New Ferrari 458 leaps to 62 mph in 3 seconds

Chris Woodyard | USA TODAY

As luscious as the new Ferrari 458 Speciale appeared during its rollout at the Frankfurt Motor Show, it's what's under the hood that matters.

In this case, it's the most powerful naturally aspirated V-8 engine that Ferrari has ever put into one of its famous cars. It's good for a zero to 62 miles per hour time of three seconds flat. That's only one of the features that helps the Speciale stand out from the other 458, the Italia.

Lots of attention was poured into the car's aerodynamics, especially to create downforce to hold the car on the road in corners.

Ferrari says the "slide slip angle control," a computer that uses sophisticated algorithms to ensure sure-footed handling, is an industry first.