Ferrari 12Cilindri: A Tribute to the Daytona

When Ferrari unveiled the successor to the 812 Superfast in Miami in 2024, the name caused a stir. 12Cilindri (Dodici Cilindri). It means “12 Cylinders” in Italian. No “Superfast,” no “Berlinetta,” just a literal description of what makes it special.

In a world of EVs and downsizing, naming a car after its massive combustion engine is a statement. It is a middle finger to the trend of silence. It is Ferrari saying: “This is what we do best.”

Historical Context: Why Now?

The 12Cilindri arrives at a pivotal moment in Ferrari’s history. The brand is aggressively electrifying its lineup — the SF90, 296 GTB, and now the Roma Spider all have hybrid systems. Yet within all that change, the front-engine V12 Grand Tourer stands as an island of defiance.

The car the 12Cilindri replaces, the 812 Superfast, launched in 2017 and was itself the spiritual heir to the F12berlinetta, which replaced the 599 GTB Fiorano. Each generation pushed the naturally aspirated formula further. The 812 hit 800 horsepower with no electrification at all. Its successor, the 812 Competizione, pressed to 830 horsepower and 9,500 rpm. The 12Cilindri borrows that engine and wraps it in a completely new body and chassis that looks backward to the Daytona era but thinks entirely about the future.

Ferrari knows this may be the last purely combustion-powered front-engine GT it builds. The 12Cilindri seems aware of that weight. Every design choice, every engineering decision reads like a love letter to the V12.

Design: The Daytona Connection

The design of the 12Cilindri is a radical departure from the angry, aggressive lines of the 812 Superfast. It is cleaner, more geometric, and undeniably retro-futuristic.

The Black Mask: The front end features a gloss black panel that connects the headlights. This is a direct reference to the “Plexiglass” nose of the Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona from the late 1960s. On the original Daytona, a single piece of clear plastic covered both headlights and the grille, giving the car an alien, mysterious face. The 12Cilindri’s interpretation does the same with a darkened graphic element.
Clean Flanks: Unlike the 812, which had massive scoops and vents everywhere, the 12Cilindri has smooth, clean sides. The aerodynamics are hidden under the car or integrated into the body lines. From certain angles it reads almost like a concept car that somehow got approved for production.
Active Aero: The rear of the car features two “delta wing” flaps integrated into the bodywork. They look like part of the trunk lid until they flip up at speed (between 60 and 300 km/h) to generate 50 kg of downforce.
The Profile: The long hood, short rear deck silhouette is classic Ferrari GT. It evokes the proportions of the Daytona and the 550 Maranello without directly copying either. It is a design that appears restrained next to the 812 but rewards closer inspection — there are subtle fender shoulders, carefully managed character lines, and a low roofline that tapers gracefully toward the Kamm-style tail.

The 12Cilindri Spider variant, announced simultaneously, uses a retractable hardtop that opens in 14 seconds. Unlike some convertibles that look awkward when closed, the Spider maintains near-identical proportions to the berlinetta, a testament to how well Ferrari’s engineers and designers collaborated from the start.

The Engine: F140 HD

The engine is an evolution of the unit found in the 812 Competizione, which itself was a bespoke build that pushed Ferrari’s V12 architecture to a new peak.

Displacement: 6.5 Liters.
Redline: 9,500 rpm. (Yes, nearly 10,000 rpm in a road car).
Power: 830 hp at 9,250 rpm.
Torque: 678 Nm at 7,250 rpm.
Titanium Rods: The engine uses titanium connecting rods (40% lighter than steel) and a rebalanced crankshaft to allow for the insane redline.

To understand what 9,500 rpm means in practice: most production turbocharged V8s redline around 7,000-7,500 rpm. Naturally aspirated V8s in sports cars typically hit 8,000-8,500 rpm. Ferrari’s non-hybrid V12 spinning to 9,500 rpm in a road-going grand tourer is almost Formula 1-adjacent. At those engine speeds, the pistons are traveling at velocities that require aerospace-grade materials and tolerances measured in microns.

The sound that results is unlike any other road car. It is not the burbling torque rumble of a large-displacement American V8, nor the strained shriek of a four-cylinder race motor. It is a complex, layered mechanical aria — the intake rush, the valve gear percussion, and the exhaust wail combining into something that needs to be heard at full chat to be fully appreciated.

Aspirated Torque Shaping

Ferrari engineers developed a new software strategy called “Aspirated Torque Shaping.” In lower gears (1st through 3rd), the torque is electronically limited to mimic the rising torque curve of a naturally aspirated engine. It prevents the tires from being overwhelmed and encourages the driver to rev the engine out to the redline to find the power.

