Ferrari has unveiled the 12Cilindri Manuale as the Italian marque’s first car with a manual gearbox in 14 years – the California roadster was the last one. Only 1,499 units of the 12Cilindri Manuale will be built, each retailing for €590,000 (Rs 6.42 crore).
Ferrari 12Cilindri Manuale engine and gearbox
Not a manual in the conventional sense
The 12Cilindri Manuale continues to be powered by the same 6.5-litre naturally aspirated V12 that chucks out 830hp and 678Nm and can rev all the way up to a howling 9,500rpm. While the standard 12Cilindri funnels that grunt to the rear wheels via an 8-speed dual-clutch automatic, the Manuale uses a ‘Manuale By-Wire' control system.
That means the 12Cilindri Manuale still gets the 8-speed DCT, but it can behave like a 6-speed manual, complete with a clutch pedal and gated shifter. It's a similar concept to the Koenigsegg CC850’s Engage Shift System, wherein there's no clutch or flywheel behind the engine – just a series of sensors to interpret shifter inputs from the driver and pass them on to the DCT, and thereby no physical linkages like a conventional manual gearbox.
Long story short, the 12Cilindri Manuale can be clutch-dumped like a manual, heel-and-toed like a manual, and even stalled like a manual. However, should the driver find themselves in stop-go traffic and don't feel like rowing through cogs, they can slot the transmission into automatic mode and let the DCT handle gear shifts. One could say it's the best of both worlds.
0-100kph comes up in a claimed 2.9 seconds, which is exactly the same as that of the pure-DCT 12Cilindri. This is because Ferrari measures the 0-100kph time with launch control enabled, which is possibly only in fully automatic mode. Similarly, the two extra gears in the DCT are what allow the 12Cilindri Manuale to retain its rated 340kph top speed – it would be lower in manual mode as it has six speeds only.
Ferrari 12Cilindri Manuale exterior and interior design
Features subtle design revisions and a redesigned centre console for the interior
At first instance, one could assume that the Manuale looks like another 12Cilindri. But look closer, and you’ll see that Ferrari has made subtle changes to give it distinction from standard Cilindri’s. For starters, you get Manuale badges on the front fenders. The laser-etched Ferrari logos on the sides get a silver finish, while the front splitter and rear winglets feature a pinstripe finish that pays homage to the 365 GTB4. A noticeable change is an exclusive pair of forged 5-spoke alloy wheels, which are available in four finish options.
For the most part, the Manuale retains the 12Cilindri’s design details. This includes the headlights integrated in a blacked-out portion of the long bonnet, contrasting carbon fibre panels, delta-wing roof motif, quad exhausts, active winglets, and an aggressive diffuser. There’s an optional livery on offer that pays homage to the six-speed gearbox available in multiple colour options.
The biggest change to the interior of the 12Cilindir Manuale comes in the form of a revised centre console. It has been redesigned to accommodate the manual gear lever that's rounded and finished in aluminium, a nod to gated manual gear levers from yesteryear Ferrrari’s. The lever can either be finished in silver or in black. You can either opt for comfort or racing seats that feature a trim with six vertical grooves reminding you that you're in the Manuale 12Cilindri. The dashboard containing a triple screen setup from the standard 12Cilindri is retained.
Uday Singh
Dipan Sur
Dhruv Dhaka
Viraaj Bhatnagar
