The last bastion has fallen. The Ferrari range has been replenished with a crossover - for the first time in 75 years, Maranello has developed a production car with five doors. The novelty called Purosangue (translated from Italian as “thoroughbred”) managed to surprise: Ferrari made a bet on the atmospheric V12 record for the power segment and innovative air suspension, did not hesitate to adopt “suicidal” doors from Rolls-Royce and deprive the driver of the touchscreen media system.

Ferrari carefully avoids the terms "crossover" and "SUV". Before the premiere, the unofficial term FUV was circulating in English sources (like a Ferrari Utility Vehicle, although no one directly announced utility) - it appeared with the light hand of the former head of the FCA, Sergio Marchionne. However, declassified materials about Purosangue do not mention such an abbreviation. It’s really not quite correct to compare the new product with traditional SUVs - the ground clearance does not exceed 183 millimeters, there will be no assistants outside the asphalt and huge wheels with wide tires - 22-inch wide 255 mm front and 23-inch 315 mm rear.

The Ferrari Purosangue turned out to be more compact than its competitors: the length/width/height of the Maranello model is 4973/2028/1589 mm, respectively, and the wheelbase is 3018 mm. The novelty is almost 14 centimeters shorter and five centimeters lower than the Lamborghini Urus.

The exterior of the Purosangue is devoid of borrowings - the Ferrari crossover has a streamlined body with a characteristic long hood and a small glass area. There are extraordinary solutions like slots in the hood and front fenders, a pair of rear spoilers and "hidden" headlights. However, it is difficult to refrain from comparisons with the Roma coupe - the commonality between the models is obvious.

One of the main design "chips" Ferrari Purosangue - "suicidal" rear doors. The kinematics are similar to Rolls-Royce, but there are enough differences - Ferrari doors are frameless and open only 79 degrees. The explanation for swing doors is simple: in this way, Ferrari achieved a visual increase in cabin space without resorting to lengthening the wheelbase. All doors are equipped with electric drives, and there are no mechanical internal handles at all - the doors can only be opened from the inside with a button.

The chassis of the Ferrari Purosangue is completely new - the engineers managed to lighten the structure, while the torsional rigidity increased by 30 percent compared to the GTC4Lusso shooting brake. The power structure of the crossover is tailored according to "supercar" patterns: high-strength alloys of aluminum and steel are used, and some elements are made of carbon fiber. Examples of weight savings are the carbon fiber roof and single hinged rear doors. As a result, the dry weight was kept within 2033 kilograms, which is an excellent indicator for a five-meter car with a V12.

It is the engine that fundamentally distinguishes the Purosangue from other luxury crossovers. Turbo engines will appear later, and at the start of sales, Ferrari relied on the naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12 from the 812 Superfast supercar! Peak output is a segment-record 725 horsepower, leaving behind both the Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat and the Aston Martin DBX707. Torque is 716 Nm, but 80 percent of the thrust is already available from 2100 rpm, and the power unit can be spun up to 8250 rpm.

Although the 6.5-liter engine on the Purosangue is not as productive as on the rear-wheel drive two-doors, it was not without significant improvements. In particular, the same cylinder heads are used on the crossover as on the limited 812 Competizione, the intake, exhaust and cooling system are upgraded. The Purosangue has the same uncompromising dry sump lubrication system, and the engine is located offset to the wheelbase. Another example of racing technology is the transaxle layout with a gearbox mounted in front of the rear axle.

Ferrari has adapted a new 8-speed preselective “robot” for the Purosangue, but the four-wheel drive concept is the same as that of the FF shooting brake - traction is transmitted to the front axle through a separate gearbox. At high speeds (more than 200 kilometers per hour) and when driving in gears from fifth to eighth, the crossover is exclusively rear-wheel drive - this allows for better dynamics and fuel economy. While Ferrari has refrained from publishing its traditional Fiorano lap times, the handling of the Purosangue should surprise you. The pride of the engineers is the almost ideal weight distribution: 49:51 in favor of the rear axle.

Dynamic performance is one of the best in the class: from standstill to 100 kilometers per hour, the Ferrari Purosangue accelerates in 3.3 seconds, like a Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT; up to 200 - in 10.6 seconds. The maximum speed is 311 kilometers per hour!

Ferrari Purosangue's innovation is the FAST (Ferrari Active Suspension Technology) active suspension. Equipped with both spool valves and 48-volt actuators for the first time, the Multimatic electronically controlled dampers fight roll; in corners, ground clearance can be reduced by a centimeter to lower the center of gravity; and the necessary wheels are “loaded” due to the traction vectorization system. From the supercar 812 Competizione, the novelty borrowed a fully-controlled chassis.

Another unusual engineering and design solution is the “symmetrical” interior. There is no multimedia system touchscreen, which has become familiar to all modern models, so the driver will not have to be distracted. But the entertainment complex is put to the passenger - in front of him is a 10.2-inch tablet with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

However, the driver will not be left completely without a connection with gadgets - there is a screen on the digital dashboard that displays driving settings, audio system parameters and messages from a smartphone. But Ferrari will not offer built-in navigation - in Maranello they considered that everything necessary for orientation on the ground is in mobile devices.

All Ferrari Purosangue have a four-seater saloon with separate multi-contour seats. In the center on the second row there is a small climate control panel, and there can be an impressive panoramic roof above the heads of passengers. Of course, advanced personalization options are promised - the interior is sheathed in leather, Alcantara or high-strength fabric, and for an extra charge there is a carbon fiber weave trim.

