612 Scaglietti

Make
Ferrari
Segment
Coupe

There's a famous expression: "You don't know what you got till it's gone." This line has been used in various song lyrics for decades, but we think we've finally figured out the true meaning of the phrase; it's referring to manual transmission Ferrari models. We are joking, of course, but it is uncanny how applicable this phrase is when referring to Ferrari models with the extinct, gated manual transmission. Ferrari made the conscious decision to stop offering manuals, and the market clearly didn't know what it had until it was gone.

We've stated our belief that manual Ferrari models like the F430 would be future collectibles. By the end of the F430's production, the take-rate for the manual was incredibly small. At the time, buyers probably thought to themselves, "Why should I buy the slower, clunkier option?" As it turns out, this was a mistake for those looking for an investment-worthy Ferrari, as an F430 with a manual is now much more sought after. The F430 is a good example of the market missing the manual transmission, but we have just stumbled upon an even better example: a Ferrari 612 Scaglietti (a car we forgot even offered a manual) for sale with the gated shifter.

The 612 Scaglietti is a member of Ferrari's 2+2 Gran Tourer line. It replaced the seldom talked about 456 M, and was eventually replaced by the FF. The 612 was built from 2004 to 2011 and 3,025 cars were produced in total with only 199 equipped with a manual transmission. Like other 2+2 Ferrari models, the 612 is not well remembered for many reasons. It wasn't the last V12 Ferrari with a manual. That honor goes to the 599. It was, however, the last four-seater Ferrari to have a third pedal, because the FF was only sold with a dual-clutch automatic. The 612 was competitive when it first came out, but the car was extremely outdated by the time it went out of production in 2011.

The 612 also suffers from being one of the least pretty Ferrari models in history. It isn't an ugly car, but when your family tree is full of supermodels, it's easy to stand out for the wrong reasons. This may be why used 612 models can be picked up for less than $100,000; not a bad price for a 532 horsepower V12 GT car with a Ferrari badge. Unfortunately, most 612 models came equipped with Ferrari's F1 six-speed semi-automatic transmission. Not only was this system clunky, it was recalled for an overheating issue. Of course, the other option is to track down a 612 with the wonderful six-speed gated manual transmission, but this isn't exactly a cheap option.

Of the 199 manual cars that are rumored to exist, we only managed to find one currently for sale in the US. We've seen manual 612 models for sale in the past, and we can confirm the insane prices. This 2005 model is currently being sold by a dealership called Miller Motorcars in Connecticut for a whopping $325,000. This is more than $200,000 over the cheapest 612 models from the same year with identical mileage. You read that correctly, a Ferrari 612 with a manual is worth roughly $200,000 more than an identical model with the F1 transmission. How many former 612 owners are now wishing they had checked the box for the manual?

The 612 will never be our favorite Ferrari and there is no way we could recommend anyone spend over $300,000 for a manual one. It seems we have missed out on buying one of these cars when no one knew the manual cars were going to be special. We didn't know what we had till it was gone.