Ferrari 812 Competizione

Far from killing it off, Ferrari have given their V12 a proper overhaul for the 812 Competizione. As much as 830 hp and a 9,500-rpm rev limit? Grazie

- Ben Barry

Five hundred revolutions per minute. At 3,000 rpm, that is a mere toe flex away. But stretching a naturally aspirated Ferrari V12’s red-line by 500 rpm is like climbing a quivering step ladder on everest’s peak. But this — metaphorically speaking, at least — is exactly what Ferrari have done with the 812 Competizione. it is also a fairly apt analogy for the idea of wrestling it around the Fiorano test-track. the deeper Ferrari dig to extract more speed, the deeper anyone attempting to wring their cars out must be prepared to dig, too, surely?

The same 6.5-litre base engine in the 812 superfast spins to a white-hot 9,000 rpm. the Competizione stretches that to 9,500 rpm and serves up its 830 hp (up by 30 hp) at 9,250 rpm. no Ferrari road-going engine has ever revved higher — and Ferraris are all about revs. (We will not mention there is 27 nm less torque or the fact that at 2,500 rpm, you have got 80 per cent of the 691 nm you will find at 7,000 rpm.) The thing is, you feel this engine’s added aggression just leaving the pits, where the throttle is even more cattle-prod in race mode than lesser 812s. it is a superfast on speed.