Transcription
Welcome. Today is a special day. The first Ferrari on Throttle House. And even though Canada's locked down, we've thrown caution to the wind that we've managed to get out and come here to beautiful continental Europe. A place a Ferrari is supposed to be driven.
"Goodbye, James!"
"What are you doing?"
"What? I... I told you not to spend our money on a green screen."
"It doesn't work if you're wearing green pants."
"It might. And what about the rest of the review?"
"It's obviously winter. Just let me have this."
You're watching Throttle House. I'm Thomas, and I'm James. And after a few too many weeks of crossovers, Kias, we got a hankering for something a bit more loud. But to maintain some semblance of control in Canadian winter, we've chosen the all-wheel drive, practical Ferrari. The one that's meant for all conditions, but it's still kind of a supercar.
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The GTC4Lusso. The most recent all-weather offering from Ferrari, well, before they release that Purosangue, Purosangue, Purosangue, whatever that SUV thing is they're making. And some would argue that this is as far into everyday livability that Ferrari should ever venture. Because trust us, as you'll see in a minute, this slightly under-the-radar hatchback, which when new was $490,000 Canadian, sacrifices nothing in the world of performance and drama. And because of the overly trustworthy heroes at Lockwood Leasing, who loaned us this car from their amazing collection, we all get to experience it. We do car reviews, track tests, and quite a lot of messing around. So subscribe and hit the bell.
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Now, this isn't a brand new car, but even still, the technology is mind-boggling. And I could tell you about the engine and its ridiculous specs: 6.3 liters, 12 cylinders, 680 horsepower, over an 8,000 RPM redline. But I think instead, I'll just let you listen to it.
I feel like I'm sitting in a sled behind 12 reindeer on crack. Hear that? That's the sound of exactly zero turbocharging. There are overtones to that sound that simply cannot be replicated by anything else other than a Ferrari V12. The way they tune these engines and the exhaust, it's just, oh my god. And the engine itself, it doesn't feel like it weighs anything. Transmission, oh so quick. And there's just this amazing bang on the upshift. And I know it's not turbocharged, but it blows my mind that 80% of the torque is available at 750 RPM. How? How have they done that?
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I... I mean, like, I know how, decades of engineering. But I don't care. It's just, oh, what a thing. Now, the last sport V12 we were in was the Aventador SVJ, and this has to be said, is not as crazy as that car. But if you think that Lambo's practical car is the V8 Urus, Ferrari wins by default. It's nuts to think that the 812 Ferrari has an even crazier engine than this. But this has something that the 812 doesn't: a particularly unique all-wheel drive system. It has a two-speed transmission in the front just to drive the front wheels. But driving this, it seems like Ferrari were reluctant to do that even still, because it drives like a rear-wheel drive monster. That's why it's hard not to love Ferrari. Because at all costs, they prioritize performance. And by at all costs, I mean considerable cost in engineering, and considerable cost to you, the consumer, when you buy one of these things. But the point is, is that this is fundamentally a sports car. Because it's a front-midship design. That means the entire engine is behind the front axle line, right here. That's why it handles so well. You see, an Audi is the exact opposite of this. The engine is all the way up here. That's why it plows wide in the corners. But Ferrari didn't stop there. Usually, the transmission in a rear-wheel drive car is here. This is a transaxle. So the transmission is actually back here, except for the little one in the front that James mentioned earlier. This drives like a sports car first. It almost feels like Ferrari were reluctant to make it all-wheel drive, because it is all-wheel drive, but only in a couple of drive modes, and only until you get to fourth gear. And even then, it's so rear-wheel drive biased, and so bloody powerful. So if I put it in Sport mode, I mean, 100% rear-wheel drive. So on a day like today, with Michelin PS4s, if I floor it...
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My favorite thing about this car is its Jekyll and Hyde nature. I'm in Sport mode right now. The transmission is aggressive, the ride is firmer. I've got the light on the steering wheel showing me when I need to shift. But drop it into Comfort, turn it into Automatic, and you have a car that you can drive across the country with your buddies, comfortable in the back. It goes straight to seventh gear for fuel economy, which is ambitious. It's comfortable. There's visibility, great driving position. It is a little bit loud on the highway at cruise. There's a lot of road noise coming in, but I guess that's interesting part of the fact that it's so light. But they did what they could. They've even double-glazed the windows.
