Ferrari 12Cilindri Manuale Returns the Manual, by Wire

Ferrari unveiled the 12Cilindri Manuale at Maranello on July 3, 2026, reviving a gated shifter, a clutch pedal, and a six-speed H-pattern on its flagship V12 grand tourer for the first time in 14 years. The catch sits in the name: Ferrari calls the system Manuale By-Wire, and under the polished aluminum gate the transmission is still the same eight-speed dual-clutch automatic that drives every other 12Cilindri.

The 12Cilindri Manuale will be built in a run of 1,499 cars at a starting price of €590,000, which Car and Driver puts at roughly $675,000. Ferrari’s corporate release frames the new gearbox as a “contemporary reinterpretation of the analogue gear-shifting experience.” Car and Driver, after sitting in the car and pushing the clutch, called it the first car with a gated shifter to come out of Maranello since 2012. The contradiction between the two framings sits under the polished aluminum gate.

The Manuale Returns the Manual, by Wire

The car answers a request Ferrari owners have made for years. The Manuale delivers a six-speed shift pattern with reverse to the upper left, an open metal shift gate echoing the brand’s 1960s and 1970s berlinettas, and a clutch pedal that, when pushed below 62 mph, drops the car into manual mode and lets the driver row through the gears. Paddle shifters are gone entirely on the Manuale, per Car and Driver. Pressing the D button on the center console moves back to automatic, and seventh and eighth gear stay out of reach in manual mode.

The contradiction lives in the engineering, where the same eight-speed DCT sits underneath. The shifter is a precision-machined assembly that, in Ferrari’s words, “translates the physicality of mechanical movement into an electronic signal while fully preserving its analogue feel, consistency, and naturalness.” A clutch-by-wire pedal reads driver intent and translates it into hydraulic actuation of the dual-clutch pack. Ferrari calibrated the system so that mistimed shifts produce “a jerk or a stall,” the same outcome a real manual would deliver.

Motor1 called the architecture “conceptually similar to the manual in the Koenigsegg CC850,” the Swedish hypercar that launched a similar software-driven manual mode in 2022. Both cars blend the speed of a dual-clutch transmission with the look, sound, and tactile feedback of a three-pedal manual, even though neither contains one.

How the Manuale By-Wire System Works

Press the start button with the brake pedal held and the car boots in automatic mode, just like a standard 12Cilindri. Press it with the clutch pedal held and the car boots straight into manual mode. Once below 62 mph, the clutch pedal works as a gate between the two.

The shifter sits in a steel gate topped by an anodised aluminum tuning fork sculpture, with a backlit ball that glows white in automatic and orange in manual, per Autoblog. Ferrari developed the kinematic mechanism with the team behind its Hypersail racing yacht, applying the same by-wire approach used in that nautical project, as detailed in the full description of the Manuale By-Wire system.

The compact, modular mechanism is machined from solid blocks and weighs less than 3.5 kg. Furthermore, even the acoustic effects of its movements have been the subject of dedicated development to enhance the perception of the underlying mechanics.

A central rotating block of high-strength steel drives the gear selection, with eccentric rollers returning the lever to neutral after each shift. Ferrari tuned the module for the “clicks and load variations” of a real gated shifter, down to the audible “clink-clink of metal shaft striking the aluminum gates” that Car and Driver heard in the cabin. Two Hall-effect sensors monitor the lever’s position, per Motor1. If the clutch is not depressed, or if a gear is requested that the engine’s current speed cannot safely accept, the system physically locks out the engagement, a guard that prevents an accidental shift into first at highway speed.

The transmission itself is the standard 12Cilindri eight-speed DCT, with an updated control unit and gearbox software. Ferrari is explicit that the engine and DCT hardware are unchanged. All of the innovation sits in the interface between the driver’s hand and foot, and the gearbox.

Filling a 14-Year Gap in the V12 Lineup

Ferrari’s last V12 with a manual transmission was the 599 GTB Fiorano, which ended production in 2012. Since then, every front-engined V12 Ferrari has shipped with a dual-clutch automatic. The Manuale is the first car with a gated manual shifter to leave Maranello since that 2012 cutoff.

