Ferrari is, for the first time in 14 years (since the six-speed manual version of the California went out of production), reintroducing a manual gearbox to its lineup. Well, sort of.
Sort of?
It's complicated. And this manual gearbox option is very definitely not an entry-level model, as it's only available on the front-engined 12Cilindri model, with its - you've guessed it - V12 engine.
A V12 with a manual? We're intrigued…
Again, it's a bit more complicated than that. This is not a traditional manual gearbox; rather, it's a sort of manualised-automatic (as opposed to the old automated manual - remember them?) that brings back a third pedal and a classic Ferrari 'open gate' gearchange, but which still gives you the ability to drive the car in fully automatic mode.
Huh?
Huh indeed. Here's how it works. The 12Cilindri keeps its standard-fit eight-speed automatic dual-clutch gearbox, and the car is still, technically speaking, an automatic. However, look into the cockpit, and you will indeed see a third pedal and a manual shifter with what appears to be the gorgeous, old-school six-slot-plus-reverse open-gate mechanism.
These two items - clutch and shifter - aren't directly connected to the transmission, which remains housed in its rear-mounted 'transaxle' position at the rear of the car. They are both electronically linked, though - clutch-by-wire if you like - and they do, in fact, work. The clutch pedal, when you use it, does indeed operate the twin-clutch packs in the physical gearbox, so you can choose to let the clutch out gently for a nice steady getaway, or you can dump it violently as when you're trying a 0-100km/h run, and the mechanical bits will react accordingly. You can even dip and re-engage the clutch sharply to help kick the rear of the 12Cilindri out into a power slide. Because there's no actual mechanical link, the clutch pedal gets its own self-contained mechanical action to give the feel of a proper mechanical clutch. Think of it like a really well-engineered quartz analogue watch - the feel of a mechanical device, but with electronic innards.
What about the gear stick?
Yup, that works too, although you can only pick from the bottom six ratios of the eight-speed gearbox, with seventh and eighth reserved for high-speed cruising or maximum speed runs, and they're only accessible in automatic mode. To put the car into manual mode, you only have to be driving at less than 100km/h, and then just dip the clutch and pick a gear. You can even stall the engine with a clumsy getaway, but Ferrari says that there are safeguards to stop you accidentally shifting into first when you meant fifth, or similarly disastrous gear-picking scenarios. You can heel-and-toe too, to make yourself feel like a proper sixties Le Mans hero. The shift pattern on top of the gear knob is backlit in either white or orange, depending on whether you're in manual or automatic mode. When you are in manual, the engine will rev all the way to its sonorous 9,500rpm redline without changing up until you tell it to. The whole manual setup weighs only 3.5kg more than the standard push-buttons and paddles.
When can I have one?
When you've won the lottery, because this is not going to be a cheap car. A 12Cilindri would be, at any rate, pretty much a €1 million car once you factor in Irish VAT and VRT, and the manual version is reckoned to be half as much again and will only be made in an exclusive dedicated 'Tailor Made' specification. Ferrari says that only 1,499 manual transmissions will be built, in honour of the 1,499cc displacement of the original 1947 Ferrari V12 engine, which, of course, had a manual gearbox.
Does this mean the manual is being revived?
Maybe? Ferrari is almost certain to offer this as a limited-edition option on other models if it's successful in the 12Cilindri. As for our electric car future, the likes of Hyundai and Porsche already offer simulated automatic transmissions with manual control, and Toyota is known to be working on a manual shift system for future sporty electric models, so yes - there's hope.