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As James said, it is a very comfortable car. There's nothing too aggressive about it when you're in Comfort mode, or Wet, or Snow, using my Manettino. That's the name of this little thing down here. But if you're brave, you click it over into Sport, or God forbid, ESC off, and it turns into a pretty wild thing. I will say that the rear steer... oh geez. This is a bit weird. Some... sometimes it's a Sport mode. Oh my god. Yeah, it just... it turns into something. Oh, what's the word? Dangerous. That's it. Found it quickly. It can catch you out. It really can. But I mean, I don't think I'd want any less than that. The crazy thing is, is that this steering is like the slow steering. They intentionally engineered it to be a little bit soft on center so it doesn't feel so darty. But to me, coming out of normal cars, I can't imagine what the 812 Superfast is like, or the 488. Like, the steering must be way too quick. Because this, as it is, turning into the corner, feels like you're running in a straight line, and then you get tackled. Not only is it quick and accurate, but there is genuine road texture and feedback to a degree that I have... I have not felt this in a modern car. Like, bumps, pops, undulations, I can feel the contact patch of the tire. It's just so, so good.
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Now, I have to say it. I have to say it. I really do. I know it's a cliché, but we've driven super wagons before. The E63 S and the RS6. They're great cars. But this... this car is alive in a way that they are not. Is it worth $300,000 more than those?
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Yeah. Especially to the people who can actually buy one. Oh man, the doors don't open very wide. I thought you would have fit. Six months ago, I would have. Yeah, I've been doing smash burgers at home. I saw they're really good. It did look really good. Yeah. Yes. I'm sorry, Ferrari. This is an unbelievable car. It's fantastic. It just is. It's been such a novelty to today. And I... I don't know whether it's because we just got out of a Kia. No, it is because we just got it. I do know that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, the V12. Everything. Just so... it's alive, right? It's absolutely, absolutely alive in a way that not just not normal cars, but other, just other expensive cars are not quite in the same level. Well, listen, I'm not ashamed to admit it. This is my first Ferrari. Well, I'm glad that we could do your first Ferrari experience in Canada, in the snow. This is not how you start going down. It's an all-wheel drive car. It is an all-wheel drive. Some of the time. Yeah. It doesn't look like a Ferrari either. People, when you see a shooting brake, it's a shooting brake. But when you see it from far away, normally you see Corvettes. Like, not everyone's obsessed with cars. No. They see a Corvette, or in the right light, a Miata. From far away, it looks like a Ferrari. Yeah. This one, until you get close, they don't realize. Yeah. Then they see the badge on the side. Oh, they love it. And we had... we had a guy pull over in a truck stop, block traffic, roll down the window, and he went, "All right, yeah, nice car." He'd blocked traffic. Uh, obviously, this is a successor to the FF. Yes. Would you... can you tell the difference? They also... yeah, they don't really. The things are the, uh, the twin tail lights. Yeah. There's one in the FF and two in this on each side. Yeah. Right. And then the, the side, the side vent. Yes. Well, it is an FF just reskinned, pretty much. Which is dressed by this beautiful Ferrari bag. Yeah. It's lovely. Which is a $2,000 extra. Yeah. Yeah. They do everything. I think I feel like the wheels are extra as well. I mean, does it just not come with wheels? And then you're forced... The wheels are $9,000 extra. Yeah. Yeah. It's a lot. God, I love playing the Ferrari options. Before we look inside, let's just... I just want to, just want to look at that engine one more time. Yeah. I think the ride height just raised when you open the door. That's fancy. Okay. A little bit slippery today. Yeah. It's a little bit slippery. Careful over there. Wow. I've already looked at it. The F140. Yes. Descendant of the Enzo. That's a big purebred. That's a big thing. I love these words. All these words. Descendant, purebred. You just get to use them when you're talking about a Ferrari. It's the only time. If you could, if you could claim to be the descendant of an Enzo, you would. I totally would. