- Doors and Seats
2 doors, 2 seats
- Engine
6.5i, 12 cyl.
- Engine Power
588kW, 718Nm
- Fuel
Petrol (98) 15L/100KM
- Manufacturer
RWD
- Transmission
Auto (DCT)
- Warranty
3 Yr, Unltd KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
Ferrari 812 Superfast 2018 review
Ferrari’s gran-turismo replacement for the lauded F12 Berlinetta mixes retro-modern muscularity with a stupendous updated V12 engine.
Following in the tyre tracks of a long line of magnificent front-engined, two-seat Ferrari GTs, the 812 Superfast channels the 365 GTB/4 Daytona in looks and the Enzo in spirit for a scintillating blend of everyday useability and supercar incredibility.
- Exquisite blend of modernity and classic Ferrari design
- Stunning engine performance
- Warp-speed handling agility and steering response
- Cost of options could send you broke
- Not easy to get in and out of
- ‘Bumpy road' suspension setting remains active after you switch the car off
Is it right for me?
That entirely depends on your bank balance (see below), and how long you’re prepared to wait for one. Pretty much any Tom, Dick or Hillary could walk in off the street and buy an 812 Superfast, but it’ll be a case of joining the queue in the wait to receive it. The average wait time from order placement to delivery is 12-18 months.
Can I afford it ?
In most people’s dreams. And even if you can stump up $609,888 for a ‘stock’ 812 Superfast – the trio of eights being a nod to the number’s good-luck vibe for Chinese buyers – any serious dabbling in Ferrari’s notoriously expensive options list can expand that price tag by more than 30 per cent.
What do you get for your money?
Besides a vast wealth of engineering excellence, there’s also a decent amount of stuff. Carbon-ceramic brakes, full-LED headlights, dual round LED tail-lights, 20-inch alloys, front and rear parking sensors, dual-zone climate control, launch control, auto-fold and heated side mirrors, adaptive magnetic dampers, tyre-pressure monitors, eight-way electric seats, touchscreen multimedia system with sat-nav and Bluetooth audio streaming, a car protection cover and a battery maintainer.
Our test car, however, was embellished with the following, totalling… deep breath… $185,295 in extras: gorgeous Grigio Superfast Opaco matte-grey paint ($52,937), Ferrari’s Cavallino prancing horse stitched into the headrests ($2100), coloured special stitching ($1200), charcoal Alcantara door panels ($1850), charcoal Alcantara headlining ($1850), yellow brakes calipers ($2447), painted forged 20-inch rims ($9700), titanium wheel bolts ($2715), rear bumper sides in carbonfibre ($8145), carbonfibre rear diffuser ($12,760), carbonfibre underdoor cover ($15,700), carbonfibre driver zone and LEDs ($12,220), carbonfibre central bar ($4615), carbonfibre front spoiler ($5973), carbon inner details ($1357), chrome-painted standard wheels ($4075), Scuderia Ferrari shields ($3001), Dedication plate ($1051), JBL Professional High Power hi-fi system ($10,100), rear privacy windows ($7141), front and rear parking cameras ($9981), passenger display ($9501), and an adaptive front lighting system ($5431).
How much does it cost to maintain?
Free servicing for the first seven years is a lovely gesture, masking the inevitable shock of maintaining an exotic Ferrari in pristine condition for its charmed life. There is, however, the fall-back position of its long-term resale value, as well as a projected 64.0 per cent retained value after three years, according to Red Book. Incredibly for such a highly tuned engine, recommended service intervals are 12 months or 20,000km. Take that Subaru!
Is it well built?
In some areas, immaculately. The 812’s body, for example, is almost breathtaking when coated in 53 grand’s worth of matte paint. Every muscle and curve are accentuated to beautiful effect. The leather cabin, too, is upholstered and stitched with utter precision, while the dominant yellow central tachometer is exquisite.
What are the Standout features?
You can’t help but approach the 812 Superfast open-mouthed and wide-eyed because it’s just so goddamn beautiful – more so, in our opinion, than its handsome F12 and 599 predecessors. And that’s entirely down to its Daytona-apeing four-light tail. Looking at an 812 Superfast rear-on is one of the most sublime visions in the automotive kingdom.
What does it have that others don't?
How about more power than any other naturally aspirated series-production engine in the world? In fact, the Superfast’s 588kW 6.5-litre V12 is the most powerful road-going Ferrari engine in history, and that’s without a turbocharger in sight.
It also has one of the highest specific power outputs in the business – an amazing 90.5kW/litre. And again, that’s without forced induction buffing up that output.
How practical is it?
A truckload better than Ferrari’s mid-engined models in terms of what it can carry, but still something you need to be wary of in terms of clearance. At least the 812 can lift its nose at the press of a dashboard button, allowing it to traverse challenging driveways and the like. But at the same time, its four rear pipes are pretty close to the ground.
