Waaay too long a report on my weekend with a GTC4 and FF

A short while ago I had a (fairly) newly arrived demo GTC4 Lusso for a long weekend. I have one of these cars on order - in fact it should have been here by now but due to factory delays it will be arriving later in the year - so I was pretty keen to live with the car for a few days, following the customer drive days Ferrari kindly invited me to at the end of last year in the Italian Alps.

Since so many people share really useful information I always like to do the same and have therefore written a detailed review of my own personal findings. Some of my opinions I do believe are close to 'facts' even if I have tried to avoid presenting them as such. For example I will mention the increase in speed of full throttle, high-rev gearchanges. It's possible that I'm wrong but I have driven back and forth between my 'old' FF and this new GTC4 a few times to check, and really I'm certain - the new change is quicker. Other elements are more subjective, but at least one person (me) thinks they are correct, even if others don't. I submit this for what it is - a report based on my own preferences and situation. If you will accept it for that, please feel free to read on if you're interested.

Interior

Almost the first thing I did after getting the car home was have a good look at the leather. There has been so much written about this, and how Ferrari are trying to save money. I have never resonated with those who feel that way - I don't say they are wrong, just that it was never something I noticed on either the Lusso, which I have now seen many examples of at close quarters, or the 812.

To give some context to my comments, I am no leather expert and I know there are those here who are. But one of the things my company does is buy and sell about 25,000 cars per year in Europe. As part of this, I have been many times to design studios, looking at and evaluating clay models of forthcoming new cars, including interiors. We additionally buy and fit leather to about 2,000 cars a year and our operations are spread across many countries. Even experience of our personal cars, Range Rovers, Astons, previous Ferrari models etc. My wife drives Range Rovers and I can easily notice the increase in quality between the leather in a RR Sport Autobiography and a RR Autobiography. Plus, like everyone else, I know what I like. I suppose what I'm trying to say is that I'm not a complete novice.

I looked and looked. Felt and re-felt. But I just can't see what all the fuss is about. Not really. Is there a difference in texture? Yes, certainly, but not like I would immediately say one is lower quality than another - I looked over a 599, F12 and 430 in the showroom for this comparison since my FF has the Cuoio Toscana leather upgrade and is therefore not directly comparable. In all honesty, the 599 felt a cut above the others being the richest and most luxurious, but again, you have to be looking for it to really notice. The F12, 458, 488 and Lusso all seem pretty similar with some small differences in texture. The 599 was definitely the nicest in my opinion, if leather is the thing that floats your boat. Fact is, if the car was rubbish no amount of exquisite leather would save it from being relegated from my garage.

I don't buy Ferraris for their leather. In the 812 it is of little significance to me, up to a point anyway. However, in the GTC4 - Lusso remember - it has more significance. This GTC4 demo car had Daytona seats and the leather covering them was properly thick and luxurious. Everywhere was nicely foam-backed, even places you might forgive them for trying to 'cheat' with, such as the instrument binnacle cowl. I checked over on the Maserati side of the showroom when returning the car and could very easily notice a downgrade in quality compared with all the Ferraris I mentioned earlier, including the Lusso. If people wish to say there is a reduction in leather quality I don't feel I have the expertise to strongly disagree, but I can categorically say we are not talking about a whole other level of downgrade, such as exists on the GranTurismo or even between our RR and RR sport.

Our FF has the upgraded leather as I mentioned earlier. I wouldn't have chosen it - one of the reasons I'm prepared to spend the extra on a new car; I can choose my own specification. On the GTC4 Lusso I didn't go with a leather upgrade because I prefer the smoother finish and feel on the standard leather (including Daytona leather) rather than the more coarse feel of my FF's Cuoio Toscana. Since my Lusso is not at 10 red yet, did I see anything on this demo car that would cause me to change my mind? That would be an emphatic "no".

The fit, feel and smell of the GTC4 was more than acceptable to me and the whole interior ambience is a significant notch up on the FF to my eyes.

The infotainment is a large part of that. The JBL stereo seems decent enough quality, in fact better than that, if not at the level an audiophile might want. It's loud though. I mean seriously loud. I couldn't get to half volume without being uncomfortable. The much vaunted 10" screen is a real step forward, but with a couple of reservations. This is mainly to do with its low placement and its width, meaning that viewing some key information necessitates too large a turn of the head. For instance, with the nav operational, 'distance to next turn', something I rely on, was awkward to see when driving quickly. Fine for LHD but not for those with the steering wheel on the 'right' side.

The system is pretty intuitive but the screen's sheer size means you are often searching for what to press for too long, whichever function mode you're using. I don't offer a solution to that, and perhaps familiarity solves the problem. I wouldn't fancy rear ending a stopped car whilst trying to work something out though. Needing a new front end on a brand new car is not funny, especially one that is the price of a house.

