GO LUXE WITH GTC4LUSSO
This all-season Ferrari is roomy enough to handle family duty
Until Ferrari, iconic constructor of the most lustful sports cars in the world, inevitably succumbs to the temptation of building some ultimate version of sport-utility vehicle, its new GTC4Lusso will have to stand in as the most family-friendly, all-season-capable vehicle in its lineup.
The car, a replacement for the somewhat formal-styled, fourwheel-drive FF, is Maranello’s latest fine-tuning of the shooting brake coupe concept, providing four-seat accommodations in a more streamlined, tapered shape that gives it more of a fastback-like profile.
Pictures do not do it justice. Looking at the GTC4Lusso — a model designation that does not trip off the tongue — as a sports car might be hard to swallow for the gentler esthete. It is striking, being sleek and slippery until just past the rear wheels, where it drops off hatchback-style, ending with a little flip-up spoiler. It’s not just for show, either. The slotted diffuser and rear spoiler, which are integrated with the hatch, help reduce drag and improve aerodynamic efficiency — all the better to assist it in reaching its maximum speed of 335 kilometres an hour.
It’s long as well, a stretchy 4,922 millimetres from tip to tail, which makes back-seat usage possible if not always practical (at least for those on the plus side of six feet). And, based on what it found with the former FF, Ferrari envisions the GTC4Lusso as more of a family vehicle, with a younger customer base who will make four-season use of the car and on a broader selection of roads. There’s actual luggage space, too — up to 800 litres.
The GTC4Lusso is fully capable of leaving devastation in its wake if one stomps on the loud pedal. Under that long hood lies a 6.3-litre V-12 pounding out 690 horsepower, making the GTC4Lusso, Ferrari claims, the most powerful car in its segment. The engine revs to 8,250 r.p.m., the noise sending vibrations through one’s nibbly bits.
But it’s not as though all the GTC’s power is up top. Maximum torque of 514 pound-feet is reached at a far lower 5,750 r.p.m., with 80 per cent already available at just 1,750 r.p.m. Dialed down several notches, the big Ferrari is positively docile. In full automatic mode, the seven-speed dual-clutch transmission shifts early and seamlessly, keeping the revs down and doing its best not to make a mockery of fuel-economy numbers.
Moving inside, the Lusso’s cabin is a classic combination of sporting business and high comfort. Typical of the latest Ferraris, many of the major controls (ignition, turn signals) are located on the steering wheel. A first for the car is what Ferrari refers to as dual cockpit architecture, which features both a driver cockpit and a passenger cockpit separated by a central divider on which are clustered all of the comfort-oriented controls common to both.
On the driver’s side — thanks to a steering wheel that is more compact due to a smaller airbag — the instrument clusters behind the wheel are now more visible. The controls, both primary and secondary, are also new and easier to use. On the front passenger side, the control commands are within easy reach, a dedicated LCD touchscreen providing the visual cues. In between the two cockpits rests a 26-centimetre full HD capacitive touchscreen.
The GTC4Lusso is not the most beautiful model in Ferrari’s lineup, though, as I said before, it is striking. And the thumbs up, grins and comments we received from the locals when passing — slowly — through towns was immediate confirmation both the car and the brand still provoke strong feelings of lust and yearning. More to the point, the Lusso is clearly the most mainstream model Ferrari has — for now. Four-season usability and four-seat capability make it less of a toy and more of (dare I say it?) a functional family vehicle, admittedly a very pricey and very fast family vehicle for very rich households.
The car will be in dealerships the third quarter of 2016. Pricing has not been announced, though it is expected to carry a sticker of more than US$300,000 in the United States.