Ruf's New Flat-Eight Engine Is A 1,000 HP Manual Transmission Beast

In July 2026 at England's Goodwood Festival of Speed, German exotic car manufacturer Ruf unveiled a brand-new eight-cylinder engine it's calling the B8 Eprober ("Tester"), installed in a modified Ruf CTR3. Driving it at its debut at Goodwood was American stunt driver Tanner Foust, winner of three U.S. Rallycross championships. The Ruf B8 Erprober sprinted up the Goodwood Hill twice each day from July 10 through July 12.

The new Ruf B8 engine, which stands for Boxer 8, is a flat-eight with horizontally opposed cylinders that are similar to the general layout of engines made by Porsche and Subaru. The B8 is a 4.8-liter engine boosted by twin turbochargers, with an output of more than 1,000 horsepower. The B8 drives the Erprober's rear wheels after transiting through a six-speed manual transmission. The stretched version of the CTR3 that houses the prototype's engine is 100 millimeters longer so that it can contain the B8's additional two cylinders. 

While some Ruf vehicles have looked like evolutions of Porsche vehicles, it has been creating carbon monocoque chassis for its latest, which include the Ruf Rodeo, a gloriously retro off-roader that makes a 911 Dakar look drab.  Even though the automaker's cars appear to be Porsches, Ruf has been considered to be a German vehicle manufacturer since the early 1980s when they were first permitted to affix their own vehicle identification numbers to their cars. One of their earlier efforts was the undeniably cool Ruf CTR Yellowbird, built on a Porsche 911. 

Ruf has stated that the Ruf B8 engine will not see production at this time, but it will instead be developed as "a dedicated testbed for technologies that will shape a future RUF model." Perhaps that future model will be unveiled at the 2027 Goodwood Festival of Speed; time will tell.

The Ruf B8 Erprober prototype's livery was designed by artist and third-generation family member Alosia Ruf, who is engaged in the public relations and marketing side of Ruf Automobile. The yellow color used on the prototype matches the Blossom Yellow of the original Ruf CTR Yellowbird, calling back to automaker's history while also embracing the future. Sponsor Optima Batteries, a car battery brand with the one of best warranties, also had input to the design, which features an eight-cylinder graphic that adorns its engine cover; Optima also has its logo gracing the rear spoiler of the Erprober. 

Ruf Automobile has a long and illustrious heritage of creating high-performance cars based on existing Porsche models, but with the debut of the Ruf CTR3 in 2007, the company has been developing its own bespoke vehicles. The CTR3 uses a front clip from a Porsche 911, but the car is mid-engined, lower, has a longer wheelbase, and houses what started as a 691-horsepower flat-six engine in a chassis produced by Canada's Multimatic, who also makes the current Ford GT Mk IV. In fact, the only thing that the CTR3 shares with its Porsche forebears are the wipers and the glass parts.