- Ferrari wanted the new F80 hypercar to have the highest-performing engine in its lineup.
- While the twin-turbo V6 only displaces 3.0 liters, it delivers an extraordinary 887 hp on its own.
- Supplementing the gas engine are a trio of electric motors pushing total output to 1,184 hp.
Many had pinned their hopes on the new Ferrari F80 hypercar launching with the brand’s revered 6.5-liter naturally-aspirated V12. After all, if the Purosangue SUV can roll off the line with a V12 under the hood, then surely its flagship hypercar should follow suit? Well, think again. The F80 has instead launched with a twin-turbocharged V6, sharing its cylinder count with the mid-tier 296 GTB and leaving it two short of the SF90’s V8. It’s not exactly what traditionalists were expecting—or wanted.
According to Ferrari’s Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Enrico Galliera, there’s a reason for this. When recently asked why the F80 houses a V6 instead of a V12, Galliera explained that Ferrari chose to equip the hypercar with the most advanced, highest-performing engine it had at its disposal. It’s a clear, albeit controversial, message that Ferrari isn’t shackled by nostalgia when it comes to engineering decisions.
Read: These Are 9 Key Facts About The $3.9M V6 Hybrid Ferrari F80 Hypercar
“We asked the question of whether we were going to use the most iconic engine [the V12] or the highest performing [the V6], and decided to take the highest performer,” Galliera explained to Auto Express.
“This is something that we have always done with our supercars, to use the most high-performing option available at the time; just look at the F40 and its twin-turbocharged V8. We also asked the question about whether an electric or plug-in hybrid powertrain was considered, to which we received an emphatic: ‘No, we think that for now, this is the best technical solution’, ” he added.
The F80’s 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6, while sharing its core architecture with the 296 GTB, is far from a cut-and-paste job. Borrowing tech from Ferrari’s Le Mans-winning 499 P hypercar, this bespoke powerplant delivers an extraordinary 887 hp, which is more than the 819 horses mustered up by the 6.5-liter V12 in the 12Cilindri. To further boost the F80’s power figures, Ferrari tacked on three electric motors, pushing the combined output to 1,184 hp.
The result is an absolutely bonkers 0-62 mph (100 km/h) time of 2.15 seconds. For those keeping score, that’s more than half a second quicker than the recently unveiled McLaren W1—no slouch in its own right, with a hybridized V8 churning out a monstrous 1,258 hp. Yet, here we are, with Ferrari’s F80 easily outpacing it, proving once again that Maranello’s engineers have little interest in playing second fiddle.
Ferrari plans to produce 799 examples of the F80, and each one was snapped up well before the car’s public debut last week. Clearly, Maranello’s elite clientele aren’t shedding too many tears over the absence of a V12, even if purists are left wondering whether Ferrari is slowly edging away from its soul.