Customer demand drove the project. Car and Driver reported that “this car’s existence is due to Ferrari owners who never stopped asking for a manual,” and Ferrari’s own release frames the car as built for “Ferraristi who are loyal to front-engined V12 two-seater berlinettas and seeking an even more physical level of driving emotions.”

1. 2012: Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano ends production, the last V12 manual.
2. After 2012: Every front-engined V12 Ferrari ships with a dual-clutch automatic.
3. 2026 (weeks before the Manuale): Ferrari unveils the Luce, its first electric car.
4. July 3, 2026: Ferrari unveils the 12Cilindri Manuale at Maranello.

The timing is unusual. Ferrari’s first electric car, the Luce, debuted just weeks before the Manuale. Where the Luce carries four electric motors and over a thousand horsepower in silence, the Manuale still uses the naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12 revving to 9,500 rpm. Autoblog framed the Manuale as a counterweight to Ferrari’s electrification push, an explicit gesture toward a customer base the brand’s EV transition would otherwise leave behind.

The Pricing and Build Sheet for 1,499 Owners

Powertrain numbers are unchanged from the standard 12Cilindri. The V12 makes 830 cv on Ferrari’s European rating, which translates to 819 hp on the US-market figure used by Car and Driver and Motor1, with torque at 500 lb-ft and a redline at 9,500 rpm.

The weight penalty for the manual hardware is small. The Manuale is 11 pounds heavier than the regular 12Cilindri, per Car and Driver, and weighs 3,450 lbs dry, per Autoblog. Most of the added mass sits in the gear-lever mechanism and the pedal assembly. Ferrari’s own figures put that lever mechanism at less than 3.5 kg.

The limited run has symbolic weight. The number 1,499 “recalls the displacement of the first Ferrari twelve-cylinder engine produced in 1947,” Ferrari said in its release, tying the smallest of the modern V12 specials to the engine that defined the brand. Each car goes through Ferrari’s Tailor Made personalization program, with the cabin layout and gate detailed in the design story behind the manual gearbox’s return.

• Pinstripe finish on the front splitter and rear wings, a homage to the Ferrari 365 GTB4 Daytona
• Five-spoke forged alloy wheels in four finishes
• Aluminum door sills engraved with the car’s laser-etched logo
• Twenty-five iconic Ferrari colors, from Rosso Rubino to Blu Pozzi
• A plaque between the seats in silver or carbon fiber confirming the build
• Comfort or Racing seats, both available with six vertical grooves in the upholstery

The cabin redesign is the most obvious visual difference. The leather-trimmed center console hosts the steel shift gate and the backlit round aluminum gear knob, with each gear position and the active driving mode shown on a small screen. The pedals sit in a triangular configuration between the steering wheel and the seat. Reverse falls to the upper left of the H-pattern, in the classic Ferrari position. Ferrari says the system can stall the engine if the driver mishandles the clutch, preserving the engagement of an analog manual.

Frequently Asked Questions

When did Ferrari unveil the 12Cilindri Manuale?

July 3, 2026, at Maranello. The car goes on sale as a 2027 model year.

How many examples will Ferrari build?

Ferrari will produce 1,499 cars. The number references the displacement, in cubic centimeters, of Ferrari’s first V12 engine, which debuted in 1947.

What does the Ferrari 12Cilindri Manuale cost?

Pricing starts at €590,000 in Europe. Car and Driver puts the U.S. equivalent at roughly $675,000. Motor1 prices the standard 12Cilindri at around $423,000 in the US for comparison.

How fast is the 12Cilindri Manuale?

The V12 produces 830 cv on Ferrari’s European output figure, which works out to 819 hp under U.S. measurement standards. Torque registers at 500 pound-feet with a 9,500 rpm redline. Ferrari’s release lists the 0 to 100 km/h (0 to 62 mph) time at approximately 3.0 seconds and the top speed above 340 km/h.

Is the 12Cilindri Manuale a real manual transmission?

No. The engine and the eight-speed dual-clutch transmission are unchanged from the standard 12Cilindri. Ferrari’s Manuale By-Wire system uses sensors, a clutch-by-wire pedal, and a kinematic gear-lever mechanism to simulate the feel, sound, and lockout behavior of a manual. The concept mirrors the manual mode in the Koenigsegg CC850.