In 2022 Ferrari launched the Purosangue, Italian for ‘thoroughbred’, the historic marque’s first foray into the four-door and four-wheel drive high performance vehicle segment. Dubbed a Ferrari Utility Vehicle or a Super Utility Vehicle, this is the first true family-friendly Ferrari and I could not wait to get behind the wheel of one.
Well, I got early Christmas present and had the opportunity to drive this Design Pack spec Grigio Titanio Purosangue. To really see how it handled family life I brought my children and hubby along for the ride because it was also the first day of school holidays. We drove the Purosangue on highways, twisty roads, a ferry, and peak hour Sydney traffic to really test its metal and here’s my verdict.
The Purosangue stands out from the rest of this market segment as the only car with these proportions to sport a mid-front-mounted, naturally-aspirated V12 engine. The 6.5 litre engine has been designed to produce the highest amount of torque at lowest revs possible without losing the feeling of linear, never-ending power typical of Ferrari’s naturally-aspirated V12s. The result is 80% of the maximum torque is on tap at just 2,100rpm, peaking at 716Nm at 6,250rpm, so you can really punch out of the corners.
Maximum power of 533kWh is reached at 7,750rpm and meaning the V12 is the most powerful engine ever developed by Ferrari for a four-seater car. The Purosangue can do 0 to 100 km/h in 3.3 seconds and from 0 to 200 in 10.6 seconds and on to a maximum speed of greater than 310km/h. I don’t think I even fully explored the V12’s abilities during my day with it and my fuel use figure concurs with that assumption because I used 17.2L/100km for the day, just under the official combined fuel consumption of 17.3L/100km. That isn’t to say I didn’t have loads of fun driving the Purosangue and although the V12 alone makes the this an exceptionally special vehicle, Ferrari didn’t stop there in the development of this company first.
The Purosangue has a Power Transfer Unit coupled in front of the engine and an eight-speed F1 dual-clutch gearbox at the rear to provide a unique 4×4 transmission. There are no off-road drive modes though, only Ice, Wet, Comfort, Sport, ESC off. I spent most of the time in Comfort mode, mainly to use cruise control, and flicked to Sport mode on the twisty bits. The centre console mounted toggles are used to engage reverse, neutral is engaged with a pull on the paddle shifters, and to drive you pull on the upshift paddle. There’s an option to have the 8-speed ‘box in auto or manual mode and L engages launch mode, but I didn’t try this out.
There’s plenty of usable power from the glorious V12 and it can understandably really get up and go at higher revs. The F1-style shift lights at top of the steering wheel go from red to blue under hard application of the throttle as you accelerate hard towards the 8,250rpm red-line. The Purosangue also allows you to quickly pull down on the steering-column mounted carbon fibre paddle shifters while you’re hard on the standard fitment carbon-ceramic brakes.
The only letdown of the Purosangue’s performance was the subdued exhaust note thanks to two progressive silencers in the exhaust system now linked to the Manettino settings. The unmistakable V12 harmonics are present, but the noise from the black ceramic coated tailpipes was nowhere near as loud as the V12 GTC4 Lusso I have previously driven. This may be due to tightening EU regulations in the area of exhaust volume in recent times?
Another example of the technological developed on the Purosangue is the FAST (Ferrari Active Suspension Technology) that enables their cars to apply the best suspension for every driving condition by keeping the vehicle body at the best elevation for riding. FAST controls body roll in corners as well as the tyre contact patch over high-frequency bumps. This trick suspension does an excellent job providing a smooth ride over broken pavement even though the Purosangue rides on 22-inch Orbit Grey/Diamond Cut forged wheels at the front with 255/35 Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S tyres and 23-inch rims at the back with 315/30 tyres. The steering is precise thanks to the very latest iterations of the vehicle dynamic control systems introduced on Ferrari’s most powerful and exclusive sports cars, including independent four-wheel steering and ABS ‘evo’ with the 6-way Chassis Dynamic Sensor.
The Purosangue offers an impressive array of driver assistance (ADAS) features as standard, many of which were developed in collaboration with Bosch, including Adaptive Cruise Control, Automatic Emergency Brake System, Lane Departure Warning, Lane Keeping Assist, Blind Spot Detection, and Rear Cross Traffic Alert. Another Ferrari first is Hill Descent Control, which considering the wheels and tyres on this vehicle is something owners will most likely never use. You also get auto lights with auto high beam and auto wipers. Plus, a standard view camera adjacent to a 360-degree view camera with front and rear parking sensors, to help you keep well clear of kerbing those huge wheels.
