Ferrari GTC4Lusso proving more popular than FF

FERRARI says its new FF-replacing GTC4Lusso has been tracking well with sales expectations following its release in mid-2017, and has so far been far more popular than the model it replaces.

Speaking to GoAuto at the Australian launch of the Portofino convertible in Byron Bay, Ferrari Australasia CEO Herbert Appleroth said the response to the new model has been promising.

“The V12, since it’s been on the market, has already doubled the sales of the FF which was also very popular,” he said.

“Most of those customers are coming from other brands, so GTC4Lusso has been very well received, and we’re just starting to market the T, the T being our V8.”

When it was launched, Ferrari was hopeful that the GTC4Lusso could make up at least ten per cent of overall Ferrari sales, which Mr Appleroth says has been achieved.

Ferrari has come off a record sales year in 2017 with 210 vehicle sales, up 11.7 per cent over the 188 new registrations it managed in 2016.

“If we look at deliveries last year it was well and truly double digits for the GTC4Lusso, for sure,” he said.

The GTC4Lusso is the first model in the Prancing Horse’s line-up to feature two different powertrain configurations, with the T variant employing a 449kW/760Nm twin-turbocharged 3.9-litre V8 that sends power exclusively to the rear wheels, with the addition of four-wheel steering.

For those that feel a 449kW V8 doesn’t satisfy their power requirements, the GTC4Lusso is also offered with a 507kW/697Nm 6.3-litre V12, and is Ferrari’s only model to employ an all-wheel-drive set-up.

With its all-paw driveline and relatively roomy interior by Ferrari’s standards, the company hoped at launch that the GTC4Lusso would be able to poach buyers previously trending towards SUV ownership.

With 450 litres of boot space, the GTC4Lusso is easily the most practical Ferrari model for hauling luggage.

Mr Appleroth said that it has succeeded in luring buyers away from luxury high-riding wagons.

“Most of the owners are coming from luxury SUVs which they have as a second car, whether it’s Range Rover or (Porsche) Cayenne or whatever it may be, we’re seeing a lot of new owners coming from those brands.”

Ferrari may not need to convert SUV buyers for long, as the rumour mill is swirling that Maranello engineers are developing a Ferrari SUV to take on the likes of the Lamborghini Urus and Bentley Bentayga.

At the Detroit motor show in January, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne confirmed that Ferrari is building its own high-riding wagon.

Speaking to British publication Auto Express, Mr Marchionne said he hoped the Ferrari SUV will be ready for production by late next year.

“Probably by the end of [20]19, the beginning of [20]20,” he said. “I’ve seen the car when I was in Europe eight days ago. So we are working on the vehicle but it’s not finished.

“It will look like whatever a Ferrari utility vehicle needs to look like … But it has to drive like a Ferrari.”