A Ferrari has never been as suitable for everyday use as this one – 725 hp

The bad news is: A truck slows down the journey through the foothills of the Alps, which automatically leads to the thought that this 725 hp twelve-cylinder simply doesn't deserve it. The good news, again, is that the truck is a winter gritting service vehicle, and as tempting as the Ferrari Purosangue's dynamic driving capabilities may be, the view first falls humbly on the snowy landscape, then on the shiny road surface, and thus it comes into focus associated dangers in memory. So it's better to switch the “Manettino” – the little wheel on the steering wheel where you select the driving setting in the cars from Maranello – to “Ice” and carefully move forward through the Tyrolean idyll.

In the last few days, Ferrari presented the Purosangue in Kitzbühel, the car that, according to the brand, required by far the greatest development work for a single automobile. Because it goes without saying that you are familiar with sports cars, but the Purosangue is not just a new type of automobile for Ferrari, but is viewed as a completely new model category for the entire industry: The first four-seater with four doors from Ferrari, built in the tradition of the 2nd World War +2 seaters like the Berlinetta models 250 GT/E and 330 GT – but completely different. Above all, it is not a high-end sports SUV, as has been offered in a brand-appropriate interpretation by various other manufacturers since the Porsche Cayenne was launched in 2002. 185 millimeters of ground clearance is significantly more than, for example, the Ferrari SF90 (maximum 40 millimeters), and a lot less than a Lamborghini Urus (up to 250 mm).

The Purosangue has a transaxle drive, i.e. the mid-engine behind the front axle, and the gearbox behind the pilot on the rear axle. A car with the very best weight distribution, suitable for long journeys, with comfortable space for two passengers in the rear, and with the seat folded down there is more than enough storage space for at least two holidaymakers to travel comfortably from Hamburg or Cologne or Munich or wherever from where on their skiing holiday to Gstaad , Verbier or St. Moritz. Or: To Kitzbühel. So much for the theory.

So there are seven Purosangue in front of the Hotel Schwarzer Adler so that some customers and journalists can test drive the car, which is considered THE current It automobile, for which high six-figure sums are now being demanded on the secondary market, which exceeds the official starting price of around 380,000 euros suddenly appear to be an excellent investment. Purosangue production – which is supposed to make up a maximum of 20 percent of Ferrari’s total production of around 13,200 cars per year – is currently completely sold out. Most of the cars ordered were sold before and shortly after the first presentation in September 2022. However, the vast majority will only reach their new owners in the coming years, and so the test drive here is for most guests a first encounter with their future fun vehicle. A former national soccer team captain is said to have been spotted. Also a very successful German comedian.

What is certain is that there has never been a Ferrari in which you can move from A to B so comfortably. By Maranello standards, the cockpit is downright opulent; in the company's thoroughbred sports cars, they are known to lean towards minimalism at the highest level; in the mountain Ferrari, it can be a touch more without losing the tactile usability. The Purosangue is over two meters wide, and yet it steers clearly and confidently even over narrow and winding mountain roads. When driving at a leisurely pace, the 12-cylinder is reserved, the Burmester system shows its acoustic brilliance, but as soon as the driving style changes it's back, the unrivaled Ferrari sound, especially when you control the eight-speed dual-clutch transmission manually using paddle shifters . With ground clearance and the mid-engine transaxle design, the car actually drives differently than any SUV or any high-performance station wagon or any high-engined sedan. Given the road conditions and the prevailing speed limits, it cannot be checked 100%, but the drive through the mountains gives an idea of ​​how much fun and confidence the car can have, even at higher speeds, up and down the mountains. So in summer the Julier Pass to St. Moritz and then over the Maloja Pass towards Lake Como and Milan – a road trip dream.

But even in winter, the Purosangue – the name translates to “thoroughbred” – proves to be a cavallino with overview and flawless performance. Well, when set to automatic mode, the sensors don't recognize the snowflakes, and the windshield wipers beat unusually hard even on the first setting. Operating the infotainment system using touch buttons is just as nice but takes a lot of getting used to, and yet a Ferrari has never been as suitable for everyday use as this one.

That's exactly what makes the car suspect for old-school connoisseurs. But that's exactly why so many friends of the brand immediately ordered it. Visually it is a sculpture on wheels, flowing aesthetics, an aerodynamic symbiosis of steel and carbon. It's still – a sports car. And at the same time it has a reserved look for Italian conditions in general and for high-end automobiles in particular. The car has “sprezzatura,” that quintessentially Italian skill in which elegance is exemplified with such confidence and ease that one cannot help but admire it. Knowing full well that it would never work like that in a German or Japanese or American guise. A car that nobody needs, and yet that so many wealthy horsepower enthusiasts absolutely want. A Ferrari that has a ski roof rack! At this point we would strongly advise you to transport your skis in the ski bag in the interior, if at all possible, so that you can at least use the race mode on the journey on the German motorway, before you can get going with momentum Serpentines go.