Ferrari F8 Tributo order books already closed
With everything else going on, well, everywhere, it’s easy to forget about that sensational little number known as the Ferrari F8 Tributo. The coupe isn’t even three years old, the Spider barely two, and word has come down they won’t be in production for much more than another year. Automotive News Europe reported last month that Ferrari stopped taking orders for the duo. The folks in Modena didn’t offer any reason, but Ferrari Australasia told Australian outlet Drive that the F8 is off the menu because of “the volume of orders received,” and that “currently there are no plans to recommence orders for either model.”
The automaker’s mid-engined supercar line is without a non-hybrid V8 for the first time in nearly 50 years when the 308 GTB appeared in 1975. The only place to get an unelectrified V8 in Maranello is the Roma or the Portofino M, placed down in front. The powertrain flow chart for mid-engined cars now forks up to the SF90 Stradale PHEV and down to the 296 GTB PHEV. Both outdo the 711-horsepower 3.9-liter twin-turbo V8 in the F8 for output, the SF90’s 4.0-liter V8 and three electric motors good for 986 hp, the 296 GTB’s 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 and single electric motor spinning out 819 hp.
We could consider the 296 GTB the F8’s successor, but Ferrari hasn’t said anything about such positioning.
With Ferrari CEO CEO Benedetto Vigna telling analysts his firm is working through “the strongest ever order book in its history,” with enough demand to keep lines busy “well into 2023,” it’s unlikely the F8 will get another chance at life. It’s also unlikely the car will get the same kind of hardcore variant that has elevated its predecessors going back to the 360 Challenge Stradale.
Although the Australasia spokesperson told Drive “the brand will re-evaluate [F8 production] again at a later date,” we don’t see much coming of it. The Purosangue is due shortly, the new SUV a lock to become Ferrari’s most popular vehicle, perhaps pushing the overall order backlog into 2024.
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