The new Ferrari Purosangue rewrites the rulebook for super-SUVs
It was the late and great Sergio Marchionne, former chairman and CEO of Ferrari, who once boldly stated that they would never build an SUV. That is, until now. Introducing the new Ferrari Purosangue. Though, I’ll probably be added to the Italian mafia’s hit list for calling it an SUV.
That’s right, according to Ferrari this is actually a utility vehicle, thank you very much. And in that way they’re honouring Marchionne’s wishes. Still, I don’t think he ever expected a four-door ‘Rari to exist.
Even the current Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna insists, “We’re not calling it an SUV. We’re not even talking about SUVs.”
From a financial perspective, Marchionne would’ve probably understood Stellantis’ motivation. Incredibly high-end luxury super-SUVs are all the rage these days, raking in tons of money for legacy brands like Lamborghini, Aston Martin and Rolls-Royce.
The Purosangue (Italian for thoroughbred) represents a few firsts for the peeps from Ferrari. It’s their first four-door and first “crossover” vehicle, however they’re affirming they won't sacrifice performance for practicality.
We have to admit, it’s a gorgeous car. Following Ferrari’s latest design language it has thin lighting elements at the front and rear, with a sculpted, almost hatch-like design from the side.
From a design perspective, it’s a balanced look that doesn’t seem unwieldy. Interesting elements include the rear-hinged “suicide” back doors and 22-inch front/23-inch rear alloys.
Under that shapely bonnet is a naturally-aspirated 6.5-litre V12 engine developing a earth-moving 533kW and 716Nm of torque.
It’s paired to an 8-speed dual-clutch transmission, powering all four wheels. Ferrari claims a 0-100km/h sprint time of 3.3 seconds and a top speed of 310km/h.
Inside the cabin it’s as Italian as ever. Covered in your choice of leather or alcantara the Purosangue comes exclusively with four seats – two individual ones at the back, of course.
It’s a very driver-focused cabin as this is, after all, a Ferrari, though there are some interesting features like a passenger display a la Porsche Taycan.
Ferrari hasn’t confirmed this model for South Africa yet, but we believe it’s inevitable. With a starting price of around R6.8 million this is no cheap take-the-kids-to-school runabout.
We predict this will soon become the Italian brand’s best-selling model. After all, high-end SUVs bring in the big bucks and even Ferrari knows this to be true.