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, yeah. I feel like sometimes, you know, I run really fast. I feel like I am. You know. All right. So let's go look inside. Okay. Yes. Why, thank you. I actually don't... I don't need it right now. I'm not hungry. Um, so this is a beautiful, beautiful interior. It really is. So, some people have have said in the past, and I've been... I haven't been in a Ferrari this new. The one that I drove was from years ago, but I've heard that the quality isn't that good. Is it? Am I missing something? Right. It feels... because this is incredibly stunning, unbelievable. Like, this center console is rock solid. There's almost no creaks anywhere. And the leather is just so much. So fast. You see, open the house. There's an amazing amount of power. Does it power down? Does it power down? We're gonna find out in a second. So, anyway, yeah, I wanted the fresh air, really. So, so this is GTC4Lusso. Over there. Yes. And it's a beautiful thing. Yeah. And so it's... it was it the Gran Turismo Coupe for the four seats? Yes. Lusso for luxury. Luxury. It is. It's a corner. I know you like it. But I don't know. Hold on. I don't know. You don't like the name. You don't get to say it's a cool name because you complained. Yes. You look, it's a thumbnail. I don't like you. Super losers. I think it's a missed opportunity. We did say it was alive. I think GTC4Lusso is a missed opportunity because they just had the FF. They could have gone 2F2F for this one. They could have embraced their inner Vin Diesel. And instead, they went the classy way, which is, I guess. Like, GTC4Lusso is a brilliant name. I love saying GTC4Lusso. GTC4Lusso. It just all flows out. And this has the upgraded, uh, the passenger screen, which is like, it's very expensive. It's like at five, six grand. Yeah. But it's so cool. It's a touchscreen. It's really, really working. I can get any of the information. If I go to the, uh, this setting here, right? We showed this already, but like, how cool is that? I get to see what's happening. I go to Comfort. We've got three, four-wheel drive. Yeah. We go to Wet. There's only two of you. There's two four-wheel drives. Why does that go down? And then, which we've used today. We have used Snow. We had to. Yes. Yeah. Or we wouldn't be here. Because this is a winter car. If you want it to be. Yes. Now, uh, honestly, like, just like the, the look of this is a bit visually busy. Like, these are like F-16 like jet exits pointing at your face. The steering wheel is just a, just so much going on. I get it. I think it's one. Yeah. I think it's pretty. It is just really cool. This is, this, this rev counter is a thousand dollar upgrade to have it in aluminum. But every time I say it, someone talks about it, and I've failed now because we're still talking about it. There's a feeling of like, you know, you're in the best kind of, when you're in it. Yeah. You're in the best shooting brake. Yeah. However, I do understand why Urus is, and why they go in the SUV way. Because I don't... I don't. But if you want the Ferrari brand, and you want that other car as the antithesis to your 458 or your Enzo. Yeah. This with the ground clearance and the rear-drive bias, it doesn't quite match the opposite. If you wanted to stay in brand. But the thing is, if you have one of these, you probably also have a Urus. Maybe. Yeah. Maybe. So, I... I mean, it has usable back seats. They're... they're very usable. Like, there's enough headroom, and there's enough like, like, you're in a driving position right now. This is also a really expensive option. Yeah. The leather is everywhere. The glass roof. Yeah. How much is that again? It's like 20 grand. Not worth it. I would honestly, I'm spending half a million dollars on this car, which is what it was. Yeah. I would get that screen. That way. This roof costs like five times the amount that Greg's Subaru does. But, but it's a horse. The passenger now gets an open-air experience. What they do now, because you've opened the hatch, and we don't know how to close it. Yeah. No, I don't know. I don't care about the passenger. This is a car for me. If I'm sitting here as a driver, like, I can't... I can't use it. No. That is what the GTC4Lusso is. It's... it's for the... if this is, if this car is for you, it's the wrong Ferrari for you. You'd be better off in the, in the F12, I think. I would. Thanks for, thanks for noticing that. That's, that's why this car to me is a bit strange. You mean the FF originally stood for the Ferrari for your family? It's the worst joke. I'm sorry. We'll cut that out. Oh, that was... I can do better. You disgrace the whole of Italy. I could do better than that. Okay. But yeah, I... I think this is, this car feels a weird niche that SUVs have quickly. The Urus, and the future Ferrari SUV, is going to easily replace. Sadly. Sadly. Or if only because, I guess, sadly. This is cool. Sad. Sappy. Sadly. Or, depending on where you stand, maybe not sadly. The world has decided that super sport wagons and shooting brakes are not quite the immovable objects required to prevent the unstoppable force that is the super SUV. No doubt the Purosangue, like the Urus, will be a formidably good vehicle. But perhaps the "pure" in Purosangue will always belong to the GTC4Lusso. Because after all, this is the only, and perhaps the last, four-seat, all-wheel drive, naturally aspirated V12, no compromises, everyday weapon. In fact, it might be in a class of its own. If Ferrari's new SUV comes with a naturally aspirated V12, I'll happily eat my words. But this... this might be it. The ultimate.
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Car.
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You.