Ferrari designers for the aero development focused on making the bodywork, underbody and rear diffuser as efficient as possible and on this highly specced Purosangue much of it is carbon fibre. New solutions include synergy between the front bumper and wheel arch trim that generates an air curtain that aerodynamically seals the front wheels. I particularly like the treatment that the rear window has received that includes curved glass and clever aerodynamics, so the rear screen is cleaned by the air flow and does not require a wiper. This high-riding the Purosangue also has the suspension lifter, which I scoffed at first about, but when we were driving onto the Wiseman’s Ferry crossing, I was glad I had it. I cannot see many other supercars could make this crossing, an example of how the Purosangue can really open up your road selection options for driving adventures.
The most iconic feature of the Purosangue would have to be the electric, rear-hinged back doors that Ferrari calls ‘welcome doors’ and offer ease of access to the palatial rear seats. The electric-powered rear doors open by simply touching of the tab at the top of the doors and close when you touch this from the outside or if in the car, by pressing the button on the B-pillar. All four doors have push buttons to open from the inside, soft close, and thanks to the keyless entry and keyless start, the rectangle key fob can remain in your handbag at all times.
In the cabin Ferrari has dispensed with a central screen instead opting for a driver’s cockpit inspired by the SF90 Stradale that’s almost exactly mirrored on the passenger side, creating a cossetting feel for the front passengers. One feature I’m not a fan of is the annoying gloss black elements used on the centre console and dash around the front passenger’s 10.2” display because they quickly attract dust and finger marks. My children found operating the passenger screen easier than I did, and thankfully so. Not being familiar with the Purosangue’s controls I ended up asking whoever was in the passenger seat to change the radio station or adjust the volume for me, for example. I now know that these controls are actually located behind the heated steering wheel.
Also the steering wheel’s touch controls that the driver uses to access the infotainment menus are fiddly to operate and I wanted to touch the driver’s dash to make a menu selection, of course I couldn’t do that. The wired Android Auto worked well for me and this info displays on the driver’s dash, but when in use the big digital taco at the centre of the screen disappears. There’s also head-up display that shows your speed and revs, among other information.
The cabin has four separate and independently adjustable seats that use variable density foams that are heated and cooled. I found the front seats comfortable, but there were some complaints from the rear seat occupants by the end of the day. This leather colour is called Tortora and all four seats can be adjusted from the passenger display or by the occupant individually. Both front seats have power adjustment on the side of their seat for recline, forward/back, and seat height front and rear, with the driver’s seat also having three memory positions. While from the passenger screen you can also adjust the front leg extension, lumbar support, and side bolster adjustment for both front seats.
My Purosangue was optioned with the massaging front seats that feature 10 air bags that deliver a choice of five different types of massage, Wave, Stretch, Shiatsu, Lumbar and Shoulder, with intensity adjustment. The massage was perfect for me while I was driving the best part of a million dollars’ worth of Ferrari in peak hour Sydney traffic, the only thing was I had to get passenger to turn it on it from their screen for me to enjoy them.
Sustainable materials have been used extensively throughout the Purosangue, with 85% of the launch trim for the car being sustainably produced. The fabric roof-lining is recycled polyester, the carpet is made from polyamide recycled from fishing nets retrieved from the oceans. The newly formulated Alcantara is also derived from 68% of post-consumer recycled polyester and the Purosangue is the very first car in the world to use this special version of the material. Although most of the interior was covered in leather and did smell lovely in the Purosangue, it lacked the intensity of aroma that vehicles of a similar calibre have.
The front climate controls are adjusted using an annoying pop-up rotary switch and the heating and cooling controls for the front seats can also be adjusted from here as well as on the passenger screen. Like the vast majority vehicles that have cooled seats, the Purosangue’s were noisy when operating. They also did not feel as good as the cooled seats in the GTC4 Lusso, one feature, I vividly remember about it. I did like the design of the air vent just behind the climate controls that can cool your fingers while driving the Purosangue.
