2008 Ferrari 612 Scaglietti

Four-Seater Ferrari

This large and luxurious coupe is one of the fastest, most exclusive four-seaters around.

The four-seat 612 Scaglietti is Ferrari’s most expensive model and the first to boast a chassis and body made entirely of aluminum. This is said to cut the vehicle’s weight by about 40 percent — versus a standard steel setup — and allow exceptional rigidity for a more refined ride and improved handling over the model it replaced, the 456M.

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Its engine and drivetrain are in the tradition of classic Ferraris: a large, twelve-cylinder up front driving the rear wheels. A version of the 5.7-liter V12 engine that is in the two-seat 575M Maranello puts out a landscape-blurring 540 hp and enables the 612 Scaglietti to reach 62 mph in 4.2 seconds with the standard six-speed manual transmission. The car can reach a top speed of 199 mph.

With a fuel-economy rating of just 10 mpg city/17 mpg highway, the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti is subject to a federal gas-guzzler tax.

The understated styling is courtesy of famed Italian design house Pininfarina, which has a long history of designing Ferraris.

The engine is mounted entirely behind the front axle, and the transmission is in the rear of the car for optimum weight distribution, allowing superior handling.

An optional sequential-manual “F1” six-speed transmission offers manual gear changes with paddles mounted behind the steering wheel — right paddle for upshifts, left paddle for downshifts — or can be left in automatic mode. A sport mode allows better acceleration by holding gears longer so that the engine can rev all the way to redline.

An adaptive suspension varies its response according to road conditions, firming up during spirited driving and softening over rough roads. A sport setting stiffens the suspension for the most enthusiastic driving. Likewise, the car’s stability and traction control systems have a sport mode that allows more freedom to drive aggressively.

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As befits its lightweight underpinnings, the 612 Scaglietti’s 2+2 interior is trimmed in aluminum, with impeccably handcrafted leather upholstery throughout. The contoured front sport seats are power-adjustable with a unique headrest design that can be raised and lowered electrically in conjunction with the seatbelt. The rear seat is large enough for two adults to be comfortable on short trips, and the trunk will fit several pieces of luggage.

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The instrument panel features large, legible dials and a small screen that displays information such as engine and oil temperature, or trip information like the number of miles driven. A radio by Becker is clunky and slow and spoils an otherwise good sound system featuring Bose speakers. Even odder, though, is the fact that the optional navigation system doesn't come with a color screen. Rudimentary line drawings of roads and intersections — no maps — are displayed on the small dot-matrix screen of the Becker head-unit. Fortunately, directions are announced by a computerized voice.

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Like most exotic cars, the 612 Scaglietti can be customized with any exterior color and interior trim of a client's choosing. Options include a full-size spare tire, special 19-inch wheels, run-flat tires, parking sensors, and  a custom-fitted, six-piece leather luggage set designed by Pininfarina.

The 612 Scaglietti is named for Sergio Scaglietti, a coachbuilder in Modena, Italy, who designed several Ferraris during the 1950s and '60s.

Styling of the 612 Scaglietti is said to be inspired by a classic Ferrari, the 375 MM, one of which film director Roberto Rosselini bought after spotting it at the 1954 Paris motor show.