I’m not sure ‘rounded’ is how I’d put it. Stick the dampers in their ‘bumpy road’ setting and the suspension deals with motorways and well-surfaced A-roads just fine. Here, the driven axle is kept in consistent enough contact with the Tarmac to give you the confidence to begin to explore what that engine is capable of.

And, my word, it’s an incredible engine; one of such potency that forays into the bottom half of the accelerator pedal travel are rare – and call for a very deep breath. On half-throttle from town speeds, you’ll rifle through second and third gears and be going quickly enough to steady your enthusiasm before you’ve blinked. Risk a full throttle trip towards 9000rpm and you’ll be stunned by this car’s massive, linear pace – and left in awe of the musicality of its savagery.

You’re unlikely to risk those heady trips on less-than-immaculately surfaced cross-country roads, though. Even at its softest, the 812’s suspension is firm to the point that it’s a jostling, nerve-testing ride at times. Its ride and its handling are both particularly reactive over bumps taken at pace, when those enormously wide front wheels can start to tramline. At that point the car’s steering – whose directness genuinely isn’t an issue elsewhere, thanks to plenty of weight and good on-centre stability – just begins to burst your bubble. The rear suspension, meanwhile – on whose lateral stiffness the car’s super-incisive handling is built – can compound the offence by making the body fuss and fidget over the same bumps that diverted the steering an instant earlier.

Upshot? That driving an 812 Superfast down a particularly testing B-road reminds you of Owen Wilson’s Armageddon movie line; the one when he’s “not sure if he’s 98% excited and 2% scared, or if it’s the other way around”.

Seek out surfaces and journeys that suit it, however, and this car will amaze you over and over again. For handling response and turn-in incisiveness, as well as lateral grip and balance, it feels like it gives up absolutely nothing to the very best mid-engined supercars and track machines.

It’ll take further acquaintance on track to be sure about that, because you can’t get close to the 812’s limits on the road. You can, however, enjoy a sense of agility and eagerness that little else on four wheels can match. Partnered with the aforementioned performance, which is equally breathtaking for its style as for its scope, that makes for a driving experience that’ll keep you awake at night. For all of the right reasons.

The 812 Superfast is every inch the car the name suggests it’ll be. It isn’t as easy to drive as it might be and can clearly be brusque and imposing. But it’s just so intoxicating and such an epic thrill – even on the road, where the margins of its performance and handling potential are way beyond your reach – that you’d make wonderful allowances for it. You’d embrace its chassis compromise, respect it and use it intelligently.

Next up, to delve into the car’s wilder side with a full Autocar road test, with benchmark laptimes and everything else that comes with it. For now, we’ve unearthed enough grounds for concern about the 812’s ride on mixed UK roads to justify clawing back a half-star’s worth of the acclaim we lavished last year.

And once we’ve sampled what the car’s capable of on track? I’ve a feeling the final reckoning should be a very interesting discussion indeed. 

Ferrari 812 Superfast

Engine V12, 6496cc, atmospheric, petrol; Power 789bhp at 8500rpm; Torque 530lb ft at 7000rpm; Gearbox 7-spd twin-clutch automatic; Kerb weight 1630kg; 0-62mph 2.9sec; Top speed 211mph; Economy 19.0mpg (NEDC combined, with HELE); CO2/tax band 340g/km; Rivals Lamborghini Aventador S, Aston Martin Vanquish S