Driven to extinction: Ferrari F8 Tributo

Regular Wheels readers will know there are typically three types of these Driven to Extinction pieces.

There are those that lament a much-loved model that has departed too soon and then there are those that finally farewell a car that’s hung around well past its sell-by date.

Then there’s the awkward ones into which the Ferrari F8 Tributo falls – that of the car that’s replaced by something so manifestly superior that it can be hard to work up a great deal of heartfelt saudade for it.

So unambiguously does the Ferrari 296 GTB now sit at the top of the supercar tree that the F8 Tributo is almost consigned to one of Maranello’s historical footnotes, which fails to explain quite how good it was.

4

The F8 Tributo was good. Not McLaren 720S good, but not far off, which in the overall scheme of things is pretty damn good.

As well-received as it was, it isn’t a patch on the new 296 GTB and it enjoyed a mayfly-like existence, on sale for less than four years; much the same duration as its 488 GTB predecessor. Both were developments of the 458, a car that enjoyed a six-year build slot.

It’s the 458, particularly in Speciale form, that gets Ferrari fans excited, as it was the last of the atmo mid-engined models. While the turbocharged 488 and F8 were undoubtedly quicker, they didn’t rev as freely and never sounded quite as good as a 458 at full noise.

4

It has almost passed without comment that the F8 Tributo was the last of the non-hybridised Ferrari mid-engined supercars, which speaks of a slight lack of buzz around the model.

But, as we’ve seen in the Modern Classic section of the Wheels November issue (the Lamborghini Murcielago LP670 SV), cars that weren’t particularly well regarded at the time can enjoy a resurgence in popularity when afforded the benefit of hindsight. The F8’s time may well come.

With 530kW/770Nm at its elbow from its 488 Pista-derived F154 V8, the F8 Tributo certainly didn’t short-change its customers in terms of sheer ability, although we’d take the claimed 2.9-second 0-100km/h time with a shovelful of salt given that the same time is claimed for the 296 GTB, which wields an extra 89kW.

Get into a 458 after driving an F8 and it’ll feel as if it’s got about as much torque as an S2000 running on three pots.

Arguably a prettier car than the somewhat lumpen 488, the F8 Tributo is a more aggressive-looking confection than the lithe 296 GTB and, with a kerb weight of just 1435kg, it’s lighter than both its predecessor and successor.

The final pure ICE mid-engined Ferrari and the final V8 ought to cement the F8 Tributo’s place in history. Yes, it’s been superseded by something more talented, but maybe its moment in the limelight is still ahead of it.

4

PISTA perfection?

The F154 engine won a total of 14 awards in the International Engine of the Year competition, claiming an unprecedented four consecutive overall titles between 2016 and 2019.

In CG form in the F8 Tributo and F8 Spider, it delivered exactly the same 530kW/770Nm as the 488 Pista’s CD unit, but married it with a more accommodating suspension set-up to make an indisputably better road car.