Thoroughbred

14-10-19 Cavallino off the road

After Ferrari intention to develop their electric supercar, now they are stepping up development of its eagerly anticipated SUV, which will push the brand in an entirely new direction for comfort, interior design, space and powertrain technology.

Due in 2022 and being developed under the codename Purosangue, which translates as ‘thoroughbred’, the Ferrari SUV promises to be like no other performance or ultra-luxury SUV on the market thanks to positioning unique from the likes of the Aston Martin DBX, Bentley Bentayga, Lamborghini Urus and Rolls-Royce Cullinan.

That concept is based around Ferrari’s ability to mix a bespoke architecture – as opposed to one shared across a wider group, such as the Volkswagen Touareg and Audi Q7-derived MLB platform used by the Bentayga and Urus – that not only endows the car with Ferrari levels of performance and dynamic ability but also the space, comfort and user-friendly cabin required of an SUV.

“The challenge is to open a new segment for Ferrari,” said Leiters. “We always have very, very sharp positioning. It helps to develop cars in a certain, focused manner and easily decide certain trade-offs.

“The trade-off decision is totally different for us here. We will have totally new engineering challenges.”

Ferrari remains tight-lipped on the Purosangue’s specifics but is happy to discuss the theory and challenges behind pushing the brand in its most radical direction yet in its illustrious 72-year history. (...)