Thanks for the interest and the replies.
Well, as for the e-gear vs manual debate, I suppose there is soft shifting and soft shifting. For me it's all about being able to perform a perfect double-declutch, as it allows enjoying the engine sound while slowing down along with putting the least strain on synchro rings. It was the first time I drove a car with the classic Italian grill and I have found double-declutching very straigthforward and enjoyable. And by double-declutching I do not mean just blipping the throttle whilst downchanging from one gear to another, but actually revving the engine exactly while the trans is in neutral, which can sometimes involve 2 blips on the throttle, the first one when putting the trans in neutral and the second one whilst the trans is in neutral, the first blip allowing to minimise the gap in engine speed and/or the need to blip the throttle "hard" the second time. I suppose the oldest folks will remember this was often needed on older cars with particulary slow manual transmissions, and also on trucks. In fact this was needed on the car I drove and I did it pretty much naturally, but even if I could work my way easily around the slight and unexpected reluctance of the transmission I can't help thinking this was not normal on such a modern car.
Good info on the pressure sensor, thanks. I worked my way to it whilst browsing the parts diagrams. If anything this error code confirms my impression that the OEM cats should be deleted asap on pre LP cars. I did not try to start the car in a higher gear yet I did stall the engine whilst trying to move off a red light, as I was really babying the clutch in the knowledge it was a known weak point on these cars. Perhaps this means there is still some reasonably good life in it after all?
In any case I haven't stopped thinking about this car, it is in a spec that really suits me and they are as rare as hen's teeth in my neck of the woods. Perhaps I am overly concerned about that 3 year old picture showing the car in an unflattering position, as the feeling I got behind the wheel was pretty good. Shouldn't this prevail over many other considerations?