Ferrari does not use Speciale lightly. For many, the 458 Speciale was the modern benchmark for a road-legal track car. A decade on, the 296 Speciale arrives with a very different toolkit: a turbocharged, hybridized V6 shaped by emissions and noise laws. The brief has shifted from chasing lap times first to engineering feeling first, then letting performance follow. Ferrari calls it a measurable recipe for fun, and the 296 Speciale is the most complete expression of that idea so far.
As Hagerty put it, “Where once you engineered performance and got thrills for free, now Ferrari engineers thrills—and the performance comes along for the ride.” That shift defines this car’s purpose.
The “Fun Matrix,” Translated
Ferrari says it quantified the sensations that define a great driver’s car: longitudinal shove, lateral grip, braking confidence, shift character, and sound. The Speciale tightens every one of those screws.
- Power and response: An evolved 3.0-liter, 120-degree V6 twin-turbo works with a single e-motor and a 7.45 kWh battery. The V6 gains 36 bhp versus the GTB thanks to race-car mapping and boost tweaks. The e-motor contributes 177 bhp, for a combined 868 bhp and 557 lb-ft of torque.
- Lightness: The Speciale drops 60 kg versus the 296 GTB for a 1,410 kg dry weight. It saves 9 kg in the engine alone using titanium con-rods, a nitrided steel crank, and post-casting machining of the block and crankcase. Titanium fasteners echo Ferrari’s 499P endurance racer.
Quick Numbers
- 0–100 km/h: 2.8 s
- 0–200 km/h: 7.0 s
- EV range: 15–16 mi in e-Drive
- Fiorano lap: 1:19.0
- −2.0 s vs 296 GTB
- −4.5 s vs 458 Speciale
- −0.7 s vs LaFerrari
Aero That “Links” the Car Together
Downforce rises to 435 kg at 155 mph, a 20% gain over the GTB. The headline is the aero damper, an internal duct that connects the underfloor to an outlet at the bonnet, stabilizing pressure between the car’s lower and upper surfaces. The result is more consistent downforce in braking zones and through quick transitions.
Supporting pieces include wing louvres to bleed front-arch pressure, vertical rear fins, a quicker active rear spoiler with a new medium setting, and a more assertive diffuser. The exterior uses darker surfaces to visually slim the mass, and mesh replaces glazing on the engine cover to prioritize heat extraction and weight.
According to Top Gear, “There’s more going on here than first meets the eye.” The car borrows its aerodynamic logic directly from Ferrari’s race programs, blurring the line between road car and competition machine.
Cabin, Stripped With Purpose
Inside is familiar 296 architecture, simplified for focus.
- Single-piece carbon door cards double as speaker grilles via precision-cut perforations.
- Exposed fixings, no carpets, and reduced sound deadening shave grams and add intent.
- Deep bucket seats can be paired with four-point harnesses.
- The steering wheel remains busy, but the manettino logic is still intuitive.
Drive modes include e-Drive, Hybrid, Performance, and a new Qualify setting. Qualify uses thermal-aware logic to meter short bursts of the full e-boost, displayed on the cluster so the driver knows when and how many “pushes” remain. It’s a clever trick that bridges the worlds of Formula 1 energy deployment and road-going usability.
Road Manners: Bandwidth That Surprises
The Speciale feels hyper-alert without becoming brittle. On scruffy pavement, the car breathes. Magnaride dampers carry immense authority and often make the “bumpy road” button feel unnecessary. Steering does not flood your hands with texture, yet accuracy is microscopic and immediate. The dual-clutch’s fast-shift calibration adds a perceptible nudge on upshifts for extra drama, while the e-motor smooths torque delivery between gears.
Noise management is equally deliberate. Additional resonators pipe more combustion character into the cabin so the driver experiences richer timbre at work, even as the car remains relatively restrained outside. Early-morning departures can be stealthy in e-mode; switch to Performance, and the Speciale wakes up with its voice fully restored.
As Top Gear noted after driving on rough Italian roads, “The thing I’m most impressed with is the way it remains so compliant and composed over what is quite a nasty surface.” It’s not just fast—it’s civil.
Track Character: GTB-Plus-Plus-Plus
Fiorano confirms the intent. On Cup 2s, with revised spring and damper rates, the Speciale sits 5 mm lower than a GTB, rolls 13% less, and carries more aero stability. Braking feel is a highlight—ABS Evo now references a 6-axis sensor suite, so pedal feedback stays coherent even when you brake impossibly late. Ferrari’s latest Side Slip Control and e-diff logic let you choose your adventure, from clean lines to tasteful yaw, with power that pours to the tarmac rather than slaps it.
Switch to Qualify, see the boost ring illuminate, and the powertrain adds a last hit of shove above 6,000 rpm. The tangible kick on upshifts, the traction as you unwind lock, and the settled aero in quick direction changes deliver the headline result: 1:19.0 at Fiorano—faster than cars once defined by twelve cylinders.
“Huge amounts of fun,” concluded Hagerty, though they admitted the 296 Speciale feels “a bit more GTB-plus than an out-and-out hardcore machine.” That’s by design. Ferrari is leaving space for something even more extreme to come.
Where It Sits in the Bloodline
Ferrari’s “ideas laboratory” lineage runs 360 Challenge Stradale, 430 Scuderia, 458 Speciale, 488 Pista, and now 296 Speciale. Each pushed a new frontier. The 296 Speciale’s lab focus is clear: real hybrid deployment, quantifiable “fun” inputs, and aero that integrates surfaces, not just adds wings.
Is it as raw as a 458 Speciale at 9,000 rpm? No. It’s sharper and more thrilling than a 296 GTB, but stops short of outright brutality. Both Hagerty and Top Gear converged on the same verdict: the Speciale feels like a GTB Plus-Plus-Plus, leaving headroom for an even wilder future variant. That sounds less like compromise—and more like strategy.
Price and Proposition
Base price is €407,000 before the configurator tempts you with stripes, numbers, carbon wheels, and heritage paints. In return, you get a car that compresses everyday civility, track stamina, and a deeply modern reading of Ferrari drama into one package.
As Top Gear summed it up, “In terms of sheer excitement and daily usability, I’m not sure there’s ever been a Ferrari quite like it.”
Verdict: A New Definition of Speciale
The 296 Speciale proves that hybrid assistance can amplify—not anesthetize—a driver’s car. It measures the right things, then makes you feel them. The throttle’s urgency, the gearbox’s theater, braking you can lean on, aero you can trust, and an EV mode that lets you slip away quietly are not contradictions—they’re the new Ferrari playbook.
For exotic connoisseurs who prize usable intensity, the 296 Speciale isn’t a promise of what’s coming next. It’s proof that the present can still feel extraordinary.
Spec Highlights
- Engine: 3.0-liter 120° twin-turbo V6 + single e-motor
- Output: 868 bhp / 557 lb-ft
- Battery: 7.45 kWh (15–16 mi range)
- Weight: 1,410 kg dry (−60 kg vs GTB)
- Aero: 435 kg @ 155 mph; new aero damper; faster active spoiler
- Chassis: lower ride height; −13% roll; Magnaride road setup; passive track option
- Performance: 0–100 km/h 2.8 s; 0–200 km/h 7.0 s; Fiorano 1:19.0
- Price: from €407,000
