812 SF or F8 Spider

812 SF or F8 Spider

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Discussion

sone

Original Poster:

4,596 posts

245 months

Friday 11th March 2022
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Which is the preferred car? I have the f8 spider but have been offered a couple of 812's at little or no cost to swap.
I note the 812 has took a spanking residual wise and bounced back recently but the f8 is for the moment hanging in there. So apart from cost which is the involving and fun to drive. Never owned a v12 Ferrari but plenty of v8's I'm wondering if the 812 is a bit too grown up and maybe less playful ? I have owned a few v12 Lambo's (Aventadors) and loved them apart from horrendous fuel consumption(-:

MDL111

7,171 posts

184 months

Friday 11th March 2022
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I have only briefly driven an 812 on track right after they were launched, so quite a while ago. It felt very fast, but quite heavy to me. I tend to view [modern] front engined V12 cars more as daily drivers than their V8 counterparts. They sound a lot better, but are quite big and relatively heavy, so to me more Autobahn than mountain road. They do feel more special than the V8 cars though and Ferrari V12s are imo the nicest engines ever built.
In a normal market environment the (again modern) V12s tended to loose more than the contemporary V8 cars I think, to a degree driven by the much higher entry price. I think it went V8, 2-seater V12, 4-seater V12 taking the crown in terms of the level of pain experienced.
It is all relative though, to me my FF felt sharper than the Aston V12 Vantage S I drove it back to back with over a short mountain road

Taffy66

5,964 posts

109 months

Friday 11th March 2022
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The 812 is completely different to the F8 in all aspects. They only share the Ferrari badge. They are equally fast in a straight line although the F8's Turbo V8 delivers it completely different to the 812's NA V12. The F8 is an extremely easy car to drive fast and one I'd let my son drive but no way I'd let him drive my 812.
The 812 has a very long bonnet which gives the wrong impression of being longer than it actually is despite being about the same size as the F8. The F8's main weakness is the sound it makes which ironically is one of the 812's strong points.
In terms of residuals the 812SF has risen in value considerably in the last 9 months to the tune of about £15-20k. Where they go in the next year or so is anyone's guess with all that's going on right now. Same goes for the F8 although I see these depreciating further in contrast to the 812 which bottomed out 12 months ago and rising.
The F8 Spider is a stunning car, however unless you crave open top motoring there is no way I'd switch my 812 for one. The 812GTS is the perfect version but sadly at a price level beyond my paygrade.

blueSL

633 posts

233 months

Friday 11th March 2022
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The 812 certainly looks huge in the showroom but the 812 GTS is actually only 81mm longer than an F8. It’s fractionally narrower than the F8 and a few cm taller. The F8 noise is sadly a bit of a let-down.

blueSL

633 posts

233 months

Friday 11th March 2022
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Take a look at the Carfection video on YouTube on the 812 GTS. Henry Catchpole likes it very much.

Edited by blueSL on Friday 11th March 16:58

Taffy66

5,964 posts

109 months

Friday 11th March 2022
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The 812SF is only 46mm longer than the F8 and actually 8mm narrower. The long bonnet gives the illusion of being a bigger car which takes some time to get used to.

garystoybox

810 posts

124 months

Friday 11th March 2022
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I’ve never once regretted trading in my 488 Spider for a 812 (and I absolutely loved the 488).
Nothing matches the event of opening up the V12. The whole car feels a step up from the mid engined variants and for me it’s an out and out supercar. The only slightly disappointed owner experience seems to be from people who think it should be a better GT rather than the raving lunatic it is. Although it can tootle about no problem, it just eggs you on more and more until you realise you’re getting a bit carried away.
Taffy is bang on with the fact that you just seem to want to give the car more respect than the rear-mid engined cars, even though it’s traction is spot on, it just feels a bit intimidating in a way the 458/488/F8 never are.
Hopefully never selling mine……

sone

Original Poster:

4,596 posts

245 months

Friday 11th March 2022
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Thanks people I’m being swayed in a v12 direction!

Taffy66

5,964 posts

109 months

Friday 11th March 2022
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I agree with Gary in that I don't understand some who think the 812 should be softer and more GT cruiser. If I wanted a softer GT V12 I'd have gone for an Aston Superleggara. The 812 is the last of a long legacy of V12 front engined Supercars which I believe will be looked on very favourably in the future as a true Ferrari classic.
I'll keep mine for as long as possible as I can't think of another car which could replace it.

lambo666

464 posts

125 months

Saturday 12th March 2022
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Totally agree with what the other two posters above have pointed out.
Someone on here has a very nice F8 spyder in blue corsa on here, I wanted to spec one new like his, but after the test drive of the demo coupe, I had a long think, and made the conclusion the only current modern ferrari I had any interest in, was a 812 / 812 gts.
I hope to own one at some point, hopefully a gts and will be a long term keeper.
All about the noise / emotion for me, mid engine wise, that ended with the 458 spyder / speciale aperta.
Decided a 600lt spyder / 675 lt spyder fitted that role better.
The F8 in spyder form does look good, but that's it - the 812 has so much more to it, and for me the best na engine to ever be put in a road car. Some of the colours and specs on offer are an aquired taste though.
If you still have a huracan perf spyder, I am sure an F8 spyder wont be missed...




