The Ferrari 599 GTB replaced the 575M Maranello as Ferrari’s flagship two-seat V-12 front-engined GT offering when it was launched in 2006. Whereas the 575M had been very much an improvement exercise on the 550 Maranello, the 599 GTB was a completely clean sheet design that marked a departure from the more analogue attributes of the Daytona and 550/575M and announced Ferrari’s intention to digitalise the modern V-12 supercar.

Power came courtesy of a variant of the Tipo F140 V-12, which had been launched in 2002 in the back of the Enzo. In the 599 GTB it produced 612 bhp and 448 foot-pounds of torque, both record figures at the time for a normally aspirated series production V-12, and its combination with the F1 Superfast transmission equipped the car with a top speed of 205 mph and a 0–124 mph sprint of 11.0 seconds. Keeping the gargantuan power in check was Ferrari’s new traction control system, ‘F1-Trac’, which was controlled via the steering-wheel-mounted manettino switch. The same switch also controlled the new computerised hyper-responsive magnetorheological semi-active dampers, which could be tailored on demand to fit the desired driving scenario.

The 599 GTB was more than just a ‘Top Trump’ exercise or a collection of dazzling numbers. For the first time in a Gran Turismo Berlinetta, Ferrari elected to construct the car around an aluminium chassis rather than using tubular steel, as it had done before, which not only improved torsional stiffness, but also dramatically lowered kerb weight. Aerodynamics were also pursued to a level that had been the reserve of track cars, let alone GTs with underbody venturi tunnels and flying-buttress C pillars to guide and channel air onto a rear wing.

With such potent ingredients, it is of little surprise that the 599 GTB was an instant success, equally able to whisk occupants across Europe with minimal fuss or to show an F50 a clean set of exhaust pipes around Fiorano.

This example was first delivered to Singapore in 2007, as evidenced by the Ferrari 60th Anniversary badge, where it was looked after solely by the official Ferrari dealership there, with eight annual stamps in the service book. In 2016 it was imported to the UK and benefitted from a service at Dick Lovett Ferrari in April of that year at 45,055 km; most recently it has received an annual service from Ferrari specialists Keys Motorsport. Specified in the classic combination of Rosso Corsa with Cuoio leather interior, it presents in very good condition inside and out and is a testament to the care bestowed upon it by its current and previous keepers. It also benefits from extensive optional extras, including the coveted Carbon interior 1 and Carbon interior 2 packages, which set it apart from the majority of 599s and combine to make the cabin very special indeed.

The 599 GTB emphatically raised the industry benchmark of the front-engined grand tourer class, and it is little surprise that Evo magazine anointed it as their car of the year in 2007, proclaiming, ‘There isn’t another GT that comes close to matching the exceptional breadth of the 599 GTB’s ability, nor the richness of the experience.’