f12-berlinetta

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Lets not get carried away, because we need to put this car into context first. And the best way

to do that is to put some facts at your fingertips. So, open brain and absorb the following: it

has 730bhp and 509lb ft of torque, stats which give it a 211mph maximum and a 0-62mph of

3.1secs. 0-124mph is dealt with in 8.5secs, so 0-100mph must be around the 6.5 second mark.

That makes this an astonishingly fast carFerraris fastest ever road car, in fact. Quicker than

the Enzo, quicker than the 599 GTO. And not just in a straight line. It gets round Ferrarisown Fiorano track faster than both of them, too.

So its quite something, right?

It certainly is. And these facts matter, because the car is so approachable, so easy, and so

friendly to drive that if you didnt know the numbers youd be forgiven for thinking this was

just a replacement for the 599 GTB.

But without those famous rear flying buttresses

Yes, but look closely at the bonnet. Under CEO Amadeo Felisa, Ferrari is overlappingaerodynamics and design to such an extent that both happen simultaneously. In fact the holes

in the front wings were proposed by the aerodynamicists, not the stylists, after the first design

proposal for the F12 was thought to lack a little visual impact. So they also serve a particular

purpose, cleaning up the airflow down the side of the car. There are plenty of other such

touches, all helping the car slip more cleanly and securely through the air: flaps that open to

aid brake cooling, vents above the rear wheels to prevent pressure build up, another in the

centre of the bonnet to reduce air pressure on the base of the windscreen.

Click here for more pictures of the Ferrari F12 Berlinetta

All this and good looking, too

Thats the idea: elegance matters to Ferrari, so you wont find ungainly spoilers and wings on

any new model. (And that includes the new Enzo. You heard it here first)

But it uses the same engine as the Ferrari FF?

The basics (V12, 6262cc, 65 degree vee angle) are the same, but thereafter its entirely

different. The work thats gone on is little short of staggering. The presentation we had on the

engine alone went on for the best part of 45 minutes Theyve tuned the harmonics of the

inlet and exhaust, developed a new oil scavenge pump for the dry sump, tested six (or was itseven?) different injector patterns. The list is bafflingly complex and detailed. But it has to be.

As Ferrari has previously stated, the naturally aspirated V12 is the beating heart of this

company.

So lets cut to the chase: how does it feel when you give it the beans?

Completely devastating. There was one stat Ferrari showed in the presentation that claimed

that as long as youre doing over 2000rpm, from the moment you hit the throttle youll have

90 per cent ofmaximum acceleration in 0.7 seconds or less. That is to say the thing hits pretty

much as hard at 2000rpm as it does at 8000rpm, and has near-instant pick-up and response.

Quite an achievement.
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So you dont need to use high revs?

This is the possible flip side. The F12 has such massive punch over such a wide range and

combines that with such amazingly zingy throttle response that theres no real need to hit high

revs. You will, of course. Often.

Would I be right in guessing thats because it makes some nice noises?

Yes, the F12 Berlinetta sounds incredible, a whole sweet shop of aural goodness pouring

treats into your eardrums. Its even better when you back off (ideally in a tunnel or next to a

wall with the windows lowered) and receive a barrage of exhaust crackles. Its not perfect,

though. Although Ferrari has fitted sound pipes to the inlet system which are fed straight back

to the front bulkhead, theres not as much induction noise as I would have liked.

Isnt that a little picky?

Well, youre allowed to be in a car costs 239,736 (which, by the way includes a full sevenyear, unlimited mileage maintenance package. Eat your heart out Kia).

Anyway, back to that engine characteristic, of how accessible the power is. Its true of the

whole car. This is really not a difficult thing to drive at all. Even with 730bhp through the rear

wheels. Internally it was felt that the outgoing 599 was a bit top-endygreat to drive, but

really great to drive if you yourself were a great driver. It rewarded Alonso, in other words.

So the principle idea of the F12 was to deliver its thrills more readily, and not bite those who

get it a bit wrong.

Does that mean its softer, then, a bit namby-pamby?

Oddly, quite the reverse. It has the sharpest steering rack of any Ferrari, carbon ceramic

brakes that now have more top end bite, and bodyroll has been reduced by 30 per cent from

the 599. Turn in is 20 per cent faster, and youll use 15 per cent less steering angle, the

engineers claim.

But its been so well honed. The brakes, steering, throttle, gearbox, all do exactly what you

expect. Theres no slack or slop at all, so you always know where you are with it. It sounds

ridiculous to say that a car with 730bhp (the same as a Pagani Huayra, lets not forget) is a

doddle to drive, but this one really is. It drives cleanly and precisely.

But is it fun?

OK, its not as exciting as a 458. The F12 is a car for grown-ups. Its an immensely rich and

satisfying machine, but despite its sharpness, power and ability its not a car for instant, high

octane thrills, and more aligned to the FF than the Italia. It has that GT vibe. But theres a

reason for this. This type of Ferrari, the frontengined two seat V12, is the most heavily used

of all Ferraris. Owners do more miles in them and often use them every day. So it has to be

comfortable, reliable and practical. As well as doing the driving stuff.


