The Latest Ferrari Hypercar: F80
Every 10 years or so, Ferrari introduces a new model at the top of its very high-end lineup: a dream car that combines extreme looks with extreme technology to push automotive engineering forward. In 2024, the new top Ferrari celebrates the company’s 80th anniversary, and it’s called the F80. And the F80 is a high-performance hybrid – with 1,200 horsepower driving all four wheels.
Intended for Ferrari’s most discerning and most wealthy clients the F80 is an all-new hypercar that represents the pinnacle of cutting-edge, motorsport-derived technology – as well as a shape and package that will become enshrined in popular culture. This crazy hybrid is an important milestone in the history of Ferrari – and likely in the history of automotive engineering.
Ferrari F80 Hybrid System
The F80’s powertrain leverages the latest technology from both Ferrari’s Formula 1 and World Endurance Championship (WEC) cars, both of which use turbocharged internal combustion engines paired with electric motors using an 800-volt hybrid system. The F80’s engine and electric motor arrangement most closely resembles the setup of the 499P endurance race car which has two consecutive victories at the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans race.
It all starts with a three-liter 120-degree V6 engine that all by itself produces an astonishing 900 hp, thanks to the use of a number of advanced technologies like gasoline direct injection. But the highlight here are the twin turbochargers, which themselves incorporate an electric motor installed between the turbine and compressor – enabling the turbos to spin up instantaneously and to provide way more power when the driver requests. (Porsche uses similar technology in the less-expensive 911 GTS, introduced earlier this year).
In addition to the electric motors integrated into the turbochargers, the F80 also has an electric motor integrated into its eight-speed double-clutch transmission, and an electric front axle with two motors, which provides electric all-wheel drive to help aid traction during acceleration as well as stability in the corners. Both of these motors, and the electric turbos, also have the ability to regenerate an astonishing amount of energy under braking to help recharge the battery. The F80’s electric motors were developed and tested in-house, are manufactured by Ferrari, and are not shared with any other vehicle.
Altogether, the system produces a total output of 1,200 hp from an incredibly compact and lightweight package. Ferrari says that, despite having just six cylinders compared to the 12 cylinders of its prior hypercars, that the F80 still creates a highly emotional sound, and will rev to 9,200 rpm.
In addition to the 800-volt electrical system, which connects the high-voltage battery to the electric motors for the powertrain, there is a separate 48-volt electrical system to power the active suspension and the electric turbos, as well as a 12-volt system to power the electronic control units and other devices.
F80 Design and Aerodynamics
Like all modern hypercars, the F80 has been sculpted in the wind tunnel to provide a high top speed as well as generate high levels of downforce for fast cornering. It is unlike Ferrari hypercars of the past, which have featured more organic shapes; indeed, its flat sides and brutalist lines in some ways reference the F40 supercar of the 1980s.
There are also clear references to aerospace in the tense, extreme lines of the F80. The compact engine is set very low within the car, to allow the maximum amount of room for downforce-generating diffusers underneath the car. Up front, the nose incorporates an “S-duct” which channels air through the front bumper and an integrated wing before diverting it over the car’s hood to keep the front end of the car pinned to the ground; Ferrari says that 460 kg of downforce is developed at the front of the car.
Like modern race cars, the F80 incorporates a central “keel” which channels air underneath the car; as such, the driver has a unique seating position, with their feet up high, much like in Formula 1. “Barge boards” mounted within the under-body channels improve suction to the ground and clean up turbulent air coming off the front wheels. Active suspension ensures that the front and rear of the car are always perfectly aligned with the road so as not to upset the F80’s delicate aerodynamic balance.
At the rear, a combination of a giant rear diffuser and a movable rear wing generate 590 kg of downforce without increasing the amount of drag, contributing to the 217-mph top speed. Indeed, all of the under-body duct work creates an aerodynamic “seal” around the chassis, generating 285 kg of downforce from the diffuser alone. The wing has its own electric motors, which help it precisely modulate downforce and drag; it can swing through a huge range of angles.
Inside the Ferrari F80
While there is room inside for two occupants, the Ferrari F80 feels, for the driver, like a single-seater, and indeed Ferrari refers to it as a “1+1 configuration.” The driver’s seat is adjustable and positioned very close to the center line of the vehicle, facing a set of digital gauges and a trapezoidal control panel with touch controls.
The passenger seat actually tucks in behind the driver’s seat, and is fixed to the structure of the F80, and is upholstered in a different color, disappearing visually into the cabin. The reason for this curious positioning is to minimize the width of the passenger compartment to make as much room as possible for those aerodynamic ducts. In this respect, the F80 closely mimics the 499P race car.
Don’t expect a lot of luxury inside the F80. Despite its multi-million dollar asking price, there’s no high-end sound system, no power seats, no sunroof, and none of the trappings you’d usually expect of a luxury car. Instead, you get a stripped-out cabin that’s full of carbon fiber, a digital gauge cluster, a steering wheel packed with controls, and a small digital display so that your passenger can quantify the terror they are feeling as you roar around a racetrack.
Conclusion: Hypercars go Hybrid
The F80 isn’t the only recently-announced hypercar that is following the hybridization path. The McLaren W1, announced a couple of weeks before, is also a powerful hybrid, with over 1,200 horsepower and rear-wheel drive. The new Bugatti Tourbillon has a 16-cylinder engine bolstered by multiple electric motors. There’s also no shortage of extreme all-electric hypercars, from the Pininfarina Battista to the Rimac Nevera and the Lotus Evija.
Let’s not forget, too, that the previous “holy trinity” of hypercars – the Porsche 918 Spyder, Ferrari LaFerrari, and McLaren P1, all featured hybrid power a decade ago. Electrification has always been, and continues to be, the cutting edge of vehicle performance.
Of course, for almost all of us reading this, an extreme performance hybrid like the $4 million Ferrari F80 will forever remain just a dream, a car to put on our bedroom walls. But cars like the F80 are also the cars whose innovations introduce features we’ll see in the normal cars we drive – years and decades later.
For 799 well-heeled buyers, the F80 will likely be the greatest car in their collection. For the rest of us, it will be fascinating to see which of the F80’s features will end up on the cars that we ourselves park in our own garages.
