Ferrari GTC4 Lusso: The Song Remains The Same (Long Live The V12)

10 April 2018 Redazione News, Tested

SUPERCARS & ROAD TRIPS

FERRARI GTC4 LUSSO

THE SONG REMAINS THE SAME

Words: Alessandro Marrone

Photography: Gian Romero

It seems like so many years have passed since Led Zeppelin were singing “The Song Remains The Same”. The world around us is unrecognizable, music, art, the people and obviously cars. But Robert Plant was insistent and flanked by Jimmy Page & company emphasized that the music was and would always be one, like a beautiful dream that should never end, not even in the morning as those images and those dreamy sounds would have been replaced by raw reality. A song, a poem or more simply the story of some emotions, the attempt to put on paper or vinyl those feelings that fill our souls and that carve a special place in our little world, an intimate and private place where sometimes we even struggle to make our way. Switching from a rock icon to a motoring icon is not so difficult, we have always seen showy and powerful cars to those rock stars who would never have accepted anything rational or a look that was not out of the ordinary. Ferrari is the history of automotive, the past, the present and future of a brand that with the passing of its 70 years (celebrated last year), has achieved a planetary notoriety, producing some of the brightest engineering masterpieces that have ever crossed the roads of these worlds – yes, especially that of our dreams. Because it is not a secret that we all sin with lust and yearn for that steering wheel with a black rampant horse in the middle of a yellow dot, a representation of strength, speed, courage and elegance. I’m returning to Maranello to get familiar with the new GTC4 Lusso, the best and fastest way to go on vacation. And I cannot wait.

When the FF arrived in 2011, the first Ferrari with all-wheel drive, it was greeted with discordant opinions. Who was pointing out as a misstep by Maranello and who understood that it was a way to use a dream car without having to check the weather forecast first. Indeed, to be honest, the fantastic traction combined with the 660 horsepower of its V12 has really made it the best alternative to that tide of hyper sedans and crazy wagons. Why? It is something about prestige and a Ferrari is such for one reason above all the others: the way it manages to make any movement special. A few years have passed and we are ready for a new model, which maintains the same characteristics of practicality, usability and performance, being able to elevate and perfect a convincing design but which still lacked a 100% precise identity, the same that created in the years of existence, paving the way for a worthy heir to the high-sounding name – here is the GTC4 Lusso. Maranello’s grand tourer, also available with a V8 (GTC4 Lusso T) version, is the result of a careful work in every aspect. After a good year after its official launch, and impressive sales figures, the GTC4 Lusso has shown how to satisfy the tastes of a younger clientele and be able to grind kilometers like any other family car. Ferrari call it “the recipe for success” and we can’t blame that, that’s why for our test drive we’ve been suggested to look for a snowy road and bring the car exactly where you would never think of finding a Ferrari, or at least you would have never thought up to a decade ago. We decide, also because of the bad weather that has hit the region in recent days, to focus our energies to discover the soul of this great first-class tourer and set the sat-nav for a route full of curves and switchbacks going up, in order to put that huge winter tires on a soft white blanket.

Taking a Ferrari for a drive is like grooming and saddling your horse before an excursion into the most pristine nature. You will want to get lost and stay out as long as possible, not closing that fantastic day, but it all starts with a careful analysis of the mechanical package at my disposal. The GTC4 line has been made even sharper thanks to a new front, a lowered belt line and a new tail that integrates the four round lights and the two pairs of exhaust tips. There is a very precise pattern in the design of this creature of Maranello, but the perception is always that of a high emotional encounter: despite the maniacal accuracy of the assembly and the functionality of the rear diffuser, all that transpires is the desire to hit the heart of those who are beholding, or trying to keep the pace while following our tail embellished by a tricolor on display in the middle of the trunk. It’s low, incredibly wide and asks to set everything on fire, so I obey and press the power button on the steering wheel, this time without the need to insert the key because we have a keyless starting system. Here it is, its naturally aspirated 12-cylinder, a 6.2cc which represents the perfect marriage between artwork and a musical instrument. Its roar fills the cockpit and sweeps away the dry leaves on the ground behind the car. It seems to be sitting in command of a space cruiser, embraced by the comfortable leather-colored armchairs. My patience is put to the test, as we leave the busy streets of Maranello, I follow the voice of the sat-nav keeping me company during the spasmodic wait and the journey South. There is a road not far from the factory, a dozen hairpin bends , a rough asphalt in good condition able to ensure the right grip, but a visibility and a solitude that allow our most animal instinct to take over. Fortunately, today there is no one around and while crossing the river that represents the boundary with the circle of the lustful of our personal Dante’s Inferno, it is as if I entered a world on its own – time to turn up the volume and feed the Prancing Horse.