sone

Original Poster:

4,596 posts

245 months

Saturday 12th March 2022
quotequote all
I sold my perf some time ago exchanging it for an Aventador Sv, which has now gone replaced by the F8. I loved the Sv and miss it very much, a car that was oozing character. I think that is what makes me hanker for another v12. I’m hoping the sf can give back some of that character back.
My problem is that I drive my cars and so I have to move them on before they’re worth nowt. If I buy an 812 it will be a keeper and mileage will then become irrelevant.
I would add the Ferrari warranty comes as a great comfort which ran out on the sv, part of the reason for moving it on!

DeejRC

6,470 posts

89 months

Saturday 12th March 2022
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V12 is the answer to pretty much most questions on cars smile

MDL111

7,171 posts

184 months

Saturday 12th March 2022
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sone said:
I sold my perf some time ago exchanging it for an Aventador Sv, which has now gone replaced by the F8. I loved the Sv and miss it very much, a car that was oozing character. I think that is what makes me hanker for another v12. I’m hoping the sf can give back some of that character back.
My problem is that I drive my cars and so I have to move them on before they’re worth nowt. If I buy an 812 it will be a keeper and mileage will then become irrelevant.
I would add the Ferrari warranty comes as a great comfort which ran out on the sv, part of the reason for moving it on!
I wouldn’t see the warranty as that much of a benefit as they are reliable and the warranty does not cover all that much after a few years (basically the drivetrain plus a little more from memory). I gave it up 2 years ago after sinking a lot into it - cheaper to self warranty IMO. My car is now at close to 90k km total
As a weekend car I would personally get the SV if I had the choice - never driven one, but that must be a proper event to drive every time

robm3

4,930 posts

234 months

Wednesday 6th April 2022
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You really need to drive the 812 to compare.

I preferred the F8 in that comparison, more of a scalpel to the 812's blunt hammer.

Engineering wise the SF90 left them both for dead but managed to look ugly from the three quarter view in the process.

The Portofino I ordered was the runt of the litter dynamically but again, only in comparison to the three mentioned above.




ANOpax

922 posts

173 months

Wednesday 6th April 2022
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As MDL111 says, the New Power warranty is not worth the premium as there are so many exclusions and get-out clauses.

If the car you buy is still inside the 3 year factory warranty, you can extend that for another 2 years and it provides a much greater level of cover than the New Power warranty does. So the factory warranty extension is worth paying for.

sone

Original Poster:

4,596 posts

245 months

Wednesday 6th April 2022
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So I went onto buy a 812 and so far so good. It feels like a quality bit of kit and goes very well too, albeit I do miss the reassurance 4wd gives. Only down side so far is it's a bit quiet. While I don't feel the need for an aftermarket jobby I might well pin the valves open if I can work out how to access the valves from the rear.
Another thing I have noticed is that the fuel consumption is by comparison very good, when I say comparison I mean compared to any of my Aventadors.



anonymous-user

61 months

Wednesday 6th April 2022
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sone said:
So I went onto buy a 812 and so far so good. It feels like a quality bit of kit and goes very well too, albeit I do miss the reassurance 4wd gives. Only down side so far is it's a bit quiet. While I don't feel the need for an aftermarket jobby I might well pin the valves open if I can work out how to access the valves from the rear.
Another thing I have noticed is that the fuel consumption is by comparison very good, when I say comparison I mean compared to any of my Aventadors.


Positively frugal laughlaugh

WCZ

10,810 posts

201 months

Wednesday 6th April 2022
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aventadors are insanely bad on fuel though tbh!

lambo666

464 posts

125 months

Wednesday 6th April 2022
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I think my record was 2 weeks ago... over £200 in a day... and I didn't really go that far. Had alot of fun though smile

r o n n i e

382 posts

183 months

Wednesday 6th April 2022
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sone said:
So I went onto buy a 812 and so far so good. It feels like a quality bit of kit and goes very well too, albeit I do miss the reassurance 4wd gives. Only down side so far is it's a bit quiet. While I don't feel the need for an aftermarket jobby I might well pin the valves open if I can work out how to access the valves from the rear.
Another thing I have noticed is that the fuel consumption is by comparison very good, when I say comparison I mean compared to any of my Aventadors.


Congratulations that’s a real beauty.

How are you adjusting to the seating position?

My wife can’t get comfortable so far back in the car compared to the mid engines Ferraris. Being petite she finds the front engine hump somewhat daunting as she’s not sure where the front of the car ends.