On this episode of Ignition
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MotorTranscript
00:00 Ladies and gentlemen, this is the general announcement for China Airlines flight CI005 and Delta 7734.
00:09 So this week on Ignition, we're going to start by traveling about 24 hours to get maybe 8 hours with a car.
00:15 Why? Well, because when Ferrari calls and says, "Would you like to come to Fiorano and drive the F12 Berlinetta, the most powerful production Ferrari ever?"
00:24 You don't say no.
00:25 [Engine noise]
00:32 Because our window of time with the F12 is very small, this episode is going to be different.
00:37 We'll have little time for the high-quality camera setups and beauty shots you're used to.
00:42 Instead, we're just going to record everything.
00:45 The preparation, the dinners, the technical briefing, arriving at the track, and so on, to give you an honest and upfront documentary of our trip.
00:53 The day before, we start with a technical briefing, hosted by the engineers that built the car.
01:00 Following that is some delicious food and sleep. Much needed sleep.
01:07 [Music]
01:11 So it's about 8.30 in the morning in Maranello, which means it's, what, 11.30 at night on the west coast.
01:18 No time for jet lag, though, because we're about to take off for Fiorano.
01:21 You can sense the eagerness in the group. Maranello, after all, is Disneyland for car enthusiasts.
01:29 Everything wears the proud prancing horse logo.
01:32 Entering Fiorano with exclusive access is the stuff of childhood dreams.
01:37 [Music]
01:41 One of the most interesting things about the F12 is its design.
01:44 In particular, you have this line that starts here in the hood, cuts through the fender,
01:49 comes over here through the door, and actually terminates on the quarter panel.
01:54 The most controversial bit of it, of course, is this right here.
01:58 The air actually travels underneath it and creates downforce.
02:01 This functions as a spoiler. Ferrari calls it the aero bridge.
02:04 And with it, and a couple other tricks, this car actually generates over 270 pounds of downforce at 125 miles an hour.
02:14 Then you have these guys right here.
02:16 At the right temperature and at the right speed, they actually flip open, allowing air to come in and cool the brakes.
02:22 It's a very cool piece of technology.
02:24 And then, of course, there's the stylized rear bumper, and I absolutely love it.
02:32 The F1 inspiration all the way down to this fog light here.
02:36 It's functional, though. These are actually going to draw air through it as the car is accelerating at a high speed.
02:41 Very cool piece of aerodynamic work here.
02:44 I'd say it's the perfect marriage of design and aerodynamics.
02:48 I'll give you a fair warning.
03:08 This is going to be a very positive review.
03:13 [engine revving]
03:16 [laughing]
03:25 It's tough because you want to concentrate. You want to be fast.
03:31 You have such a short window of time with the car.
03:34 [engine revving]
03:38 [engine revving]
03:41 [tires screeching]
03:47 That's fifth gear, wide open throttle.
04:02 [engine revving]
04:06 What a car.
04:08 [engine revving]
04:11 This is a car with nearly 750 horsepower,
04:15 and it's not intimidating to go wide open throttle in fourth gear entering fifth gear.
04:19 I mean, that's a very special thing to accomplish.
04:32 So we just finished our track session at Fiorano, and what an incredible way to introduce an incredible car.
04:37 Now we're going to take one and drive it on the same roads that Ferrari used to develop the car.
04:42 So now we've had some time to come back down from the high of driving this on Fiorano
04:55 and trip it on some beautiful Italian country roads.
04:58 And well, let's start from the beginning.
05:00 What is the F12 Berlinetta? Well, it's the replacement for the 599.
05:03 It's Ferrari's flagship front-engine V12 rear-wheel-drive coupe.
05:08 And over the 599, it's pretty impressive.
05:11 It's actually smaller, shorter in height, shorter in wheelbase and length,
05:15 and a bit narrower and, most importantly, lighter than the 599.
05:20 And what's interesting is Ferrari has tried really hard, while shortening the exterior dimensions,
05:25 to maintain the same interior.
05:27 This is a Ferrari that customers tend to drive for longer distances than you're given 458.
05:33 The throttle response is so sharp and so accurate that it's actually pretty fun to drive, even at slow speeds.
05:40 I also need to mention the steering, because it takes some getting used to.
05:49 You only have about two turns lock to lock, and the movement is so precise,
05:54 you can drive this car literally with your fingertips.
05:57 It gives such perfect feedback to your hands that it makes it so easy to drive around town or fast on a racetrack.
06:06 This is a very technologically advanced car,
06:11 but all those computer systems aren't screaming in your face the whole time when you drive it.
06:16 They've managed to hide it particularly well underneath the stunning exterior and the way this thing drives.
06:24 [engine revving]
06:26 And then there's the sound it makes when you roll on.
06:29 [engine revving]
06:31 It's a terrific intake growl, and then just this snarl through the exhaust pipes.
06:39 It is pure music to the ears.
06:43 [engine revving]
06:45 [laughing]
06:46 And you get a burble and crackle and deacceleration.
06:51 And ask for a downshift, and it's just instantaneous.
06:55 [engine revving]
06:59 Working with a car like the F12 Berlinetta is very difficult,
07:02 because it's supposed to be a comfortable, grand tourer car that you can drive for long distances,
07:07 but then being a Ferrari, you also expect it to have extreme performance.
07:12 And somehow, Ferraris manage to do that.
07:15 They've managed to make a car that's comfortable on the streets, easy to drive, easy to place on the road,
07:21 and then when you take it to a racetrack, it's utterly mind-blowing.
07:25 Everything is in absolute harmony with everything else.
07:29 [engine revving]
07:32 And you've got to wonder how they're going to outdo themselves.
07:39 Sure enough, there's going to be more powerful versions of this car coming along, but how?
07:44 [laughing]
07:46 [engine revving]
07:50 While our time with the F12 can only be described as criminally short, it was so worth it.
08:01 It was worth every second of the flight to Maranello.
08:04 It was worth every second of the flight home, and the time we spent in endless security lines.
08:09 The F12 is simply an incredible supercar.
08:13 But the thing is, calling it the most powerful production Ferrari ever almost does it a disservice.
08:19 It may have great gobs of power, but it's so much more than that.
08:23 It's the rolling, beautiful-sounding result of Ferrari's aerodynamic and technological advancements,
08:29 and yet it never seems like the computers are doing all the work.
08:33 It still feels organic and driver-focused.
08:36 The F12 is immediately charming, monstrously fast, and easy to drive.
08:42 It leaves you desiring so much more of it.
08:45 [engine revving]
08:49 [tires screeching]
08:51 [music]
08:55 [engine revving]
08:59 [tires screeching]
09:02 [engine revving]
09:05 [tires screeching]
09:08 [engine revving]
09:11 [tires screeching]
09:14 [engine revving]
09:17 [tires screeching]
09:20 [engine revving]
09:23 [music]