The launch of a new Ferrari is like the dance of the seven veils. You are teased first with some smudgy spy shots taken on a test track in Italy, where the new car is heavily disguised. Official photos come next; glossy shots, sometimes called car porn, usually leaked to a motoring magazine.

Then the car goes on display at an international motor show, where you can stroke it and prod it but only while it’s standing still.

This whole charade is strung out for months before the last veil is removed and you can take the car on a test track or open road. As a North American journalist I was afforded this honour two weeks before those from Europe, which means you are the first to find out if this 599 lives up to the hype.

And the new Ferrari 599 has a lot to live up to. It is a replacement for the ageing 575M Maranello, one of the great grand tourers to come from the marque. Its full name is the 599 GTB Fiorano — GTB is short for Gran Turismo Berlinetta, the 599 is one-tenth of the engine capacity (5999cc) and Fiorano is in honour of the Fiorano test track that the Italian company uses to refine its road and race cars.

Despite this racing pedigree don’t expect an old-style Ferrari that overheats in traffic and dislocates your elbow every time you want to change gear — or one that is a particular blast to drive. This 599 is as comfortable pottering around a supermarket car park as on a track.

Inside the leather and aluminium-trimmed cabin all the creature comforts are present: an 11-speaker Bose stereo, parking sensors, heated seats, a rudimentary navigation system and plenty of elbow room. Controls are properly placed and easy to use, at least once you’ve figured out the climate control. And boot space is generous.

But this is the problem for Ferrari: how do you make a car that retains the racing pedigree of the badge yet can be driven by people who wouldn’t know a racing line if they tripped over it? The 599 hopes to solve this by combining ease of use with awesome performance. The 6 litre V12 is the most powerful 12-cylinder production engine ever built by the company, pumping out a staggering 612bhp. On the Fiorano track where I tested it, the car felt as though it was making power right up to the 8400rpm red line.

While the 599 will be offered with a conventional six-speed manual transmission, Ferrari expects only 10% of customers to choose this. The rest will pay extra for the semi-automatic six speed, now called the F1 Superfast. The paddles are mounted behind the steering wheel and during the day-long test, on and off the Fiorano track, they were a joy to use.

There are plenty of other high-tech additions to the 599. Notably the devilishly clever Delphi MagneRide suspension system. The viscosity of the fluid in the system’s dampers can be modified by a magnetic field. The system is almost instantaneous and means each wheel can react properly to, say, a pothole, or all four can react when the car is stuffed into a tight, fast corner.

However, the suspicion remains that this car is a little too mature and well adjusted to be classed as a truly great seat-of-the-pants Ferrari. Take the traction control. The system, which can be deactivated, includes settings such as “low grip” and “race”. This last option, designed for track only, is supposed to keep the electronic nannies to the minimum, allowing for slight slip and slide. But it seems Ferrari lost its nerve, with the surprisingly invasive system taming the throttle on bends until the car came out of the curve.

The electronic driving aids give the 599 a slightly detached feel behind the wheel. The steering is accurate but a little numb and, unlike other Ferraris down the years, you never feel completely at one with the car. The 599 is a great car and a technical tour de force, but as a driver you can’t help thinking that had they engineered it a little less it might have been an even greater Ferrari.

THE OPPOSITION

Model Aston Martin Vanquish S £177,100
For Legendary Aston Martin style and kudos
Against Dated engineering, appalling paddle shift gearbox

Model Lamborghini Murciélago LP640 £175,000 (approx)
For Potentially stunning performance and Audi reliability
Against Crockett and Tubbs image — not for the faint-hearted