√2023 Ferrari Purosangue SUV revealed

Ferrari has been in SUV denial for more than a decade, but has now finally joined Lamborghini, Aston Martin, Bentley and Rolls-Royce with V12 power and a €400,000 price tag.

The most important Ferrari in a generation, the Italian supercar company’s first production four-door and four-seater SUV, has arrived to confirm all the speculation about the 2023 Ferrari Purosangue.

After more than a decade of denial, Ferrari has bowed to pressure from customers with a rival to the Lamborghini Urus, Aston Martin DBX, Bentley Bentayga and Rolls-Royce Cullinan at the very top of the SUV world.

The Purosangue has a V12 engine, a top speed of 310km/h, will sprint to 100km/h in 3.3 seconds and has a starting price of €399,000 ($AU591,000) in Italy, making it Ferrari’s second-most expensive production car behind the SF90 range starting at €440,000 ($AU653,000).

Even so, Ferrari is resisting any reference to an SUV or ‘crossover’ as it launches the Purosangue.

“The Purosangue is a sports car, something unique and distinctive, which is uncompromised on design and engineering,” said the CEO of Ferrari, Benedetto Vigna, at a launch event at Ferrari’s home in Maranello, Italy.

“Other SUVs have high performances, but do not drive like sports cars.”

Ferrari intends to deliver the first Purosangues by June next year in Europe, followed by shipments to the USA. Australian deliveries are slated to begin before the end of 2023.

It said production will be capped at 20 per cent of annual production – unlike rivals including Porsche, now heavily focused on its Cayenne and Macan – meaning around 3000 cars, as Ferrari’s overall output is currently 15,000 cars.

The Purosangue – codenamed F175 and with a name that means ‘thoroughbred’ – is a family-sized sports SUV in a similar size and position to its most direct rival, the Lamborghini Urus, although with a much more elegant design than the aggressive Lamborghini.

The most distinctive visual feature of the Purosangue is its rear-hinged back doors – often called ‘suicide’ doors – for easier access to the rear seats, but it also has a carbon-fibre roof with an optional glass sunroof.

It is 4973mm long, 2028mm wide, 1589mm tall and sits on a 3018mm wheelbase. Its cargo space is 473 litres and it has folding rear seats for more carrying capacity.

It has two individual bucket seats in the rear and Ferrari has resisted the temptation to install a giant display screen in the dashboard.

Instead, owners will have to rely on smaller screens leaning heavily Apple CarPlay or Android Auto smartphone integration.

“While designing and discussing the navigation system, we came to the conclusion that, whatever navigation system we put in our car, it won’t ever be more updated than the most-used smartphones’ ones,” said Enrico Galliera, chief marketing officer at Ferrari.

The car’s engine is a 6.5-litre naturally-aspirated V12 with 533kW and 716Nm, capable of spinning to 8250rpm, with 80 per cent of torque available from 2100rpm.

The car is all-wheel drive with a development of the system first fitted to the GTC4Lusso – originally called the FF – and sends drive to the front wheels at up to 200km/h in the first four gears.

The car’s gearbox is an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic and the Purosangue also has rear-wheel steering and a ‘side slip control’ traction system.

The Purosangue has 22-inch front wheels with 255-series tyres and 23-inch rear wheels with 315-width tyres.

The suspension has active dampers, and their design – combined with an electric motor at each corner of the car – means the Purosangue does not have traditional anti-roll bars.

“Engineering worked 48 months to make the Purosangue happen,” Ferrari Chief Product Development Officer Gianmaria Fulgenzi said in an official statement.

“The chassis, engine and gearbox were brand new and most of other components had been specifically designed for this model to make it a proper thoroughbred.”

The post 2023 Ferrari Purosangue SUV revealed appeared first on Drive.

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