The new Ferrari F8 Tributo will most likely be the
brand’s last non-hybrid berlinetta, with the company to reveal a new hybrid
mid-engine supercar within the next three months. Our spies spotted a Ferrari test
mule during a development drive in cold weather conditions, which is believed
to be using the company’s much talked-about V6 hybrid powertrain.
The news were partly confirmed by Ferrari’s sales
and marketing boss Enrico Galliera, who told Autocar that while it was “unfair
to say (the F8 Tributo) will be the last, it is fair to say the next will be
hybrid”. We already know that Ferrari plans to introduce a new, two-tier
mid-engine model range, with the upcoming hybrid model to sit above the F8
Tributo. The automaker has been developing hybrid powertrain technology for
some time now, as well as a new, downsized V6 engine to go with it.
Michael Leiters, Ferrari’s technical chief said that
the “V6 is the next step to follow downsizing without losing emotion or speed
of the car”, which may hint that the twin-turbo V8 of the F8 Tributo is on its
way out. Ferrari plans to reveal five new models this year, with the new
hybrid mid-engined supercar being one of them, as it’s going to be revealed in
the next couple of months.
With the ‘regular’ F8 Tributo currently offering
710hp, we can’t help but wonder what kind of firepower the new electrified
model will get. Some rumors suggest that the horsepower figure could go as high
as four digits, despite the car being planned to be a regular, series-production
model.
Ferrari boss Louis Camillieri also repeated that the
brand will launch its first SUV model in 2022. Camillieri said that he was “not
concerned on being too late” to market with their SUV, but “more concerned on
being the best and I’m quite confident we will be. It takes time to get the
best thing. I’m confident it will be spectacular and within our DNA.”
