In 2014, Sergio Marchionne, the former CEO of Ferrari, said that people would have to shoot him first before they would consider buying a Ferrari SUV. Eight years later, it has finally arrived.
The long-awaited Ferrari Purosangue was unveiled by the company and will be priced at around €390 000. Furthermore, it will help boost the brand's appeal and introduce it to a new generation. The Purosangue is the most utilitarian vehicle in the company's 75-year history. It features four doors and a 125-gallon trunk, and it will hit showrooms next year.
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Image from mad4wheels.com
The New Ferrari SUV’s Features
The Purosangue fits the bill of a sport utility vehicle. According to Benedetto Vigna, the chief executive officer of Ferrari, the company is confident that it will be able to classify the vehicle as such. He referred to the vehicle as a “Ferrari” during a press briefing held in Maranello, Italy, though and said, “please don’t call it an SUV, because it isn’t.”
Paolo Vigna, the marketing director of Ferrari, said that the company is still working on how it will accommodate the crossover segment. In 2016, then CEO Sergio Marchionne stated that the company would never make a crossover. Marchionelle quipped, “You’d have to shoot me first”. Well, it ended up happening. Ferrari has produced an SUV, and we wonder what Marchionelle’s thoughts are about the Purosangue.
Compared to Ferrari cars, SUVs and crossovers are less agile. However, the likes of the €206 800 Bentley Bentayga and the €225 000 Lamborghini Urus have been well-received by the public. The Purosangue, on the other hand, is still a nimble vehicle and can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.3 seconds.
While Ferrari offers plug-in hybrid models such as the SF90 Stradale and the 296 GTB, the Purosangue won't be powered by either engine. Instead, it will be using a combustion engine. The car will have a top speed of 310km per hour and a mid-mounted V12 engine.
Image from mad4wheels.com
According to Ferrari's commercial officer, Enrico Galliera, the company had to find a way to power the Purosangue without compromising on performance. He said that the company's customers wanted a full combustion engine and they listened.
While Ferrari is trying to create an SUV that doesn’t upset idealists, it also has to consider the expectations of its customers. In order to comply with new emissions regulations, the company will have to transition to electric power trains.
After delivering over 11 000 vehicles last year, the company unveiled its battery strategy. It noted that the first fully electric model will be launched in about three years. By 2026, the company's entire vehicle portfolio will be made up of plug-in hybrid and battery-only cars.
At the event, Galliera said that the company is committed to making its vehicles carbon neutral by the end of this decade.
The Purosangue has already received over 2 000 pre-orders, and due to the number of requests for the car, Ferrari is holding an event for those who have placed their orders.
The car features a single-shell chassis and a carbon-fibre roof that lowers its centre of gravity. To maintain its exclusivity, Ferrari noted that Purosangue deliveries would not exceed 20% of the company's total sales during its lifetime.
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