The acceleration of the GTC4 Lusso is disarming, its traction is impeccable and with the four wheels that bite the asphalt you are sketched forward without a minimum of hesitation. First, second, third and I have to throw all of myself on the brakes before attempting a corner entry without the slightest chance of getting out of it. The first stretch of road is mostly hilly and the curves are wide and rather permissive, a good opportunity to move the manettino in Sport and notice how the setting and steering become stiffer, the throttle turns more sensible and engine revs are still more ready to launch that scream in the middle of the valley. There are hairpins, and with the same drama of a fight until death, we enter the stomach of the beast, with a 4 seats of almost two tons and almost 5 meters in length. I still can’t believe that it has given me the possibility to keep the accelerator pedal so deep, thanks to a series of engineering devils that regulate the torque delivery and the distribution of the traction supplying up to 90% of the same power on a single wheel. But there’s more, in fact, the rear steering axle virtually shortens the GTC4’s wheelbase, making it as agile as a two-seater and allowing sudden changes in direction, without the slightest risk of unbalancing weights or driving the car into unexpected oversteer. They have made a pact with the devil, there is no other explanation. I thought I was impressed, but I never imagined what else it would be capable of. Its 12 cylinders unleash 690 horses at around 8000 rpm, a crazy power that in most cases could almost seem superfluous, if not useless. But when the most insidious corners leave room for some wider stretch and I downshift a couple of gears through the big carbon fiber paddles fixed to the steering column, all I can think of is to keep my hands firm as the excursion of the right leg towards the floor. The first time you attempt to go flat out in here, you are stunned, the second one too and the third … well, again. You can’t get used to a 4-seater that makes filling the trunk of trolleys and suitcases easy as reaching 200 kph (from standstill) in just 10 and a half seconds. The progression is continuous and everything is made even more insane by that incessant cry, a primitive cry that just over 2800/3000 revs becomes surreal and full of nuances and ribs that would make Beethoven pale.

I hardly accept the fact of putting a stop to this frenetic race, completely forgetting our search for the snow and realizing that I have not heard the voice of the navigator for the last fifteen turns. Better turn it off and drive with the sole purpose of living an experience that only a Ferrari can offer. On board, in addition to luxury and comfort – even for the two passengers who sit in the back – there is a lot of attention to technology, with the passenger display that allows to frighten to death the person sitting next to you, but also to intervene on the sat-nav, on the radio and monitor the on-board computer in general. An extra option that will keep busy in the rare moments you will not be overdosed by the V12. Returning to the driver’s seat, we find a three screens instrumentation, where only the rev counter in the center remains analog. Two full-color 5-inch displays on both sides, through which you can control the various parameters of the car, odometer, radio and navigator. The big touch screen in the center of the dashboard is also new, a 10.25-inch display with a new software, much faster, more intuitive and precise than before. Finally, entering a destination is no longer a difficult task to accomplish. I understand that it is important to tell you how comfortable and practical life on board is, but I am sure that the first thought always comes back in the engine bay and so I close the large boot lid and I fasten the seat belt, ready to leave a little ‘rubber on the asphalt. By turning off traction control you do not have the impression of risking your life at every turn, the precision entering corners remains one of the strong points of the GTC4 Lusso and after a while you really feel a strong confidence with the “virtually shortened wheelbase”, applied for the first time after the arrival on the special edition F12 TdF. The 697Nm of torque available are therefore exploitable without thinking too much about the consequences of a risky maneuver or a road surface that has remained damp under the shade of dense vegetation. When the rear begins to widen, it does that gradually and warning that it will be necessary to intervene on the steering wheel. You immediately establish a relationship of trust and complicity with the car and this makes the trip relaxing and fun at the same time.

But like all beautiful things that can be addictive – and trust me, it creates a lot of addiction – there is always the risk of going beyond that subtle limit that you have to deal with having in your hands a supercar of over € 250,000. The risk of being betrayed by the conviction of having everything under control, confusing its dynamic skills for an innate ability could mean that playing too much with its tail you end up looking for snails in the meadow at the roadside. The desire to hear that engine scream is a physiological necessity, an irrepressible need that makes me open the windows despite the low temperatures, but the feeling of satisfaction that is felt by hearing that metal shouting is incomparable. Observing that blue tour de France silhouette placed next to a blonde field under the cold blows of winter creates the perfect contrast that reflects two distant targets such as practicality and the desire to go fast. Apparently so distant from each other, but able to live together thanks to a soul as big as that of the GTC4 Lusso, always ready to satisfy your desires, provided they are voluptuous enough to be satisfied by a stable consisting of 690 purebred horses. The apotheosis of this magnificent show has the voice of a V12 engine, a naturally aspirated tribute to those times and to those heroes that slip away from our hands like water. Fortunately we can still hang on to that song, which we want to stay the same at all costs, which continues to fill the air around us, goosebumps-approved. Every time, as if it were the first and last.