sandals Resort, Dreamworks, Absolut, and many more. Among his favorite creations is the Ferrari that he created at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that is now exhibited at the airport each year before the race. Check out his website for a wider look at his work.

Ferrari to stop supplying Maserati with its engines

The Ferrari Q1 earnings call was full of information, and perhaps the biggest revelation was that Ferrari is going to stop supplying engines to Maserati. CEO Louis Camilleri broke the news, and The Motley Fool posted a transcript of the whole call online. "Eventually, we will no longer supply engines to Maserati, which actually from our perspective is actually a good thing, both from a margin perspective, but also the fact that we can transfer a lot of the labor that's been focused on the engines to the car side of the business," Camilleri says. Maserati has used Ferrari engines (arguably, one of the most compelling reasons to buy a Maserati) in its vehicles since 2002, a little while after Fiat passed Maserati off to the prancing horse. The partnership continued as both Ferrari and Maserati were under the same house at FCA. Then when Ferrari was spun off from FCA in 2015, they kept the supply steady to Maserati. Those engines include a 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8, 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 and a 4.7-liter naturally aspirated V8. Camilleri said Ferrari will officially stop in 2021 or 2022, with no intention of supplying anybody with engines beyond that. Of course, this leaves Maserati high and dry with no engines for its growing lineup. Maserati will have to reach into the FCA parts bin, find a new outside supplier or develop its own engines. Battery electric sounds out of the question. As of now, there doesn't appear to be a clear plan going forward. We've reached out to Maserati to see if they have any comment on the situation as it stands.