Ferrari F12berlinetta. The Civilised Lunatic

And then suddenly there’s a long straight and nothing coming the other way. Hammer time. Three tugs of the left-hand paddle instantly drops down the gears and that blistering feeling of velocity is instantly back. I’m past the remaining traffic instantly, and it’s completely clear ahead of me, which means I can really start to stretch the legs. Or rather, as much as one can stretch 730bhp on a public road. So to clarify, in 1.5-second bursts of full power. Those are epic. But once again, the throttle is so beautifully weighted that when the bends get tighter and turn into hairpins, I can push on without worrying about micro-tolerances in my right foot. It’s never jerky but always responsive. The front end response is instant but the back end stays utterly planted unless you’re brave enough to switch everything electronic off and utilise all that power. It’s such an accessible car that, like the 458, flatters the driver.

It serenades him (or her) as well. The noise from the exhausts is epic – from the outside you’ll hear a two tone duet, starting with a low tenor wail that rises and is joined by a shrieking, hard-edged soprano. On the inside, you’ll get a much more complex, multi-layered sound thanks to the intake sounds that are channeled through tubing into the cabin. Good as the stereo is, you’ll want to turn it off when the road clears.

My fears that the F12berlinetta would be fast but boring are unfounded. It is, obviously, ridiculously quick when it wants to be. But it’s also happy to cruise in comfort.

And when you bring the noise, it’s utterly exhilarating. It treads the perfect balance between feeling like a supercar and being usable every day. And I love it.

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