Ferrari 812 Superfast
When being sensible and practical is simply not for you
New-car shoppers have a dizzying selection of useful models to choose from, in a wide variety of price points and body styles. There’s something smart and sensible for just about everyone.
Thankfully, not every automaker is trying so hard to be sensible. In fact, if you want your blood to run hot, here’s something wildly impractical, decidedly unconventional and extremely out of the ordinary. Which is to say fast and incredibly beautiful.
Meet yet another Italian missile from Maranello, Italy, a new high-performance car known as the Ferrari 812 Superfast, which the Italian automaker lovingly describes as “the new extreme performance Berlinetta.”
Ferrari created the 812 Superfast to celebrate the company’s 70th anniversary, even going so far as creating a new shade of red called “Rosso Settanta,” which means “red 70” in English.
And while it’s true that the 812 Superfast looks like it’s going 200 mph just standing still, the fact is it will actually do 200 mph. Well, 211 to be precise. That really is super fast.
Under the hood is a 789-horsepower V-12 engine — non-turbocharged — the most powerful regular production Ferrari of all time. That’s up from 770 horsepower in the 812 Superfast’s predecessor, the F12tdf.
The engine also produces 530 pound-feet of torque and the lone gearbox offered is a seven-speed paddle-shift automatic.
Ferrari’s specs indicate the car accelerates to 100 km/h in 2.9 seconds. That’s likely traction limited as an all-wheel-drive Nissan GT-R with less horsepower and torque is actually quicker to 100, although not faster on the top end.
The 812 Superfast uses electric power steering, which replaces the hydraulic system Ferrari had used in the past. It integrates with the car’s electronic traction enhancements, including Virtual Short Wheelbase 2.0 system, which is Ferrari’s rear-wheel steering mechanism.
From a design standpoint, the 812 Superfast shares styling influences from Ferrari’s 1969 365 GTB4, one of the company’s most iconic designs. Both are so-called two-box bodies, with high tails.
As Road and Track put it, “The 812 Superfast is basically perfection.”
Inside, Ferrari has given the cockpit what it calls “a sportier and more radical look,” although it still is straight out of the Ferrari design book. There’s no mistaking this cockpit for something from any other automaker.
The bottom line is that the Ferrari 812 Superfast is every bit as remarkable and brutally uncompromising as you would expect it to be. And at that, it might well be the last of its kind. Wired.com wrote, “For enthusiasts, though, the 812 Superfast marks a
bittersweet moment. Reports indicate this will be the last Ferrari to pack a naturally aspirated engine, before shifting its focus to powerplants with turbochargers and hybrid assists, in the name of improved emissions. Because even Ferrari must consider the health of the planet and bow to ever stricter regulations. At least this era of the prancing horse will close with a V-12 roar.”
And a mighty and rich roar it likely will be.