There are a few other things that I didn't particularly like too. May as well get them out of the way because, for those who have read my previous posts, it will be no surprise to find this is among the more positive of reviews of the GTC4.

The door cards are heavily moulded, which is fine. Along with this, though, is the door pockets. These are wide and capacious, and moulded too. The sort of qualities that seem good in the design room. The problem is that when you have your foot down everything moves around - keys especially - when you brake, turn or accelerate. Quite distracting, and just when you least want any distraction.

Other items? Some of the buttons are a bit haphazard and difficult to read, the location of the bridge (I can confirm it very definitely is metal, hard metal) seemed to hit the corner of my kneecap with some regularity, the HVAC controls are not easy to follow - much better managed from the screen itself, begging the question why they bothered with the ugly black plastic switch board tucked away below the screen? The seats (still) lack lateral back support, although lumbar and central back support was improved. My teenage children all agreed that the rear was less comfortable than the FF, something which might have been to do with the pattern in the Daytona seats "sticking out". These are all pretty small things but there were a couple of really surprising items.

First among these is somewhat unfathomable to me. The steering column cowl is grey plastic. Nicer than the sort of ultra-cheap stuff you find on a cheap B segment car, but plastic nonetheless. I can cope with that. The bit that is hard to understand is that it has absolutely no texture to it at all. None. I couldn't quite believe it until I looked at the FF. And yes, there it is again. Just behind the steering wheel, a piece of grey texture-less plastic. The difference in the FF is that it is more of a flange that quickly leads into some faux-leather. On the GTC4 it is the same material but it forms a huge box cowling and seems quite out of place. I never actually saw it from the driving seat, or entering/exiting the vehicle. But there's no getting away from it, It is very poor for a £250k Ferrari, or even a £30k BMW.

A more important issue is the key fob. Why didn't they make it keyless entry? This is a bit of a 'miss' for me because getting the big key in and out of my pocket was a pain (well, let's say a first-world 'pain'). I know the FF's key forces the same thing, but why go to the trouble of producing a beautiful key and a brand new system for keyless start without going the whole way?

Overall though, the interior is a really good update and thoroughly modern, particularly the infotainment. I like the dashboard design with its lower scuttle, I like the new seats for comfort and central back support if not lateral. The acid test for me was getting out of the Lusso and into the FF - there is a clear difference in interior ambience, as there should be; vehicle interiors date at least as quickly as exteriors.

Our car will have the pano roof, as did this one. My passengers all liked it a lot. Me too although I never really saw it once while driving. If you don't take passengers often you may well not benefit from it. Our car will also have the passenger display, as did this car. Again, not necessary but using Ferrari-customer logic, where you are already spending a lot of cash on something you really don't need, it's something that will stay on our order. It is much better than the passenger display in the previous cars since it is touch screen and covers quite a lot of functionality. I must admit, I did notice a more intense commentary on my driving when I was accompanied by my wife though...


Exterior

No surprises here, I've already said in other threads that I really like it. I still like it. There are parts that are a real improvement and other elements that I feel more ambivalent about. The front for instance. It looks good, but not really significantly better. Any camera lens with even a slight wide angle will flatten out the front view and that doesn't look too pleasant. In reality it is not flat fronted but low and attractive, though the FF's front is just as nice, with the possible exception of the grille.

The rear on the GTC4 is really nice though. Again, photographs don't seem to accurately reflect why it is so nice but It is low, wide and beautifully shaped - a real improvement over the FF for me. It still reminds me of the old Jensen GT from the 70's, a car I always loved with its long, sloping roofline covering nicely sculpted rear arches. The side profile is more coke-bottle than the FF but neither car seems to be quite as nice as the F12 or 812 as the flank moves forward over the front arches. Those front arches cover some really nice upgraded wheels in the case of this GTC4, coloured in Matt Grigio Corsa and dressed with yellow calipers. Set against the Grigio Silverstone background, the scheme is nice and suits the car well. I've also chosen this colour but with alloy coloured wheels and red calipers, so I was pleased about the way the colour looks - I always wonder if a darker grey dresses down a Ferrari and so I've never had one before. This car wears it well though and the cool but casual colour can't mask either the car's heritage or intended purpose.

I took a photo of the front lights on both cars (link to a number of comparison photos below) and the way the FF's bonnet gives way to the front arches is preferable to the GTC4, with the FF having a bit more character in this area. The new car is really successful in terms of exterior styling though, with both cars managing to clothe Ferrari's front-mid V12, four seat, 4wd layout in a shape that nicely reveals the car's overtly sporting pretensions. My wife and daughters certainly loved the GTC4's look, commenting that it was the first GT car to be nicer than our Astons from a few years ago, which I was happy enough to sell but they weren't.


