This is the V12 engine from a Ferrari 456M, in running condition it’s capable of a respectable 436 bhp, and it has a displacement of 5.5 liters. It’s now being offered for sale out of Rancho Cordova, California.
Officially named the Tipo F116, this was the first new V12 to enter production after the long-running Colombo V12 – an engine that had first appeared in the late 1940s and remained in production until the end of the 1980s.
Unlike the 412 which was the last production Ferrari to be powered by the Colombo V12, the 456 was powered by a new V12 that was said to have been developed with influenced from the (much) earlier Ferrari Dino V6. Image courtesy of Ferrari.
History Speedrun: The Ferrari 456
The Ferrari 456 debuted in 1992 as the long-awaited replacement for the angular Ferrari 412 of the 1980s. Unlike the 412, which was the last production Ferrari to be powered by the Colombo V12, the 456 was powered by a new V12 that was said to have been developed with influence from the (much) earlier Ferrari Dino V6.
This engine, the Tipo F116, had a displacement of 5.5 liters, double overhead cams, four valves per cylinder, an alloy block and heads, and a 65º V-angle. When it first appeared under the hood of the Ferrari 456 in 1992, this engine was producing 436 bhp at 6,250 rpm with 406 lb ft of torque at 4,500 rpm.
The F116 would later be evolved into the F133 series of V12s, and the most powerful version of that engine family was good for 597 bhp and 538 lb ft of torque.
The 456 was designed by Pietro Camardella and the interior styling had been carried out by Maurzio Corbi. The car featured a front-engine, rear-wheel drive layout with a rear-mounted transaxle to help keep the front/rear weight distribution balanced.
The Ferrari 456 would be replaced with the Ferrari 456M in 1998, first displayed at the Geneva Motor Show. The “M” appended to the name stood for “Modificata,” the Italian word for “Modification.”
This version featured a slew of upgrades to aerodynamics, suspension, cooling, and the interior – and this would be the version that carried Ferrari into the 21st century – not leaving production until 2003 when it was replaced with the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti.
In total, Ferrari built 3,289 examples of the 456 and 456M. It was the “sensible” Ferrari that could carry up to four adults and some modest amount of luggage, offering that genuine luxury GT experience that Ferrari had first perfected back in the late 1950s.
The Ferrari 456M V12 Engine Shown Here
The listing for this V12 on eBay isn’t overflowing with information about the engine, we do know that it’s a Ferrari 456 M V12 and that it has a Buy It Now price of $20,000 USD.
The Ferrari 456 features a front-engine, rear-wheel drive layout with a rear-mounted transaxle to help keep the front/rear weight distribution balanced. Image courtesy of Ferrari.
It will likely pique the interest of current 456 owners who may want it for spares. Alternatively it could end up as a somewhat pricey coffee table, or perhaps fitted under the hood of a non-Ferrari (gasp!).
If you’d like to read more about it or enquire about buying it you can visit the listing here, it’s being offered for sale out of Rancho Cordova, California by Exotic Auto Recycling.
Images courtesy of Exotic Auto Recycling
Articles that Ben Branch has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.