There is currently a rear-engined v12 ferrari being made - the Enzo, which is a high end supercar. Will ferrari make any more non-supercar rear-engined v12s ? Have they said anything about this ? Any speculation as to why they would or would not ? comments ?
It is a shame, but the marketing of 1/4 million dollar toys drives the engine location towards the gentleman GT orrentation and away from the balls-to-the-walls sports car. In some respects, its a packaging issue, the V12 (of any bank angle (60,120,180)) is just too long to allow the transmission to hang off the back like the 360 and end up with A) reasonable cabin space, and B) reasonable wheel base, without C) placing the drivers feet in front of the front tires. If you cannot hang the transmission off the back of the engine, the CoG is too high (or off the front of the engine ala Lambo) and sports cars don't like high CoGs. Without reasonable interior space the 1/4 million dollar crowd woun't form a line to buy them. Without reasonable wheelbase you loose the nimbleness that a mid engine design is supposed to deliver. With the drivers feet in front of the front wheel (centerline) crashworthyness is degreaded.
Boxers and TR´s had the gearbox underneath the engine. To mount a V12, and the gearbox behind it, in a car gives the problems mentioned above.
A simple solution would be to offer a turbo version of the 360.They could offer a V10 version with slightly less cabin space.