This is deceptively clever. By shaping the torque delivery in the lower registers, Ferrari makes the car feel more responsive and rewarding to drive — rewarding patience and commitment rather than simply mashing the throttle from low revs. It is how the car teaches you to drive it properly.

Chassis Innovations

The 12Cilindri is built on an all-new aluminum chassis made from 100% recycled alloys — a first for Ferrari, and a nod toward sustainability without compromising strength or weight.

Stiffness: Torsional rigidity is increased by 15% compared to the 812. This translates directly to more precise handling, better steering feedback, and improved crash structure.
Wheelbase: It is 20mm shorter than the 812, increasing agility. On a car of this size, 20mm makes a genuine difference in how quickly it rotates into a corner.
4-Wheel Steering: The latest version of the Virtual Short Wheelbase allows each rear wheel to be controlled independently. This offers unprecedented stability in corners and allows the car to essentially “crab walk” slightly to maximize grip. At low speeds, the rear wheels turn opposite to the fronts, shortening the effective wheelbase for tight turns. At high speeds, they turn in concert to stabilize the car under load.

The braking system is carried over from the 812 Competizione — large carbon-ceramic discs front and rear, capable of repeated high-energy stops without fade. Given this car’s performance envelope, anything less would be inadequate.

Interior: Dual Cockpit

The interior borrows heavily from the Purosangue SUV and the Roma. It features a “dual cockpit” design where the driver and passenger areas are separated by a central ridge, creating a sense of individual space within the shared cabin.

Screens: There are three screens: a 15.6-inch display for the driver, a 10.25-inch central touch screen, and an 8.8-inch screen for the passenger.
Haptic Controls: Sadly, the 12Cilindri continues Ferrari’s controversial trend of using haptic touch buttons on the steering wheel instead of physical buttons. The “Start/Stop” button is now a glass touch panel. When you are wearing driving gloves, or if the steering wheel is wet, the system becomes frustrating. This remains one of the few genuine criticisms of Ferrari’s current generation of interiors.
The “Daytona” Seats: The seat pattern features horizontal slats, another direct nod to the vintage Daytona seats. The upholstery options run to full bespoke, with Ferrari’s Atelier program offering essentially unlimited customization.

The driving position is excellent — low, close to the firewall, with a clear sightline down the long hood. It conveys exactly the sense of occasion that a car at this price should.

Rivals and Comparison

The 12Cilindri occupies a specific niche: the non-hybrid front-engine V12 grand tourer. Its direct rivals are very few.

The Aston Martin DBS offers a twin-turbocharged V12 with 715 horsepower and a more traditionally British GT character. It is heavier, less aggressive in delivery, but arguably more elegant and more relaxing to cover miles in.

The Lamborghini Huracán Sterrato is a completely different animal, but both come from the Italian school of naturally aspirated drama. The Huracan’s V10 sounds extraordinary but lacks the gravitas and top-end power of the V12.

The McLaren 750S is faster around a track and similarly dramatic, but it is a mid-engine car with different GT credentials.

Nothing else offers what the 12Cilindri offers: a naturally aspirated V12 redlining at 9,500 rpm in a long, clean, beautiful body that can tour across a continent in comfort and then embarrass supercars on an on-ramp.

Collector Value and Production Context

Ferrari has not officially announced production numbers for the 12Cilindri, but given the demand for the V12 berlinetta and the model’s trajectory (the 812 was extremely popular), volumes are expected to be in the hundreds per year globally.

Given that this is almost certainly the last non-hybrid front-engine Ferrari V12, collector interest is already significant. The 812 Competizione, produced in limited numbers, is already appreciating strongly. The 12Cilindri, as the successor carrying an even more significant engine tune, is likely to follow a similar trajectory for limited and special-specification cars.

Conclusion

The Ferrari 12Cilindri is likely the final chapter of the non-hybrid V12 GT car. It is a love letter to the format that Enzo Ferrari loved the most. While the design is polarizing (some love the Daytona mask, others hate it), the engineering underneath is undeniable. It is a 9,500 rpm spaceship that you can drive to dinner. It is proof that Ferrari still knows how to build cars with a soul.

In twenty years, when someone looks back at this era of transition — the years when Ferrari pivoted from pure combustion to electrification — the 12Cilindri will be the car that stood tallest. It refused to compromise. It said the V12 was worth celebrating, worth naming a car after, worth designing from scratch to honor. That conviction alone makes it one of the most important Ferraris ever built.