Ruf is developing an eight-cylinder, manual supercar

Ruf might not be a household name, but for anyone who played video games in the 2000s and 2010s with Porsche look-alikes, it is a familiar brand.

Previously dedicated to building its own cars from bare Porsche bodies, Ruf has continued the links to the famous brand but has started to do more of its own thing in recent years, and is now about to do something not seen in a long time.

Unveiled this week is the Ruf B8 Erprober, a test vehicle based on the existing Ruf CTR3 – itself taking parts from the Porsche Cayman – which is acting as the development platform for a new supercar, set to be powered by a flat-eight engine.

We’ve not seen a flat-eight engine in almost any car within the past half a century, with the most recent successful attempt being in the Porsche 908 race car of the late 1960s, though since then Porsche – and Ruf – haven’t ventured higher than a six-cylinder count.

Combined with twin turbochargers, Ruf says the ‘B8’ 4.8-litre engine will be capable of producing more than 745kW and 1000Nm, all of which is sent to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual transmission.

“There are moments in a company’s history that define the future. For RUF, the Boxer 8 is one of those moments,” said company founder Alois Ruf.

“A boxer-eight has never been part of our story, or anyone else’s in this form, so we decided to write a new chapter in automotive history. We look forward to letting the engine speak for itself at Goodwood.”

The Ruf B8 Erprober’s livery pays tribute to the CTR Yellowbird, which launched in 1987 and became a sensation thanks to holding the unofficial Nürburgring lap record at the time.