Ferrari Purosangue SUV to be ‘true sports car’

The long-awaited 2022 Ferrari Purosangue SUV will be revealed in September, but company CEO Benedetto Vigna whetted appetites at the Italian super car marque’s Capital Markets Day in Maranello this week, insisting the upcoming debutant is a true sports car.

“I had the opportunity to drive it in the hills near Maranello, and I can tell you it’s really a sports car,” Vigna enthused.

“We went with a naturally aspirated V12 – our most evocative engine – to ensure it lives up to its name [Purosangue is Italian for thoroughbred].”

Even though SUVs now account for the bulk of global automotive sales across all price segments, Vigna says the Purosangue will be an “add-on” rather than a model conceived to multiply Ferrari’s annual sales volume.

This is in stark contrast to archrival Lamborghini, which derived almost 60 per cent of its 8405 global sales in 2021 via the Lamborghini Urus.

“The Purosangue won’t be the most relevant model from a sales perspective,” said Ferrari’s chief marketing and commercial officer, Enrico Galliera, adding that the SUV will account for only about 20 per cent of Ferrari’s sales.

The Purosangue’s modular chassis architecture will form the basis for all of Ferrari’s upcoming mid-front engine cars.

This platform can accommodate V6, V8 and V12 engines, with or without hybrid assistance and with a transaxle dual-clutch gearbox, as well as rear- or four-wheel drive and variable-wheelbase lengths.

Although the initial format of the Purosangue will be a high-riding (by Ferrari standards) four-seater, Galliera let slip that Ferrari’s future portfolio will include models with “two, four and more seats”.

This suggests a stretched version of the Purosangue with three-row seating could potentially follow in due course.

The Purosangue won’t fit the mould of the traditional SUV, as company insiders insist it will be more dynamic than anything currently available even at the top end of the performance SUV segment. 

Its V12 engine – likely to be derived from the 588kW 6.5-litre unit in the Ferrari 812 Superfast – is expected to be complemented by height-adjustable suspension and an active anti-roll system to keep body roll to a minimum, while still allowing leeway for a modicum of off-road ability.

Galliera says the Purosangue will slot seamlessly into a four-pillar model line-up that includes mainstream range models, special series offerings (such as the Ferrari 812 Competizione) and bespoke Icona models (such as the mould-breaking Monza SP).

At the top of the pile will be an apex supercar, with a successor to the LaFerrari currently in the pipeline.

The forecast for 2022-26 is for range models to account for 85 per cent of sales, 10 per cent for special series cars and a combined total of five per cent for Icona and the upcoming supercar.

Peak performance models in the foreseeable future will employ hybrid technology, with the successor to the LaFerrari also featuring a petrol-electric powertrain.

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