Three letters with some weighty heritage are being dusted off by Ferrari and placed on the back of a very special 599. The 599 GTO, which will be officially revealed at the Beijing Motor Show, is based on Ferrari's experimental, track-only 599XX.

Heading up Ferrari's range the 599 GTO is the ultimate expression of the company's road-going V12 models. The GTO's 6.0-litre V12 develops 660bhp and 457lb.ft of torque. That's 50bhp and 45lb.ft more than the standard 599 Fiorano GTB. Detail enhancements to the chassis, brakes, gearbox, a lower kerb weight and that power increase combine to allow the 599 GTO to reach 62mph in 3.3 seconds and a top speed in excess of 208mph.

Despite the GTO's greater performance Ferrari has managed to reduce CO₂ emissions to 411g/km, while economy improves to 16.1mpg. That's a mere 4g/km less and 0.3mpg better, but impressive given the leap in performance.

The GTO features Ferrari's second-generation Carbon Ceramic brakes, improved CST stability control with F1-Trac and a new 599XX-derived feature called Virtual Race Engineer. This driver-car interface delivers the GTO's driver with instantaneous information on the car's performance - though we imagine the G-forces acting upon you will be enough to do that alone.

Ferrari is also promising that the GTO's sophisticated electronics almost completely remove understeer, while the GTO's aerodynamics are improved to increase downforce at speed. Looking more aggressive with deeper front bumpers, skirts and a kicked-up rear wing the 599 GTO generates 144kg of downforce at 124mph; that has been achieved without increasing drag.

Nothing it seems has been ignored in the pursuit of greater performance, the GTO's aluminium skin and glass of thinner gauge to reduce weight and the interior pared back to the basics to underline the GTO's purist appeal. It's unlikely you'd want a radio when you've Ferrari's Enzo-derived V12 for accompaniment, either. Speaking of the Enzo, the GTO's Fiorano lap time of 1 minute 24 seconds betters that of the supercar - and the new 458 Italia - by a full second.

Ferrari hasn't mentioned how much it'll cost yet, but expect around £300,000 before you've even started dipping into the options. Even so, Ferrari has already sold pretty much every one of the 599 it's planning on building. Go and lose your lunchtime by configuring how yours might look at - www.ferrari.com.

Kyle Fortune - 8 Apr 2010