Currently reading: Will new Ferrari Purosangue be Italian marque's Porsche Cayenne?

High-riding, V12 four-seater was years in the making. Here's how other marques have fared in the SUV game

The original Porsche Cayenne is in part responsible for the birth of the dedicated sports SUV, having spurred its maker on to new heights after years of financial difficulty.

In fact, despite having been met with ire upon its reveal nearly 20 years ago, the Mk1 Cayenne would go on to average a hair under 35,000 sales annually – some 10,000 more than even Porsche predicted.

By the end of its eight-year run, the company had managed to shift 276,652 examples.

Today, the combined sales of the Cayenne and its smaller sibling, the Macan (79,536 units in the first half of 2022), are more than 3.5 times higher than those of the 911 (21,616) - a tangible sign that insatiable market demand for SUVs extends even into the specialist sports car sphere. 

Following in Porsche’s footsteps, several other traditional sporting and luxury firms have diversified into SUVs - often to great effect, and Ferrari will be hoping for similar success from its new V12-engined Purosangue SUV. Here are the examples it can follow:

Bentley Bentayga

Bentley bentayga 2022 front quarter tracking

The British firm beat most of its rivals to the punch with the Bentayga in 2016, and it proved a near-instant hit. The following year, it accounted for 39.5% of Bentley’s international sales. Of the 7398 cars sold in Bentley’s record-shattering first half of 2022, 40% were Bentaygas. 

When Bentley broke its annual profit record in the first half of 2022 alone, the Bentayga was its biggest seller. It claimed 40% (2960) of the firm’s 7398 sales, whereas the Continental GT and Flying Spur recorded 2441 and 1997 respectively.

Now an extended-wheelbase Bentayga is poised to become the brand’s flagship - picking up where the old Mulsanne limousine left off. 

However, the Bentayga isn’t necessarily a super-SUV, more a reserved luxury SUV with titanic performance.

Lamborghini Urus

Lamborghini urus 2022 front quarter static

The 641bhp Urus was arguably the first proper modern super-SUV, as well as one of the most successful.

It’s already the firm’s most-produced car of all time - the 20,000th example having left the Sant’Agata gates in June. And in Lamborghini’s also record-setting first half of 2022, it accounted for a staggering 61% of the company’s 5090 worldwide deliveries.

An upgraded Performante version is on the way, with deliveries beginning in December.

Aston Martin DBX

Aston martin dbx 2022 front quarter tracking

The new DBX accounted for 40% (1083 units) of Aston Martin's 2676 global sales in the first half of this year, but the company still posted a loss of £285.4 million. This was partly because nearly 350 examples of the even hotter 707 version – expected to account for 60% of DBX sales, ultimately – were delayed in production, victims of the semiconductor shortage.

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Ferrari Purosangue

Ferrari purosangue 2023 front quarter static 0

Only time will tell whether the Purosangue is a hit or not. But to make as big a success of it as Ferrari perhaps intends, the firm will need to meld the staggering capability, desirability and presence of the Urus with the profitability and usability of the Bentayga.

Importantly, though, Ferrari explicitly aims for the Purosangue to be a more exclusive proposition, pricing it from the £390,000 mark and pledging that it will sell no more than 2500 examples per year – just 20.8% of Ferrari’s expected 12,000-car-plus output for 2022.

Charlie Martin

Charlie Martin Autocar
Title: Editorial assistant, Autocar

As part of Autocar’s news desk, Charlie plays a key role in the title’s coverage of new car launches and industry events. He’s also a regular contributor to its social media channels, providing videos for Instagram, Tiktok, Facebook and Twitter.

Charlie joined Autocar in July 2022 after a nine-month stint as an apprentice with sister publication What Car?, during which he acquired his gold-standard NCTJ diploma with the Press Association.

Charlie is the proud owner of a Fiat Panda 100HP, which he swears to be the best car in the world. Until it breaks.

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