Ruf Is Building a New Boxer-Engine Supercar with EIGHT Cylinders and a Manual Transmission

A boxer engine is flatter and wider than a traditional Vee engine, creating several challenges, but that hasn't stopped Ruf from continually improving the layout, and now it's revealed a new horizontally opposed engine with eight cylinders. The flat-eight is being shown off in a modified Ruf CTR3 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this weekend, taking to Lord March's driveway with Tanner Foust behind the wheel every day from tomorrow until Sunday. But its true home is yet to be announced, with Ruf saying the new boxer-eight is destined for a future supercar. If it's going in a supercar, it needs big headline figures, and Ruf doesn't disappoint.

Ruf's New Eight-Cylinder Boxer Makes Big Power

While the livery was designed in collaboration with battery supplier Optima, the new flat-eight engine, Ruf's first ever, isn't hybridized. It makes over 1,000 horsepower and 737 lb-ft of torque from 4.8 liters of capacity and two turbochargers. Unfortunately, that's all Ruf is willing to reveal at this point, but given that the CTR3 prototype this new B8 engine is in was stretched by 3.9 inches, we can assume that this boxer-eight is intended for something a bit sleeker that looks more Porsche 911 GT1 than 911 GT3, likely with a longtail design for improved high-speed aerodynamics. We also know that the engine is paired to a six-speed manual transmission (so much for big power not being feasible with traditional manuals anymore; ahem, BMWand Ferrari), so whatever Ruf is working on should be fun to drive, albeit rare. The CTR "Yellowbird," which put Ruf on the world map and whose color is being referenced in this livery, was limited to just 29 units. The CTR3 was limited to around 30 examples, and that's pretty much the case for all Ruf creations, with low double-digit production runs across the board.

Ruf's New Flat-Eight Supercar Will Arrive Soon-ish

Ruf said this CTR3 prototype "serves as a dedicated testbed for technologies that will shape a future Ruf model," providing no details as to when this new model would debut. However, the company also mentioned that it has been working on this engine for some time and chose the CTR3 as the basis for this development mule so that testing could be carried out stealthily. To my mind, that indicates that development is at an advanced stage, and it won't be long before Ruf's new supercar makes its grand entrance. Could we see Ruf's new supercar at next year's Goodwood Festival of Speed? We wouldn't bet against it, so start preparing your checkbook if you want a supercar that sounds like literally nothing else on the planet/

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