Ferrari claims that Purosangue debuted the most powerful audio system in the company's history. The capabilities of the Burmester complex are indicated by giant speakers in the doors. A subwoofer is included as standard. But you shouldn’t worry about the “synthetic” sound - the atmospheric V12 does not need assistants, and the crossover will sound even better from the outside than from the inside.

Interestingly, Ferrari has taken care of the transportation of bulky items - fashionable chairs with integrated headrests can be folded to carry long items. However, the geometric shape of the trunk is such that the universal Purosangue can be called a stretch. The volume of the trunk in a four-seat configuration is 487 liters, so that according to this indicator, the Ferrari is inferior even to the Skoda Rapid.

Sales of the Ferrari Purosangue will begin in the spring of 2023, and the crossover will reach some markets only next fall. Prices have not been announced, but according to unofficial data, the model will cost from 390 thousand dollars. Excessive demand is provided, but it will not be easy to buy a new product - Purosangue will be released in a limited edition, and Ferrari representatives have hinted that the crossover will account for no more than 20% of total sales. It is easy to calculate that no more than 2,500 cars are planned to be sold annually.

In Belarus, on September 10, a sports roadster created on its own with a purely electric power plant was presented. The prototype was designed and built not by anyone, but by scientists - the Joint Institute of Mechanical Engineering of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic (OIM NAS). The organization has been developing in the field of electric vehicles since 2016 - on the direct instructions of the President of the country Alexander Lukashenko. Electric sedan, van, pickup and truck have featured in previous years.

The new prototype is called Electric Roadster and is endowed with an extremely unassuming appearance. The machine has a supporting frame welded from steel pipes and external panels made of fiberglass. According to ABW.by, the design in this development is secondary, in the first place the creators set the task of working out solutions for the power plant and testing them in increased load modes.

The roadster is driven by an electric motor with a nominal power of 80 kW (109 hp) and a maximum of 160 kW (218 hp), it is fed by a lithium-ion battery with a capacity of 24 kWh. The power reserve on one charge of the car reaches 270 km. Dynamic characteristics are as follows: maximum speed - 170 km / h, acceleration from standstill to 100 km / h - in 6 seconds.

Developments in the engine and batteries will subsequently be used in mass-produced electric vehicles in a more consumer format than a roadster.

At the end of the nineties of the last century, rally raids were at the height of their popularity, and the Paris-Dakar was called so not for a red word, but for the actual start and finish points (although there were cases when the start was given, say, in the Spanish Granada - in 1995 and 1996). From 1994 to 1996, the race was dominated by Citroën ZX prototypes, which became the main inspiration for the Nissan Trail Runner concept.

The Trail Runner was first shown at the 1997 Frankfurt Motor Show. In the same year, the car was shown at an exhibition in Tokyo. And it wasn't a homologated competition car - the designers just came up with an image of a sports car that would be equally exciting on any road surface.

The all-wheel drive and all-wheel drive chassis of the Nissan Skyline GT-R with the ATTESA system was taken as the basis, on which a relatively light fiberglass body was hoisted. The ground clearance was significantly increased, tires 205/55 R18 appeared with rims of the original design. In order for the car to cope with any road conditions, the driver could select the appropriate coverage mode using the Multi-control Grip selector. About the same as Land Rover's Terrain Response, only a few years earlier.

In the cabin, in addition to bright yellow inserts and luxurious "buckets", one could find all the advanced electronics at that time: an LCD instrument panel, climate control, a TV, a navigation system, and a projection display that displays speed data on the windshield.

The choice of gearbox from a racing point of view seems strange - it is a V-chain variator with six virtual gears. Rather, Nissan engineers wanted to once again show their most progressive transmission at that time. And although CVTs were not used on Nissan sports cars, on other models this type of gearbox is still almost the main one. It was possible to switch between six virtual speeds manually.

Some of the solutions implemented in this concept still found their serial implementation - the most parallels can be drawn between the interiors of the Trail Runner and the first 350Z. This is the architecture of the dashboard, and the design of the luggage compartment with a powerful transverse strut.

At the same time, the color scheme of the interior and smooth lines create an emphatically non-aggressive mood. The serial 350Z was nevertheless more strict and sporty in spirit.

The concept also had pseudo-racing features, such as a spare wheel placed on a retractable platform in the bowels of the rear bumper. In the rear wing there are two slots for snowboards. The Trail Runner has xenon headlights - a very technological solution by the standards of 1997.

It is no coincidence that the wheels look huge: 18 inches a quarter of a century ago, only concept cars could afford. For comparison: the Nissan Maxima business sedan of the same year was content with 15-inch wheels.

At the same time, the tire size 205/55 R18 today would undoubtedly be recorded as a “crossover” tire size: a relatively small width, a high profile and a large landing diameter. By the way, the modern Qashqai has larger 18-inch wheels: the tire size is 215/55 R18.

The Trail Runner had an appropriate engine - a NEO VVL four-cylinder power unit equipped with a turbocharger system and variable valve timing. The power of the 1.8-liter "heart" was 185 horsepower, and the maximum torque was 196 Newton meters.

If the characteristics did not impress you (for example, because you remember how much power the Germans removed from the serial "four" 1.8 of the first Audi TT) - everything from what we did not mention: this is a diesel engine.

However, no matter how good the Trail Runner concept was, this project did not grow into anything serious. Perhaps the public simply did not show enough interest in such a Mega Track at the minimum. Since then, Nissan has not returned to the topic of rally-raid cars. Even as concept cars. We add that in the history of Nissan there have already been concepts that were ahead of their time and therefore (presumably) did not receive a serial continuation.