If you’ve ever seen an F12, it’s hard to not like it. The way it’s designed is just instant attraction. Ferrari has been known amongst the community for its rather elegant GTs and flashy mid-engined coupes. If you are to recollect a few of the old front-engined Ferrari Berlinettas, the extremely rare 250 GT, the 275 GTB, the 575 Maranello, and the F12’s predecessor, the 599; there’s an unmistakable character that defines what a proper Grand Tourer should be.
Unlike its predecessors, the Ferrari F12 is a design marvel fitted with all the latest that the marque had to offer back in 2012. The F12’s been around for almost a decade but considering how beautifully it has aged, there’s no denying the expertise of the folks at Maranello.
There have been multiple Ferraris in the past that people rave about, but the F12 is genuinely in a league of its own. Far prettier than its successor the 812 Super Fast, we’ll go out on a limb and say that the Ferrari F12 Berlinetta is the most complete modern Ferrari.
Ferrari F12 Berlinetta: A Timeless Design
Ferraris have always been the gentleman’s car. Where Lamborghini is about outlandish design and extreme theatrics, Ferrari prefers keeping things classy with a touch of exuberance. Designed by Pininfarina, the F12 is the last Ferrari GT to be styled by the renowned design house. Every cut and crease across the exterior is made with a purpose. The hood features an aerobridge that channels air through the exits near the front fenders to create a boundary layer of smooth air that runs along the side of the car. This air is accelerated over the top of the rear trunk to create additional downforce. Also, an aggressive diffuser with a flat underbody helps keep the F12 glued to the tarmac.
In typical Ferrari tradition, the hood is long with a distinct front bumper design housing a huge air dam and dedicated brake-cooling intakes. Moving further back, the side mirrors have been styled to provide less drag whilst the rear decklid is devoid of any spoiler or winglets, a strict no-no for a road-going Ferrari. All the aerodynamic trickery happens underneath the car allowing the rest of the shape to be uninterrupted.
The interiors of the F12 is very driver-centric with minimal controls on the dashboard. You have the air-con settings on the center stack and that sums it up. An analog tachometer flanked by two digital screens that house all the infotainment and driver information settings saw its introduction in the F12. Everything else is as you might expect from Ferrari, top-notch with incredible attention to detail.
The Ferrari V12: A Dying Breed
Powering the F12 Berlinetta is a 6.3-liter naturally aspirated V12 producing 730 horsepower and 509 lb-ft of torque. The engine is more powerful and efficient than the unit found inside its predecessor, the 599. With increased power and better aerodynamics, the Ferrari F12 Berlinetta can reach 60 mph in 3.1 seconds which is might impressive for a rear-wheel-drive car. Unlike the F1 single-clutch unit in the Ferrari 599, the F12 makes use of a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic. The front-engined Berlinetta can hit a top speed of 211 mph. With many automakers opting for turbocharged and downsized powertrains, big ups to Ferrari for embracing a dying breed
Exceptional Handling But A Bit Too Much Power
Thanks to its F1-derived aerodynamic wizardry, the F12 can slip through the air like a hot knife through butter. However, you need to possess serious skills to make use of such a massively powerful supercar. One wrong move and you’d find yourself wrapped around a tree. But, if you do manage to extract its full potential there’s nothing more rewarding. Unlike its clumsy predecessor, the F12 is better refined, has all the modern gadgetry but it’s a bit overpowered. You have to be really careful with your right foot and if you don’t, it’s easy to spin out of control and end up in a hedge.
A Future Classic, No Doubt
Out of all the modern Ferraris excluding the limited-run specials, there are not many that we’d consider future classics. If we were to pick a few, it’d be the Ferrari 458 and this, the F12 Berlinetta. Both of them are impeccably designed and extremely powerful. Also, the F12 is the last of the Pininfarina-designed Ferrari GTs ever to roll out of Maranello. The 812 SF is an in-house designed supercar and to be honest, in comparison to the F12, it isn’t all that exciting. Don’t get us wrong, the 812 is a fantastic piece of engineering but it sort of loses out on how elegant a Ferrari should be.
The F12 ticks all the right boxes in terms of design, sophistication, performance, and whatnot. If you were to compare the recent front-engined Ferraris, the 599 is dated and looks plain, the 812 is overdone and comes across as a bit too much. Whereas, the F12 strikes a perfect balance between extreme performance and elegant styling, enough to call it the most complete modern Ferrari.
Sources: Top Gear, YouTube, Wikipedia