Ferrari’s monster F12 TdF squeezes 769HP from super-coupe

If your idea of heaven is a super-limited-edition of a car already out of reach for most, then the Ferrari F12 TdF will make you squeal. Actually, the car’s specs alone are probably capable of squeezing a giddy reaction from all but the most restrained of drivers, since Ferraritook the already speedy F12 Berlinetta and then ran it back through the engineering gauntlet.

That added up to a 39 horsepower bump – to a heady 769 HP – and an 11 lb-ft. torque bump – to 520 – from the 6.3-liter V12. Ferrari says it should be super-usable power, too, since you get 80-percent of the torque from just 2,500 rpm.

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Of course, that doesn’t mean the F12 TdF – short for Tour de France, an endurance road race that Ferrari was near-unstoppable in back in the 50s and 60s – has been capped. In fact, it’ll still rev all the way up to a howling 8,500 rpm.

It’s paired with a tweaked version of Ferrari’s F1 DCT transmission, which boasts 6-percent shorter gear ratios, 30-percent faster upshifts, and 40-percent faster downshifts.

Together, they’re good for a 0-62 mph run in 2.9 seconds, while 124 mph arrives in just 7.9 seconds. Ferrari isn’t giving a specific top speed, saying only that the F12 TdF will manage “in excess” of 211 mph.

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Bringing that to a halt are the Italian marque’s single-piece brake calipers, which Ferrari says can take the F12 TdF from 62 mph to a stop in 30.5m, or from 124 mph in 121m.

Most controversial, mind, are likely to be the looks. Ferrari has given the F12 Berlinetta an aero-minded revamp, almost doubling the special edition’s slipperiness through the air while also boosting downforce. Weighs is down around 240 pounds overall.

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Think plenty of carbon fiber, inside and out, and a trimming away of anything that could add unwanted heft for this “racer for the road”. In short, don’t expect a glove compartment, trim for the single-piece carbon fiber doors, or floor mats.

If your wallet is tingling with an incipient purchase, be fast (and well-heeled): Ferrari will only make 799 of the F12 TdF. Pricing is yet to be confirmed.

(slashgear.com)