The Burmester 3D High-End Surround Sound System makes its debut in a Ferrari vehicle as standard equipment in the Purosangue with media sources including AM radio, FM/DAB+, Bluetooth, and Smartphone. In another Ferrari first, owners have the opportunity to personalise the roof of their car: they can opt for a full-length electrochromic glass roof instead of this carbon-fibre version offered as standard.
The storage options in the Purosangue include a built-in cubby for your phone under the front arm rest with two USB-C ports and one 12V socket. A wireless charge pad for compatible devices is located in the cubby at the front of the centre console and the cup holders under a flip-up cover in the centre console and have grippy sides to hold your drink in place while tackling corners. In the front doors there is a narrow deep storage cubby and the rear door cubbies have storage for your Ferrari drink bottle, but it’s on a 45-degree angle.
There’s plenty of head and leg room for two adults to enjoy the lovely sculptured rear seats that have powered adjustment forward/back and recline that can lean quite a way back. Rear seat passengers have individual climate controls for mode, temp and air speed and these are adjusted using the popup rotary switch on the centre console, similar to the front climate controls. There’s two central air vents and vents in the B-pillar and they all have individual direction and on/off controls.
Under the arm rest between the rear seats is a wireless charge pad for compatible devices and two USB-C ports and at the front of their centre console there is flip up cover that reveals two slim cup holders with grippy sides. Despite being surrounded by all of this Ferrari goodness my children still found something to argue about, proof that the Purosangue is a real family car. For younger passengers there are ISOfix/rear tether child seat restraint points on each seat.
The boot is the largest ever seen on a Ferrari and you can option a variety of luggage sets to suit the Purosangue when purchasing one. The powered boot lid can be opened/closed using the external button, key fob, or the button in the cabin. The boot space has four substantial tie down points, one 12V socket and there’s a specification plate detailing all the options this Purosangue is fitted with. The rear seats can be lowered almost flat using buttons in the boot for even more room if required, but you have remove the partition behind the rear seat to utilise this entire space. The rear tether points are also behind this partition and located at the base of each seat. Confusingly, the two tie down points at the rear of the boot could be easily mistaken for the rear tether points, thanks to the placement of the rear tether labelling.
Warranty on the Purosangue is three years and unlimited kilometres and genuine maintenance is complimentary for the first seven years of ownership. The service intervals are either 20,000 km or once a year.
Ferrari could never have expected the success of the Purosangue as it was only ever going to be a niche car not a high-volume car so wait times quickly blew out after its release. The Ferrari CEO underlined that Purosangue would never represent more than 20% of total vehicle production for Ferrari. So, let’s do some quick maths to see how the introduction of the Purosangue has benefitted Ferrari’s bottom line, justifying their entry into this lucrative segment.
For the year ended December 31, 2023 total vehicle shipments for Ferrari were 13,663, an increase of 442 cars or 3.3%, compared to 13,221 for the year ended December 31, 2022. According to the 2023 Annual Report for Ferrari one factor that attributed to the increase in shipments was the Purosangue, which was in ramp up phase in the second half of 2023. The increased volume also saw an increase in net revenues from cars and spare parts worldwide and in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, which includes Australia, Ferrari saw a €86 million increase in net revenues for 2023.
For the first nine months of 2024 the total number of vehicles sold was 10,427, so Ferrari are on track to exceed the total figure sold for 2023. Advances (deposits) received from customers for the purchase of Ferrari cars, shown in the 2023 Annual Report, increased by just under 15% compared to 2022, and that Ferrari stated this was primarily related to advances received for the Purosangue and the Roma Spider. In 2024, 61 lucky people in Australia added a Purosangue to their garage, representing 25% of all Ferrari sales in Australia for that year.
Its popularity is justified because the Purosangue gives you the ability to share your Ferrari passion with your family without compromises on comfort. I started my car reviewing career with a Ferrari California T and if I had to, I would happily end it with this Ferrari because it’s the ultimate package in my mind. Pricing for the Ferrari Purosangue starts at $728,000 plus dealer delivery and on-road costs before personalisation. You can configure your Purosangue online or visit your preferred Ferrari dealer for more information.
| Pros | Cons |
| The glorious V12 engine | The lack of exhaust noise |
| The ride comfort | The fiddly controls for climate and infotainment |
| It’s a true family-friendly Ferrari | Potential confusion with rear tether placement |
Photographs by Driven Women magazine.