Ferrari is one of the top companies in the auto world. While there are some that out earn them and some that out perform them, they are one of those aspirational companies that everyone that knows about cars dreams of, and they have not remained that way through marketing. The reason why Ferrari remains at the top is because of their innovation. They might now be famous because of their iconic V12 engines, but even perfection can be improved upon, and they are doing it as we speak.
While they started as a racing team and have been a winning Formula 1 team for years, their road cars are admired and revered because of their quality, power and luxury feel, which makes them a wonderful combination and takes them to a price point that not many can afford. They are the definition of exclusivity. And that has made it seem like they would not evolve with the times, but time and time again they have proven critics wrong and they are about to do it again with an unconventional patent that proves their innovation game is far from over.
The new Ferrari engine, a change from the past, but never a downgrade
As we have stated, Ferrari’s V12 is iconic. A powerful combustion engine with a distinctive sound that has enamored the world for years. But now the world is changing, and if there is one criticism against Ferraris is that they are guzzlers. The owners can afford it, after all you do not drop a million bucks on a car and worry about gas prices, but the environment cannot, and that is the crux of the matter and the reason for the innovation. Regulations are changing and Ferrari can either change with them or become obsolete.
They have been part of the conversation for years, and they have already rolled out hybrid-electric models that perform just as fiercely as their gas-only cars, but the last step is to become fully electric and prove that you still have the power it takes, and they have a plan. Later this year they plan to release their first all-electric vehicle with the big reveal set for October 9, 2025.
But just in case this electric thing does not end up panning out and we end up going with other options like synthetic fuels, the company is not giving up on their V12 engine. They have filed a patent for oval-shaped pistons, which are not a thing currently in the car world. Nearly every piston in modern engines is round and so the change could be jarring.
According to what we know from the patent, the “oval-pistons” are placed perpendicular to the crankshaft, making the engine layout more compact, giving the V12 more space in the car without giving up space or performance. And with an added bonus, this layout reduces friction and unnecessary movement, which could improve both power and efficiency.
And just in case everything else fails, Ferrari has also been looking into hydrogen power, but not in the same way that other brands have approached it, not with the fuel-cell approach, but an actual internal combustion engine that runs on hydrogen.
This approach is surprising because most hydrogen vehicles today rely on converting hydrogen into electricity, but Ferrari’s plan skips that step and sticks with combustion, just using a cleaner fuel. This could open the door to extending the life of combustion engines in a world that is pushing for greener tech, and by reworking current engine designs to run on hydrogen, automakers like Ferrari can sidestep the need for a total overhaul. Instead of jumping straight into complex fuel-cell systems, they can build on what they already know, saving time, money, and resources.