Roma

Make
Ferrari
Segment
Coupe

It's hard to imagine that someone could call an Italian sports car with 612 horsepower, 561 lb-ft of torque, and a 3.4-second 0-62 mph time entry-level. But in the world of Ferrari, the Roma is just that. The two-door, 2+2 seat coupe is a front-engined, rear-wheel-drive GT car that acts as a junior model to the 812 Superfast and a hardtop version of the Portofino convertible.

Power comes from a 3.9-liter twin-turbo V8, but what if Ferrari decided to shoehorn a V12 in its place? Some might say this is impossible, as Ferrari would never do that, but a car spotter by the name of Derek Cornelissen has managed to snap photos of what appears to be exactly that. The heavily camo-clad Ferrari test mule was spotted in Maranello recently, but the question is still why? Why is Ferrari testing a Roma with a V12 engine? Is a V12 Roma coming to replace the 812 Superfast which, for the record, is no longer on sale?

The short answer is no. Ferrari isn't going to make the entry-level Roma a two-engine car. However, the Roma is an ideal testbed for a new V12 GT for a number of reasons. We'll get to those in a moment. First, the prototype. It may be clad in deceptive camo, but there are some noticeable differences. While the front end is definitely that of the Roma, it would appear the nose is much longer than that of the standard car. The spy shots also show massive (and ugly) test wheels that are much bigger than standard, housing larger brakes, while the rear haunches appear to have been widened to accommodate a wider rear track. It's clear this is no ordinary Roma.

The reason why we're seeing a Roma with a V12 is simple. The Roma is built on the latest Ferrari architecture, a scalable FR-orientation platform capable of rear-wheel drive, all-wheel drive, variable wheelbases, and multiple engine configurations including both V8s and V12s. It's also capable of hybridization.

This much was confirmed back in 2020 by Ferrari's Chief Technical Officer Michael Leiters. Because this platform is modular, it means it will almost certainly be the foundation of the successor to the 812 Superfast, whenever it arrives. Why use a Roma instead of an 812 as the base for a test mule, you might ask? Well, simply put, the 812 is based on an old architecture and the Roma is the next step forward. Ferrari has no other front-engine platform to test with, and short of using a Puronsangue as a test mule, this is it.

There's no word yet on when this V12 GT might be revealed, but we wouldn't be surprised to see it as soon as next year. Rumors abound that it may be turbocharged in an effort to keep the V12 alive, although whether this carries any thread of truth remains to be seen.