At the 2012 edition of the Geneva Motor Show, the world witnessed the unveiling of one of the most impressive cars ever made by Ferrari – it’s the amazing Ferrari F12 Berlinetta. Produced as a replacement for the Ferrari 599, the F12 Berlinetta is a front-mid engine, rear-wheel drive grand tourer that was assembled at Ferrari’s Maranello factory. Remarkably, the car was awarded Top Gear’s Supercar of the Year 2012 for its awesomeness, while in 2014 it won the XXIII. Premio Compasso d’Oro ADI.
Yet, Ferrari felt it could improve on the F12 Berlinetta. Therefore, three years after the release of the F12 Berlinetta, the Italian car company introduced a more powerful, track-focused version of the sports car, known as the Ferrari F12tdf. The Ferrari F12tdf has been aptly described as “the ultimate expression of the concept of an extreme road car that is equally at home on the track” and as well as being produced in limited numbers, here are some of the other details we found about the impressive have found Italian automobile.
10 designation
via: Ferrari
Over the years, Ferrari has tweaked and adopted various systems when naming its car models. In the past, she named cars after their place of manufacture, their headquarters or even a country, among other things. Examples include the 550 and 575 Maranello, named after the company’s headquarters, and the 458 Italia, which shares the name with Ferrari’s country of origin, Italy.
via: Ferrari
However, the Ferrari F12tdf was named in honor of the Tour de France (tdf) automobile race, which was dominated by the Ferrari 250 between 1956 and 1964.
9 designers
via: Ferrari
Design-wise, the F12tdf has a lot in common with the F12 Berlinetta. Notably, the F12 Berlinetta was designed by the Ferrari Styling Center under the efficient supervision of Flavio Manzoni, Ferrari’s senior vice president of design, while the team also worked with Italian car design company Pininfarina to execute the project.
via: Ferrari
Continuing the project, the design of the F12tdf – an upgrade of the F12 Berlinetta – was also handled by the Ferrari Styling Center, with Flavio Manzoni remaining at the helm of the fortunes.
8th powertrain
via: Ferrari
Ferrari didn’t have to do too much to power the F12tdf. The Italian car group simply took the powertrain from the F12 Berlinetta and installed it in the F12tdf. It’s actually a naturally aspirated 6.3-liter V12, but it’s been tuned to produce an increased power output of 769 hp at 8,500 rpm (almost 40 hp more than the F12 Berlinetta) and 520 lb- ft of torque at 6,750 rpm.
via: Curio
All that amazing juice is then sent to the rear wheels via a 7-speed F1 DCT dual-clutch gearbox.
7 power
via: flickr
As a track-oriented version of the F12 Berlinetta, the purpose of the F12tdf was well defined; and it’s said to deliver higher overall performance than the F12. Therefore, the amazing sports car has incredible acceleration from a standing start to 62 mph in 2.9 seconds, while it takes 7.9 seconds to go to 124 mph.
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That means it delivers speed, as the F12 Berlinetta could only do both in 3.1 seconds and 8.5 seconds respectively. In addition, the F12tdf has an amazing top speed that is said to be in excess of 211 mph.
6 Second fastest on the Fiorano test track
via: Ferrari
As expected, the F12tdf received enthusiastic accolades from its manufacturer at its launch, with the automotive world watching closely. Ferrari claimed the grand tourer was “unmatched” in terms of performance. The F12tdf was also described as “an extremely agile and powerful car that can also be driven by less experienced drivers”.
via: duPont
Nonetheless, the F12tdf really is a performer. It lapped Ferrari’s Fiorano test track in 1 minute and 21 seconds – that’s 2 seconds faster than the standard F12 Berlinetta and 488 GTB, but 1.3 seconds behind LaFerrari, the model with the fastest Fiorano time.
5 attitude
via: tumblr
The goal for the design of the F12tdf was clear from the start. The aim was precisely to create a stylish synergy between the sculptural surfaces of the F12 Berlinetta and a more vivid yet alluring rendering of the newly added aerodynamic features.
via: tumblr
This can be observed in the F12tdf’s design language, which shows an obvious evolution of the aerobridge as its design has been enhanced with the introduction of bare carbon fiber. Also the high technicality of the component design coupled with other exterior details presents a coherent aesthetic approach to the F12tdf.
4 Weight
via: wallpapers
A vehicle’s weight has a major impact on its performance. When developing a car, automotive companies are always looking for the right balance between weight, traction and other congruent parameters for higher performance.
via: Pinterest
The F12tdf has a really low dry weight of 3,120lb and curb weight of 3,351lb, which is about 243lb lighter than the standard F12. Notably, Ferrari achieved relatively lighter weight by incorporating carbon fiber into both the exterior and interior of the F12tdf.
3 Inner
via: flickr
“Sporty and spartan” is the apt description of the interior of the F12tdf. The cockpit is puristic and spartan paired with the uncompromising sportiness of the great grand tourer. Traditional leather has been abandoned in favor of Alcantara for the F12tdf’s cabin trim, while technical fabric has been used for the seats.
via: reddit
The driving position has a wrap-around effect, spiced up by the use of carbon fiber casings for the instrument and satellite pods. Also, patterned aluminum was used for the floor instead of mats to further save weight.
2 Increased aerodynamic efficiency
via: Ferrari
Several improvements have been made to the F12tdf over the standard F12 Berlinetta and an improvement in its aerodynamic efficiency is one of them. This is achieved through the F12tdf’s aggressive bodywork, which includes a redesigned rear diffuser and wheel arch louvers, larger vents that channel air down the side of the car, and a longer and taller rear spoiler.
via: duPont
The combination of all these changes added 30% more downforce to the F12tdf compared to the standard F12, leading Ferrari to claim that aerodynamic efficiency has almost doubled.
1 production volume
via: reddit
Most Ferrari models are never really mass-produced, and this is also true of several custom-built Ferrari F12 models. For reference, the Touring Superleggera Aero 3 is based on the F12 and only 15 units were made. The Touring Berlinetta Lusso, based on the F12berlinetta, also had a production run of just five units.
via: Ferrari
Still, the Ferrari F12tdf comes across as a massively produced sports car compared to several other Ferraris, even with its meager 799 production units.
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About the author
Olakunle Michael
(370 published articles)
Olakunle has contributed to multiple platforms as a writer over the years. Even as a child he was fascinated by the world of automobiles. So he finds contributing to HotCars very interesting – a surreal experience.
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