Ferrari’s ‘velvet nuke’

published 4 September 2012

This new two-seat, front-engine, 12-cylinder, F12 Berlinetta is Ferrari's "quickest, most powerful and most dynamic street car to date", says Dan Neil in The Wall Street Journal. It delivers 740 horsepower, a top speed of 212mph, and accelerates from zero to 124 mph in 8.5 seconds, "which is about as quick as an all-wheel-drive Bugatti Veyron". And, "with its carbon-ceramic brakes glowing like the hinges of hell, the F12 will decelerate from 124 mph to zero in 426 feet".

The engine, as Ferrari customers demand, is a "braying, bawling, soaring, roaring, bonfire-of-currency sound it will bring a tear to your eye". It is "mighty" then, yet still "very much a road car", with "a suavely modern, leather-to-the-hilt interior design", splendid seats, light steering and a "supremely civilised, well-tempered" driving manner. It's "a velvet nuke, this car. Again Ferrari has transcended the limits of what seemed possible in a road-going GT".

The biggest surprise is just how useable it is, agrees Andrew Frankel in Autocar. As a supercar that can be used everyday, for taking long journeys laden with luggage, "I'm not sure it has an equal" certainly not the Veyron, which is four times more expensive, or the Lamborghini Aventador. "For all its McLaren-melting acceleration, the F12 is not a recreational plaything, but a deadly serious working tool. That is the key to this car's extraordinary character and why it ranks as one of Ferrari's finest achievements to date."