Future Cars: The 2023 Ferrari Purosangue Is the Ferrari of SUVs
Just don’t let the Prancing Horse people hear you call it an SUV.
WHAT IT IS: The Purosangue is Ferrari's first-ever crossover and is designed to compete with Lamborghini's Urus and Aston Martin's forthcoming hotted-up AMR version of the DBX.
WHY IT MATTERS: Former Ferrari boss Luca di Montezemolo routinely proclaimed the company would never build an SUV. But the Purosangue, with all-wheel drive, high ground clearance, and a long-travel suspension, is a Ferrari SUV in all but name. Ferrari's technical chief Michael Leiters has confirmed the Purosangue effectively replaces the two-door GTC4Lusso in the Ferrari lineup. "Our intention is to create a new segment for Ferrari," he said.
PLATFORM AND POWERTRAIN: The original thinking was the Purosangue would share its underpinnings with the all-wheel-drive GTC4Lusso, but in fact, it will be built on the new modular front-engine GT architecture that made its debut in 2020 with the Roma coupe. Critically, this architecture not only can package AWD hardware but has also been developed from the get-go to accommodate a plug-in hybrid powertrain. The Purosangue will therefore be available with a version of Ferrari's 3.9-liter twin-turbo V-8 under its long hood, supported by a 161-hp electric motor to produce a total system output of about 700 hp.
The Purosangue's launch engine may be the Scuderia's 6.5-liter naturally aspirated V-12, even though this charismatic powerplant is under threat from the forthcoming Euro 7 emissions and fuel consumption regulations. "We are fighting and fighting to maintain the naturally aspirated V-12," Leiters said, "and with the limits we see and the regulations that are in discussion, we think we can make it." The latest iteration of the engine pumps out 789 hp in the newly launched Ferrari 812 GTS. The V-12 would give Ferrari bragging rights over archrival Lamborghini, whose Urus SUV is only available with a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-8.
Regardless of its powertrain, the Purosangue will send its might to the ground via an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. Expect a height-adjustable suspension and a specially developed version of Ferrari's acclaimed Side Slip Control vehicle dynamics system tuned to handle low-friction surfaces such as gravel and snow.
ESTIMATED PRICE: $300,000
EXPECTED ON-SALE DATE: The Purosangue will make its debut in 2022, though Ferrari sources cannot confirm whether it will arrive in the United States in the first or second half of the year.