Ferrari has been spotted testing a camouflaged Roma sporting a V-12 engine.
The car looks like a standard Roma, but the hood is longer, the front fascia features larger air intakes, and the wheel arches have been modified to house a wider track. The car’s sound in the video from YouTube channel Car Spy Media also points to a V-12 being tested.
The modifications suggest the car isn’t simply a new Roma variant to sit above the current V-8 model but rather a test mule for a successor to the 812 Superfast, Ferrari’s current front-engined V-12 grand tourer. A test mule is where a new vehicle’s underpinnings are tested beneath a makeshift body, in this case a modified Roma body.
The 812 arrived on the scene in 2017 and traces its roots to the F12 Berlinetta that debuted all the way back in 2012. If this test mule is for an 812 successor, prototypes with the final body should start testing in 2023 and the car will likely make its world debut in 2024 or early 2025.
The 812 successor will likely ride on Ferrari’s newest platform for front-midship cars. The platform, which was first announced in 2018, supports multiple wheelbase lengths, engine types, and seating configurations. It can also be equipped with all-wheel drive and hybrid technology.
While a V-12 is almost certain for the 812 successor, what isn’t certain is whether there will be some form of electrification.
The engine destined for the 812 successor is likely the newly developed 6.5-liter V-12 that debuted last year in the Purosangue. The engine delivers 715 hp in the SUV but will likely offer more in the 812 successor. The engine in the 812 Superfast, also a 6.5-liter V-12, was rated at 789 hp. It was dialed up to 819 hp for the hardcore 812 Competizione variant.
