Overview: The GTC4Lusso is essentially an evolution of Ferrari’s now retired FF. It has two doors, four seats, and a shooting-brake rear end that puts it slightly at odds with the rest of Ferrari’s exotic portfolio. We’ve found this four-seater to be aggressive and highly capable on the road. It’s also less feral than other cars in Ferrari’s lineup, as befits a grand tourer. The two bucketlike rear seats are surprisingly comfortable, and they fold flat to significantly increase the size of the useful cargo area. Steering-wheel-mounted turn-signal controls, huge column-mounted paddle shifters, and a dashboard with more cow byproduct than a McDonald’s supply truck all place the Lusso firmly in the Ferrari family tree, as does the exotic howling of its engines.

What’s New: After the Lusso’s debut for 2017, Ferrari has added a new model to the lineup for 2018, dubbed the GTC4Lusso T. Ferrari faithful will recognize the T as a designator for the brand’s twin-turbocharged 3.9-liter V-8 engine, tuned in this instance to produce 602 horsepower and 561 lb-ft of torque. The Lusso T also uses a lighter and simpler rear-wheel-drive setup in place of the all-wheel drive in the V-12 model that we drove for this review. Ferrari claims that this new model will trail the original by only a tenth of a second or so to 60 mph, and the V-8 actually produces 47 lb-ft more torque than the V-12—but it has 78 less horsepower. It’s also around 40 grand less expensive. The prudent buyer would choose the V-8–powered Lusso T, but prudence does not often impel people to visit a Ferrari store.

What We Like: First of all, it’s a Ferrari. A 10-second video walkaround of our V-12 loaner car quickly became this author’s most successful Snapchat ever. It elicited immediate positive responses from, among others, members of the Car and Driver staff, who had all seen it in the parking lot moments earlier; an erstwhile and otherwise recalcitrant romantic interest; and a friend who once, unprompted, declared a base Toyota Corolla “really nice.” From the exterior styling and the leather-lined interior to the Ferrari-red key fob, there’s no mistaking the GTC4Lusso for something ordinary. And that’s all without hearing its engine.

As the naturally aspirated 6.3-liter V-12 approaches its virtuosic 8200-rpm redline, it produces an evocative wail unlike almost anything else on the road. The extreme quickness and sustained power that accompany the Lusso’s aria could make anyone giddy. Even this supposedly tamer Ferrari can dispense with street-legal speeds in fleeting seconds under full-power acceleration. Then it’s up to the driver to perform some quick risk/reward calculations . . . or seek a closed course on which to explore the deeper reaches of the GTC4Lusso’s performance envelope. All-wheel drive keeps the 12-cylinder Lusso planted to the ground below 124 mph—above that it’s strictly a rear-driver—and the light, superaccurate steering keeps the mind/body/car connection alive. Did we mention that we fit four carry-on bags behind the rear seats?

What We Don’t Like: Our list of dislikes is short and bends toward nit-picking. The truth is, the GTC4Lusso is an excellent vehicle by any standard. Still, when contemplating the purchase of a roughly $300,000 car, it’s useful to ponder the other ways that money could be spent. Do-gooders may be interested to know that a GTC4Lusso could pay for 150,000 malaria nets, while the hedonistic could have 169 wheels—80 pounds each—of the finest Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Shipped. There also are a few mechanical imperfections. The dual-clutch transaxle sometimes stumbles at low speeds, and we wish the steering felt weightier. And, although Maranello may have raised wagondom to its highest heights, the GTC4Lusso simply isn’t as beautiful as some of the brand’s other offerings.

Verdict: Where the relentless pursuit of speed and pleasure comes tempered with a modicum of practicality.

Source: caranddriver.com