Scrape-prone bits aside, the 812 Superfast is unexpectedly practical, proving pretty easy to drive and pretty easy to load shopping into. But if you owned a Superfast, wouldn’t you just buy online and get it delivered? There’s no way I’d park this prize piece in a Westfield multi-storey.
Is it comfortable?
Riding on standard ‘magneto rheological’ adaptive dampers, which contain a fluid in each shock-absorber unit that can either be increased or decreased in viscosity when subjected to a magnetic field, the 812 Superfast can virtually be all things to all people.
With the steering wheel’s Manettino dial set to either Sport or Race, the 812’s suspension is seriously disciplined but also far from uncomfortable. With the ‘bumpy road’ button pressed, however, it can be downright astounding in its level of comfort. Over undulations at speed, the Superfast’s ‘bumpy road’ damping is brilliant, with self-levelling finesse like few other cars.
Easy in, easy out?
A low-slung super-coupe like the 812 Superfast isn’t meant to be for everyone, though simply having the means to buy one doesn’t mean you’ll be able to enjoy driving it. A pair of wide-opening doors help when lowering yourself into its luscious cabin, but the protruding swage line, and no side rubbing strips (thank God!) requires plenty of care not to mess up that $53K paint job. This is a Ferrari for 10-car garages, not Victorian-era laneways.
Space and versatility?
You bet. There’s a proper tailgate (with a push-button release on the driver’s door), and a surprisingly accommodating boot. There’s also a handy carpeted shelf behind both front seats with gorgeous leather tie-down straps. And the front buckets themselves are broad enough, low enough, and adjustable enough to feel generously accommodating.
What's the engine like?
Really quite spectacular. A development of the 6.0-litre F140 V12 that debuted in the Enzo in 2002, but altered enough to essentially be considered new, the 812’s 6.5-litre, quad cam, 48-valve 65-degree V12 is the world’s most powerful naturally aspirated production-car engine. Ever. And that says it all really.
How much fuel does it consume?
About what you’d expect a highly strung six-and-a-half litre engine to drink – 14.9L/100km on the government combined cycle, with every drop 98 octane. Balancing that out, though, is the 812 Superfast’s massive 91-litre fuel tank. That theoretical combined consumption average gives a range of 611km.
Is it enjoyable to drive?
First time out in heavy Sydney traffic driving a 795-grand Ferrari, the word ‘enjoyable’ might be a bit strong. Plus, there’s a level of intimidation when flattening the right pedal of a rear-drive Ferrari packing 800 old-money horses, with a 0-100km/h claim of 2.9 seconds, and a 0-200km/h claim of 7.9 seconds. Stretch the Superfast right out and it’s frigging ballistic!
Yet there’s an ‘on-rails’ feeling to its handling that puts all that intimidation at ease. Despite very sharp turn-in – enhanced by ‘Passo Corto Virtuale’, or ‘virtual short wheelbase’, via rear-wheel steering – there’s still a progressiveness to the Superfast’s knack for stringing corners together that soon becomes instinctive. But what the rear-wheel steering doesn’t seem to do is tighten the Superfast’s turning circle. When parking, it ain't easy.
For all its butt-clenching grunt, though, the Superfast has little problem getting most of its power to the ground out of corners. Yes, there’s some ESC intrusion nibbling at the edges, but with 53 per cent of its weight over the rear axle – and retro-chubby 315/35ZR20 Pirelli P Zeros adding to its tractive properties – the Superfast’s cornering balance is finer than most of its drivers could ever hope to be.
Does it perform as you expect?
Producing maximum power (588kW) at a dizzying 8500rpm, with a redline of nine grand and an ignition cut-out ceiling set at 9500rpm, it’s hard to believe such a large-capacity engine (6496cc to be precise) could rev so hard, and yet also be so driveable. It’ll pull from 1200rpm or so without flinching, with 80 per cent of its maximum torque on offer by 3500rpm, yet as revs keep building, the Superfast’s V12 transforms into a proper race car experience.
Loaded with bassy induction meat yet able to wail like a crazed banshee, there’s a multi-faceted Italian symphony waiting to be cranked every time you drive this car – especially with the windows dropped. Those quad pipes bark and crackle and howl constantly, much to bystanders delight, so why drown that out with the side glass raised?
Then there’s Ferrari’s seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, which is near-flawless in its operation when left to its own devices in ‘auto’ mode, and lightning-fast when upshifting under pressure. Superfast, even.
2018 Ferrari 812 Superfast Price and Specifications
Price: $795,183 (as tested)
Engine: 6.5-litre 65-degree V12
Power: 588kW at 8500rpm
Torque: 718Nm at 7000rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch, RWD
Fuel use: 14.9L/100km