Photo: @derek.photography via @ferrarilbc on Instagram / Varryx on YouTube / edited
Not long now, the Prancing Horse will debut its highest-revving production model in the form of the F167. The grand tourer's actual name is not known at press time, but according to a spy pic from Dutch photographer Derek Cornelissen, the 812 Superfast's heir apparent is a high-revving exotic.
The photograph in question shows a completely digital instrument cluster with a rev counter that goes to 10 x 1,000 revolutions per minute. Only the 10 is marked in red, suggesting a redline of 10,000 revolutions per minute. How does the F167 stack up to the 812 Superfast and 812 Competizione? In a nutshell, better than both. The Superfast is limited to 8,900 revolutions per minute, whereas the special-edition Competizione can take 9,500 rpm.
Ferrari stopped taking new orders for the 812 series back in February 2022. The long-awaited successor will debut in a little over a week at the Miami GP. According to Ferrari expert Marcel Massini, the F167 will be unleashed on May 2. Given the $58,000 participation fee, registered participants of the Cavalcade International USA 2024 are obviously invited to the reveal of the grand tourer.
Or should we call it super tourer due to 800-plus metric ponies? Hearsay suggests 850 cavalli vapore or 50 more than the 812 Superfast, meaning 838 horsepower. By comparison, the 812 Competizione develops 830 ps (819 hp) at 9,250 rpm and 692 Nm (510 lb-ft) of tire-shredding torque at 7,000 rpm.
Expected to be joined on stage in Miami by the drop-top version, the F167 should incorporate many goodies that are currently exclusive to the 812 Competizione. For example, all-wheel steering and the latest version of Side Slip Control. There is a wild rumor according to which a limited-run special edition with a manual transmission is under development, which sounds like wishful thinking.
Photo: Varryx on YouTube / edited
Ferrari stopped making V12-powered manuals with the 599 series, and manual-equipped Fezzas went the way of the dodo for good with the V8-powered California. The picture snapped by Derek Cornelissen reveals a massive shift paddle on the left side of the steering wheel. To date, no prototype of the F167 has been spotted with a manual box.
The paddle-shift gearbox should be a Magna Powertrain-developed transmission. Rather than the seven-speed 7DCL750, the 8DCL900 seems more likely. Said transmission was introduced by the SF90 for both mid- and front-engine applications (think 296 and Roma). The rear-mounted transaxle is good for 900 Nm (664 pound-feet) according to Magna Powertrain, which is almost 200 Nm better than the 812 Competizione's peak torque rating.
Certain voices claim that Ferrari has approached prospective customers prior to the F167's premiere. This hypothesis certainly holds water, more so if you remember that both Competizione and Competizione A sold out prior to their unveiling.
Taking into consideration the increasingly prohibitive fuel economy and emission regulations, the F167 could be one of the final purely internal combustion V12s from the Maranello-based automaker. It's not known whether the F140-series V12 can be hybridized, but we do know that Ferrari will continue making ICEs well beyond 2030.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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