RUF Automobile used the 2026 Goodwood Festival of Speed to reveal a development car carrying an engine configuration never previously produced by the Pfaffenhausen company. Known as the RUF B8, the prototype is powered by a newly developed 4.8-litre twin-turbocharged boxer-eight producing more than 1,000 horsepower and 1,000 Nm of torque.
The engine is known internally as the “Erprober”, the German word for tester. This name accurately describes the role of the B8 because the vehicle was not presented as a finished production model. It is a working development platform created to evaluate technologies intended for a future RUF automobile. its first public appearance, the new engine was installed inside a modified RUF CTR3. The familiar body allowed the company to test its boxer-eight without constructing a separate prototype around an entirely new exterior. Although the car initially resembles a conventional CTR3, its dimensions reveal that substantial changes were required beneath the bodywork.
The CTR3 structure was extended by 100 millimetres to provide enough space for the larger eight-cylinder power unit. Power is transmitted through a RUF six-speed manual gearbox, retaining a mechanical transmission arrangement despite the output exceeding 1,000 horsepower. The resulting car combines the established mid-engined CTR3 platform with the first eight-cylinder boxer engine designed and developed in-house by RUF. B8 made its official debut at Goodwood on July 9, 2026. It subsequently participated in the event’s Supercar Run twice each day from July 10 to July 12, with Tanner Foust driving the prototype on the hill course. Between runs, the car was displayed in the Supercar Paddock, allowing visitors to examine the altered CTR3 body and the details identifying it as an engineering vehicle rather than a standard road car.
Goodwood also gave RUF an opportunity to operate the B8 in public while continuing its development programme. The company traditionally tests new components over thousands of kilometres before introducing a completed vehicle, with durability and everyday drivability evaluated alongside maximum performance. MOTUL lubricants are being used during the development of the boxer-eight prototype. engine represents a departure from the six-cylinder boxer units closely associated with RUF automobiles. Its 4.8-litre displacement is combined with two turbochargers, while the horizontally opposed arrangement remains consistent with the mechanical format used throughout much of the company’s history. The additional pair of cylinders required changes not only to the engine compartment but also to the length and packaging of the CTR3 test car.
RUF has not published detailed information concerning the engine’s bore, stroke, compression ratio or turbocharger installation. Acceleration figures, maximum speed and vehicle weight have also not been announced. At this stage, the stated figures of more than 1,000 horsepower and 1,000 Nm serve primarily as reference points for the development unit rather than final specifications for a customer vehicle.
The prototype’s exterior was given a dedicated colour scheme created with Aloisa Ruf and OPTIMA Batteries. Its yellow base refers to the Blossom Yellow colour associated with the RUF CTR Yellowbird. Over this foundation, continuous curved graphics form repeated representations of the number eight, connecting the appearance of the test car with the configuration and B8 designation of its engine. graphics also make the development vehicle immediately distinguishable from a regular CTR3. Their movement across the body follows the extended proportions of the car, while the yellow finish links the experimental engine programme with one of the most recognisable colours used in RUF history. The result remains recognisably based on the CTR3, but no longer appears to be a normal example of the model.
The decision to use a CTR3 was based on more than packaging convenience. Its chassis and supercar configuration allow RUF to evaluate the engine at the performance levels for which it is being developed. At the same time, the existing body provides a complete vehicle in which cooling, transmission behaviour, durability and drivability can be studied under road and track conditions.
The B8 therefore occupies a specific position within the development process. It is neither a design study nor a production-ready automobile. Its principal component is the boxer-eight itself, while the lengthened CTR3 serves as the structure through which RUF can test the engine before the technology is transferred to another model.
Alois Ruf described the boxer-eight programme as a moment that will influence the company’s future. RUF has not identified the production vehicle that may eventually receive the engine, nor has it confirmed a launch date, price or planned production volume. The B8 remains an engineering prototype, with its public appearance providing the first confirmed information about the new power unit and its current stage of development. Goodwood debut placed the prototype in motion rather than presenting the engine only as a separate technical exhibit. Visitors were able to hear the firing character of the twin-turbocharged boxer-eight while watching the stretched CTR3 operate on the hill course. Further development will continue before RUF discloses how the engine will be used in a future road car.