The Ferrari 12Cilindri Spider Will Be a Classic: First Drive Review

Is Ferrari even Ferrari without the V-12? The engine layout has been essential to the brand since 1947. Sure, Ferrari makes incredible V-8s, and its new hybridized, turbocharged V-6 makes just as much power as engines with twice the cylinders. But nothing will ever be as elegant or magical as a 12-cylinder symphony.

Ferrari’s first V-12 displaced just 1.5 liters, a pea shooter strapped into Enzo’s first car, the 125S. Now, the Ferrari V-12 is a howitzer, a manic 6.5-liter that sits under the hood of the high-riding Purosangue and Ferrari’s newest GT car, the 12Cilindri, here in Spider form.

If you didn’t guess, the name “12 Cilindri” literally translates to “12 Cylinders.” You might think this is the product of lazy marketing. Ferrari says it’s a flag in the ground, intended as a tribute to the iconic engine, an acknowledgment of 78 years building dozen-cylinder engines. The 12Cilindri makes more than one callback to the past, the most obvious being its visual homage to the 365 GTB/4 Daytona, perhaps the most revered GT car of all time.

The 12Cilindri Spider is the same as its coupe brother underneath. The folding hardtop means it weighs 3,571 pounds, about 130 more than the coupe, necessitating a few suspension and aero adjustments. It’s also being launched immediately after the coupe, rather than a year or more later. While it does share evolved versions of the 812 Superfast’s tech and engine, it rides on a shorter wheelbase and larger 21-inch wheels. And it doesn’t need to fill the same hole in the lineup the 812 did.

Photo by: Ferrari

Photo by: Ferrari

Photo by: Ferrari

Since the 812’s debut, Ferrari has changed a lot. The V-12 GT is no longer the brand’s most performance-oriented car. The hybrid mid-engine cars, the 296 and the 1,000-horsepower SF90, handle that, while the Roma, Purosangue, and 12Cilindri can focus on covering miles on road, rather than track.

The $515,400 ($685,533, as tested) 12Cilindri Spider has features Enzo never could’ve imagined, like a heater specifically for your neck, massage seats, auto start/stop, and a factory seven-year maintenance plan. Can you even imagine Mr. Ferrari approving a start/stop function in the pursuit of fuel economy? He’d probably shutter the company in protest.

Photo by: Ferrari

Pros: 9,500 RPM V-12, Gorgeous, Lovely to Drive, 9,500 RPM V-12

So does that mean it’s soft and boring? Does that mean it’s not a Ferrari? That’s not even possible with an engine like this. This is a development of the absolutely nuts V-12 in the 812 Competizione, which means it revs all the way to 9,500 rpm and puts out 819 hp and 500 pound-feet of torque. It retains that car’s exotic finger follower valvetrain and adds a new software component dubbed Aspirated Torque Shaping (ATS). ATS let the engineers shape the torque curve in third and fourth gear, a way of still maintaining that manic acceleration while making it feel smooth.

On the road, the 12Cilindri is just easy. With the Manettino drive mode selector set to Sport mode, the roof down and neck warmer on, and the eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox in manual mode, it defines the GT car in the truest sense. So many modern GT cars work to isolate the driver from the road, with an overly soft ride and so much sound deadening to provide comfort over-involvement. In reality, a GT car should be able to cruise on the highway while engaging on a back road. The 12Cilindri is capable of being relaxed and quiet in traffic, but it’s a homing missile when the buses clear out of the way.

Photo by: Ferrari

Photo by: Ferrari

On these roads outside of Lisbon, all the modern Ferrari hallmarks are there. The steering is so quick your brain has to recalibrate, and the front end darts to an apex. The throttle calibration is balanced and smooth, with initial pedal tip-in leading to just a smooth increase in speed, no head jerking action. The brakes are easy to modulate, no need to be a featherweight on the pedal to avoid an overly aggressive stop.

Most modern cars would change those parameters based on the drive mode, but Ferrari doesn’t, instead opting to leave steering, throttle and engine maps, and the brake-by-wire system the same in all modes. That way the driver is never surprised by how the car responds to your three main inputs. That leads to trust.

Instead, the Manettino works on detail changes, by ramping up settings for gear changes and diff, more open exhaust, and changes to damping and assistance systems. It even changes the rear steering programming.

Photo by: Ferrari

Cons: Wildly Expensive, A Little Too Quiet, Frustrating Touch-Capacitive Interior Buttons

And while this is not a small car, the newest version of Ferrari’s rear-wheel steering–what it dubs Passo Corto Virtuale or ‘Virtual Short Wheelbase’–makes it feel even more agile, though it’s disconcerting at first. The rear steer is aggressive, and before you’re used to it you’ll feel like the rear end is on casters, the car rotating quicker and more aggressively than you might otherwise expect.

Race is the basis for the most intense modes the 12Cilindri has to offer. C/T Off takes the race settings and turns off traction control, allowing for controlled drifts thanks to Ferrari’s clever Side Slip Control. ESC Off takes Race and turns off every driver aid, something saved for those with a bit too much self-confidence.

Leave it in Race on a back road, and you’re in the sweet spot. The gearbox bangs shifts authoritatively without upsetting the car’s balance, the diff works with the massive 315/35-R21 tires to put the power down on corner exit, and on smooth roads the ride quality is firm but not uncontrolled. And if the road turns to a potholed, rough mess, there’s a bumpy road mode.

It’s a setting that the company developed when Michael Schumacher was testing the 430 Scuderia on a bumpy track. He got them to combine the softest suspension setting with all of the other settings for an aggressive drive mode. So, here, it combines the suspension setup from the Wet mode with everything else from Race. It’s kind of perfect.

Photo by: Ferrari

On a deserted, winding road, this car is an absolute treat. The visibility to the front corners is great over the long hood, and that quick front end and dynamic rear steer work together to make this car a rocket. The software for the TC and ESC is so well-judged that you won’t even realize it’s holding you back unless you’re really trying to upset the balance.

It’s just a delight, if still somewhat quiet. Ferrari, like all other manufacturers, has to meet ever-more-stringent regulations, so filters for emissions and settings for fuel economy can tone down the manic V-12 tone. It’s still a lovely ever-looming sound, but it only really comes to fore when you’re caning it. Or when you find a tunnel and decide to act like a child.

It’s a definitive modern Ferrari, which means it uses tons of technology in the pursuit of a better driving experience. In that mission, this car is a massive success.

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Ferrari

It’s also a modern Ferrari inside, and that can be a bit more of a mixed bag. Ferrari has slowly removed physical buttons from its interiors over the last few years, with the Roma finally moving nearly everything to capacitive touch. The 12Cilindri follows that lead. And when I say almost everything is touch capacitive, I mean it.

Everything from the start/stop button on the steering wheel to the wing mirror adjustment is capacitive. There have been improvements to the tech. The buttons on the steering wheel turn off when not in use to end the accidental button presses that were common in the Roma. And most things that aren’t capacitive are on a touch screen. It’s a genuine surprise that they haven’t figured out how to make the Manettino capacitive; mercifully that remains a physical switch.

That Ferrari is still able to build a V-12-powered sports car that revs while engine downsizing, hybridization, and turbocharging invades every corner of the market is a testament to the brand’s creativity and engineering ability. Now, will Ferrari continue to be able to produce a car like this without hybrid tech? When asked if this car could become a hybrid, they refused to comment, but it seems like the only way the V-12 will be able to live far into the future. Until whatever comes next, enjoy what may be the last of the breed.