Ferrari 612 HGT-S (2006) CAR review

Hasn’t the 612 Scaglietti been around for a while?

Yes it has. It was launched in 2004, but Ferrari has just revealed a special HGT-S pack for it. It costs a steep £7420, but that’s fairly insignificant given that the standard car already costs £175,725. And when you appreciate what the extra money buys it starts to make more sense. Cosmetically, the changes are limited to 19-inch wheels at the front and yellow brake callipers, which stood out a treat against the deep blue of CAR Online's test car. Under the skin, you get sports exhausts with valves that open at 3000rpm to make the noise even better, a revised control system for the adaptive suspension and shorter gearshift times.

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The V12 already makes a pretty sensational sound in the standard car but more recently the two-seat 599 has set a new standard for aural excellence. This new exhaust for the 612 really redresses that balance. You get the full range of noises from the burble at idle through a purposeful gruffness in the lower rev range to an ever more high-pitched scream as you reach the 8000rpm redline. It’s helped by the gearbox. The HGT-S gets the F1A electro-hydraulic ’box with new software for a faster 150 millisecond shift time. It makes the semi-auto systems on most other cars look a little limp, frankly. Pull the right paddle and you get gearchanges that are nearly seamless. Back off the accelerator and you can make them silken smooth, too. On downshifts it even blips the throttle for you.