Driving

The first thing you notice about the driving is the start-up note, which is as reported by others, much quieter. I thought I would mind but don't really. I have other extrovert cars in the garage, if this one doesn't want to shout on every occasion that's alright, especially given its undoubted performance abilities. You can get it to shout well enough when you want it to, believe me!

Staying on the theme of sound, this car is certainly less raucous than the FF in mid range. By the upper reaches the thing is singing away, perhaps even sweeter than the FF. Something about the mid-range is drier on the GTC4, less 'raspy'. Choose your preference. Or don't - it doesn't matter, the Ferrari V12 is in fine voice here, just as with the FF.

There is reduced tramlining in the GTC4 but it's still there - in fact, the whole car still feels closely related to the FF, something more apparent to me on familiar roads. I think this is the key; the car is an FF remastered. It has the same, slightly awkward initial turn-in due to wide tyres, high steering gearing and weight over the front axle, but less so, I think because of the rear steer. Steering ratio seems a little reduced compared to the FF - I think this is the right thing to do but some may disagree. Incidentally, the tramlining has much to do with the tyres on the FF (so therefore I can assume for the GTC4 too) since my winter Michelin Alpins cure it completely. As soon as I'm back on the P zeros, there it is again.

Overall, steering remains the thing about the driving of an FF/Lusso that I like least, perhaps along with the initial brake feel. The GTC4 brakes felt different; they still have a top-of-pedal uncertainty though, just as in the FF. The GTC4 seems better in the meat of the braking but this is marginal and could be example specific. It's worth noting that this is not about pedal stiffness because the Speciale has a much stiffer pedal but there is no ambiguity about the initial bite - it is progressive, feelsome and brilliant in a way that neither of the four-seaters are. Still, considering they have to haul up two tonnes worth of snarling energy they are certainly powerful enough. The GTC4 steering is not bad, but you have limited real feel and that unnatural feeling in the first ten degrees is always a demerit for me. But when you get through this phase quickly, such as in sharper turns, it's not a problem. Never mind, it is accurate and still fast - the Ferrari way and my preference. Maybe I should say it this way; the GTC4's brakes and steering are the least among all the good things.

I do wonder if it could be the chosen geometry? Perhaps a high level of toe-in at the front, which gives a more secure feeling and is usually added to cars to guard against a wayward rear. Toe-in helps self-centreing but might also explain this 'meaty' feeling as you initially turn the wheel. The mid V8 cars by comparison weight up beautifully and progressively, even at low steering angles.

The newer car flows a little nicer than the FF at full chat - I think the RWS is responsible for that. And when fully 'on it' the engine, as in the FF, makes a brilliant but slightly naughty companion - pushing you on, encouraging you. You need discipline because the car gets to speeds that can get you in trouble very quickly. It's a thrilling experience given this car's primary purpose and weight is that of a GT. There surely can't be a nicer engine than the Ferrari V12 on sale today?

Just as with the FF, the term 'GT' is somewhat misleading here though. It is still a thoroughly rewarding performance car, possessing the ability to adjust weight balance on the limit with the throttle, super high-performance gear changes, high levels of grip and a motor that propels you at ultra high speed if desired. This is no Aston DB.

It is next to impossible to feel the RWS in action. But I think the new car's ability to help you get into a better flow is down to this technology. In some ways it doesn't make it a better driver's car, it simply widens the envelope so that more people will be able to enjoy going fast in this car - the GTC4 will tolerate throttle over-enthusiasm a little better - yet I still feel it rewards the more precise or skilful driver, mainly because it feels so good once you're in rhythm with it. With 680 horsepower, 12 cylinders, two tonnes and four seats, I think that any new technology that helps the driver firmly has its place here - especially if that technology can improve enjoyment too. This is a car with four wheel drive remember, so it is already less 'pure' than, say, an F12.

The suspension calibration has clearly been reworked too. In the FF there is a need to move to 'bumpy road' or comfort mode on some British B roads, which are fast and fun, but often undulating and uneven - a 2 tonne car will always struggle for body control at speed because the mass starts to move around and is harder for the suspension to control. The FF's sport mode is pretty good but ultimately the lack of body control is the physical law you run into first, compared with say, a Speciale or 488. I felt the Lusso's suspension deals with this better than the FF, though it still can't hide those two tonnes completely.

I believe it's better because I think there is a greater sophistication to the way the suspension works, meaning that sport mode works well for all but the gnarliest of surfaces. It still gives the same degree of body control as the FF, it's just usable for more of the time. I have often thought that Ferrari suspensions feels somewhat feline, like a cat deftly placing all four paws. Where steering feel is a little lacking in this platform, chassis feel is there in spades. The Lusso feels more supple and even more full of this feel. A very different approach to, for instance, the McLaren I owned, which was ultra smooth and pliant but lacking this Ferrari feel. Some have said that the Lusso is 'softer' compared to the FF but I personally feel that's a bit misleading. I would prefer 'more sophisticated', because that's exactly how it feels to me. In other words, not 'softer for the sake of being soft', rather the suspension being better at dealing with imperfections when the highest level of body control the car has to offer is still desired.

