Ferrari 812 GTS review

But I adored it. There comes a point, reached by a surprisingly large number of cars today, where they’re far too fast to use properly on public roads. So what they do becomes far less important than the way that they do it and how they make you feel about it. And here this deeply flawed Fandango is just magnificent even when, as was the case with me, your time in the car was limited and the roads cold, damp and greasy.

Indeed it’s one of that rare breed of convertible I might prefer to its coupe brother. It matters not that its folding metal roof adds 75kg because the car is already heavy and so powerful you’ll never notice it. But it matters absolutely that you can drop said roof and be granted an open air audience with an engine whose voice is unsurpassed in the road car arena today. Indeed if there’s a better engine out there, I’ve not made its acquaintance.

There’s something else. There’s no configuration more noble than a front-engined, rear drive V12 and luxuriating in the howl of that unimprovable motor, I had the sense of an ending. Already it is the last supercar to be laid out this way and I fear the next may have four-wheel drive or a hybrid attached. It will doubtless be faster and better. But will it make me feel as good, which is what these cars are for? That remains to be seen.

Ferrari 812 GTS

Engine: 6496cc, V12
Transmission: 7-speed dual clutch, RWD
Power: 789bhp @ 8500rpm
Torque: 530lb ft @ 7000rpm
Weight: 1700kg (est, 1600kg dry)

Power-to-weight ratio: 464bhp/tonne
0-62mph: 2.9 seconds
Top speed: 211mph
Price: £293,150

Ti rating: 8/10