The Ferrari FF

If you want a ferociously fast yet luxuriously comfortable all-terrain Gran Turismo in which to ferry your family and their skis from London to St. Moritz and back in style, then the Ferrari FF is the car for you. With 651bhp on tap from the 6.3-litre V12, a cabin genuinely spacious enough for four adults to sit in comfort and a dizzyingly complicated four-wheel-drive system, the FF boasts versatility that’s nothing short of freakish.

Don’t let the practicality and refinement fool you into thinking this is a Ferrari in name only – pin that throttle to its stop on a flowing country road, let the sonic howl flood into your ears and the wall of torque punch you in the lower back, and try to process the sheer pace at which the scenery ahead surges towards you, and we promise any doubts will be instantly dispelled.

This Ferrari FF

When it comes to modern Ferraris, why are interiors generally so overlooked compared to exteriors when it comes to specification? By no means should a Ferrari look underwhelming from the outside. But, save for the matter of seconds you spend approaching or leaving your car, you spend most of the time inside it. And more so in a Gran Turismo such as the FF – a machine designed to gobble up weeklong cross-continental journeys with ease.

This is why we must tip our hats and commend the Italian gentleman who specified this particular Ferrari FF from new in 2011. To say he went to town on the configurator would be an understatement, especially in the cabin. Complementing the classic Nero Daytona bodywork is an interior trimmed predominantly in the ‘Extracampionaro’ (that’s non-standard in English) shade of Cuoio Toscano.

The ‘Semi-Anilina’ leather (the result of a dying process which retains the coarser natural texture of the hide) is elegantly diamond quilted on the front and rear seat inserts and the headlining, and contrasted with a darker shade of Chocolate leather on the steering wheel and upper dashboard.

That only the steering wheel is crafted from carbon-fibre and not the entire driving zone is a tasteful and restrained nod to Ferrari’s sporting intentions. The LED driving lights which flash across the top are also rather useful in a car which accelerates from 0–60mph in 3.7sec and revs to an ungodly 8,000rpm. The proverbial cherries on the cake are the brown seatbelts and stitching throughout and the yellow central rev counter display.

We know it’s a bit of a cliché, but this Ferrari’s cabin really is a wonderful place to sit, exuding the sumptuous luxury more reminiscent of a Bentley or a Rolls-Royce. Even a brief moment behind the wheel, with your back snugly wriggled against the supple leather and your nostrils filled with the heady scent of real hide, leaves you yearning to drop everything and drive directly to a far-flung destination.

Of course, this isn’t to say the external specification on this FF is anything less than exquisite. The elegant black bodywork is allowed to ‘sing’ by the optional 20-inch wheels painted dark grey, while the optional chrome-tipped Sports exhaust pipes, yellow brake calipers and Scuderia Ferrari wing shields add just the right amount of pizzazz.

This Ferrari FF was completed in September of 2011 and, the following month, issued with its Certificate of Conformity and delivered to its first owner: Forza S.p.A., the official Ferrari concessionaire in Turin.

Forza kept this FF for two years, until it was purchased by a UK-based collector in June of 2013. He subsequently had the car imported to – and registered in – England. In 2015, the Maranello Concessionaires Archive confirmed the build date and chassis, engine, gearbox and assembly numbers to be correct.

Since then, this Ferrari’s owner exercised restraint, driving the car only occasionally. In April of this year, with the mileage noted as just 6,250 miles, it was sent to the official Ferrari service centre H.R. Owen in London for a full service. Totaling over £5,000, the works included the replacement of the engine oil, brake fluid, battery and oil, pollen and air filters. An MOT inspection was also carried out.

A twelve-cylinder, four-seater Ferrari Gran Turismo has always been a car for the discerning collector, and the FF is a magnificent representation of the breed. Where this immaculate, low-mileage example really differentiates itself from other modern-era Ferraris is by its exquisitely judged specification. You really need to see this FF in the metal and sit in that opulent interior to properly appreciate it. And that’s before you’ve even fired the soul-stirring V12 and sampled the model’s freakish breadth of ability first-hand.

Price: £120,000 (GBP)