With the new arrangement you can use 'sport' more of the time and still get as good a level of body control as with the FF; if a Ferrari engineer told me that body control was even a smidge better, I would be inclined to believe it. The suspension's stiffness is reassuring in sport mode, whereas in the FF there is the feeling that the benefits of sport mode are sometimes outweighed by poorer road conditions, necessitating a push of the 'bumpy road' button more regularly.

That's not to say the FF doesn't do a good job, nor that both cars don't ultimately fail to disguise their girth. Just that the RWS is not the GTC4's only development on the FF's already brilliant theme - the new car's sport mode is now much more useful in the UK because of these suspension changes. With the GTC4 you only have to use 'bumpy road' on very undulating surfaces and at quite high speed and so I never bothered with comfort mode, save for curiosity purposes, because I was able to enjoy sport mode more often.

Selecting comfort mode also brings with it a less aggressive setting for the FF gearbox. Sometimes the FF's sport mode gearchanges, especially at lowish speed under something like a third throttle, can be a little jerky, always reminding you that you are in a serious machine. I'll put up with that in the Speciale because that car always puts you in the mood for getting the hammer down. For the FF/GTC4, I think their beauty is that they give you the best of both worlds, which means that there are times when more unrefined progress is not desirable. In truth I'm talking about the combination of gearbox and throttle mapping. The low-speed off-throttle is more aggressive in the FF and when combined with sport mode's change pattern it makes for less relaxed 5/10ths progress than with the GTC4.

The GTC4's low speed changes and throttle behaviour are improved in sport mode. Now, I know that this is something not strictly necessary because a twist of the FF's manettino to comfort mode will deliver what you need. But, having lived with the new car for a few days, the changes once again mean that sport mode is more usable than before and in either car I would rather be in sport mode as much as possible.

This improvement in low-speed behaviour would be pyrrhic if there were any kind of demerit in terms of full throttle, high rpm gearchanges. But there is nothing of the kind. In fact, the GTC4's gearbox is absolutely sensational under those conditions. In fact, the speed and brilliance of the changes almost seem....well....no, surely they can't be? A match for the Speciale? Seemed like it to me. They were lightning fast, brilliantly executed and made for blistering progress. The software really does makes for a much quicker high-rpm change than with the FF. Bullet-like.

This probably leaves the GTC4's comfort mode in a bit of a no-man's land and I wonder if perhaps the mode could have been directed differently. With sport mode and bumpy road, plus the throttle and gearbox changes, I don't think I'll ever use the comfort setting. I might have preferred a rock-hard suspension setting (much harder than sport mode in FF/GTC4) with the same throttle and gearbox calibration and CT-off but ESC on. That could be good for billiard-smooth but still twisty road surfaces. I drove my Speciale and FF back to back a couple of days afterwards and the Race mode in the Speciale is much stiffer than the Sport mode in the FF - and it is this sort of stiffness that I am suggesting. A mix between the Race and CT-off of the V8 models, but no point calling it 'race' because neither the FF nor the GTC4 are really what you want on a track. The imagine more engineering minded might urge caution here because I suppose such a stiffly sprung, heavy car would chew through suspension components pretty prodigiously.

As for other elements of the driving experience, all is much as before; the car has good general manners, quite a bit of road noise, passable auto mode and is as practical as it was before.

Overall, I am really pleased I have one on order and am even more eagerly anticipating its arrival. If I couldn't afford to change, or just didn't want to, that would be fine too - the new car doesn't render the old one in any way unworthy. But viewed as a solid update, subtly improved in many areas and with them all combining to bring Ferrari's four seat V12 right up-to-date, this works. My family loved its look and feel and I was reluctant to hand the keys back that's for sure!

Photos here - absolutely no editing from the raw file
https://500px.com/shaere

 

Yes, the info is on the far left hand side and it is quite awkward to see from the right hand seat. Can't remember what was on the right but I presume that whatever it was would be difficult for those driving from the left. Something I didn't expect but there's no real alternative - I'll have to get used to it.

I did drive at night and I increasingly suffer from the same issue you do. It was fine. The steering wheel though, when lit up at night seemed a little odd. Overall I preferred the new wheel but the night lights all seem to be within a band quite low, below the centre, rather than evenly spread.

 

No, not for me. The interior (dash and doors mainly) are more modern and up-to-date. I didn't think there was a downgrade in quality of materials other than those that I mentioned. It's easy to overthink some of these things, but this is a Ferrari interior without question and more modern than the FF. I'm good with that.