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And is it practical?

It has a 320 litre boot that expands to 500 litres with the neat load divider removed. Plus a

great driving position, adequate stowage and good seat comfort (although the optional fang-

like sports seats are decidedly firm). That enough?

Emphatically.

Lets get back to dynamic stuff then, and point out a couple more interesting things. Its

lower, narrower and shorter than the 599 it replaces and thistogether with a chassis

constructed from 12 different alloys of aluminiumhelps make the F12 70kg lighter too, with

a kerbweight of 1630kg. Most unusually of all for a front engined supercar, the weight

distribution is 46:54. It carries more weight at the back.

Clever engineering has put the double clutch gearbox (which is a complete honey, almost as

exceptional as the engine) in the back, aft of the rear axle. Either way it means the F12 is a

beautifully balanced thing, a car that works all four tyres evenly and smoothly, that doesntseem to understand what understeer is and why it should succumb to it and just feels meaty

and precise and engaging and really rather wonderful. Personally Id like slightly weightier

steering, but for a front engined supercar, this is mesmerizing.

You like it then?

Absolutely. In execution and direction it feels closest to the old 550 Maranello, one of my all

time favourites. This is a car youd live with and drive and love and admire and appreciate

every day. Any day, in fact. Neither fragile nor delicate, the F12 is bombastic, epic and

howlingly fast. Theres nothing else remotely like it.

New Hybrid Drivetrain

With the countdown to Ferrari's new Enzo supercar now firmly under way, the company

chose the Beijing show to release some tantalising details about the powertrain underpinning

what CEO Amedeo Felisa refers to as a special model'.

While the V12 will be a development of the 731bhp 6.3-litre unit in the new F12, the big

news is that the new car - which should break cover before the end of 2012, probably between

the Paris and Detroit motor show - will use the latest evolution of Ferrari's Hy-Kers electric

hybrid system first shown at Geneva two years ago.

"This is the best way to increase performance while reducing emissions," Felisa told

TopGear.com at a packed and sticky Beijing show. "We are interested in down-sizing

[turbocharging], in cylinder deactivation and in hybrid technology. This is also the best way

of keeping the V12 engine architecture which, as you know,Ferrariis very committed to.

Reducing the car's weight is not sufficient alone to reduce emissions: to do that you must

work on the powertrain. Hybrid for Ferrari is not just about reducing emissions, it is about

enhancing the experience of our cars. Otherwise we risk losing their fundamental character."

So expect the Hy-Kers system to increase the V12's performance by 10 per cent, while also

being used to enhance a torque vectoring system, traction control, and brake force
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distribution, becoming fully integrated with Ferrari's already phenomenal chassis electronics.

Under braking, the Kers re-assigns the kinetic energy to charge the batteries.

Felisa says that Ferrari's enormous F1 expertise has enabled them to master the challenge of

managing the marriage of electric power to an internal combustion engine'. The new system

features a rear-mounted electric motor that assists the mid-mounted V12, while a secondelectric motor at the front is there solely to feed the ancillaries (power steering, air con) with a

power converter in between.

Lithium ion batteries sit low in the chassis, and though this hardware adds around 100kg to

the car's overall weight, Felisa insists that weight distribution remains optimal. "We studied

very hard on the best place to put the extra mass so that it would not affect the dynamics of

the car," he confirms. The main electric motor delivers its power via one of the gearbox's two

clutches, maintaining a seamless, uninterrupted flow of energy, harmonising petrol and

electric. Theoretically, the system could allow the car to run on electric power at low speed,

but, as Felisa freely admits, "we don't like the idea of an electric Ferrari because one of our

main characteristics is the sound of the engine. We imagine that the system will see the caralways mixing the two power sources at the same moment." We couldn't agree more...

Though Ferrari remains cagey about the performance of the new car, Felisa confirms that the

system shaves 10 per cent off the 0-124mph time, while cutting emissions by a whopping 40

per cent. In other words, whatever else the new Enzo is going to be, it'll be the fastest and

cleanest Ferrari ever, with eye-popping CO2 numbers to go with outrageous performance. As

odd as it might seem to get excited about this on Ferrari's long-awaited new supercar, we can't

help pondering how low can the emissions go. Under 300g/km? In the low 200s? "Higher

than a Fiat Panda or 500," Felisa says with a smile, "but certainly the lowest a Ferrari has ever

been."

Insiders say that the new Enzo is a truly remarkable looking car, unlike anything Ferrari has

ever done before. With an all carbon composite chassis, a hybrid V12 and the best chassis

electronics in the business, it should be a genuine game-changer, and will do battle with

McLaren's imminent P12, Porsche's hybrid-electric 918 Spyder, and Jaguar's Williams-

developed C-X75. Naturally, it will be furiously expensive, not least because hybridisation at

this level is a costly, challenging technology.

"We like the challenge," Felisa says. "We have always used our special cars to develop

special new technology. Our supercar has always had a distinct typology, and our next car

will maintain that approach.


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