Ferrari one the last sports car mfrs not to make a SUV?

Bah. Ferrari sold out in the way that really matters. They actually whored themselves out and are now owned by a dozen entities and no one from Ferrari actually has a majority ownership.

Oh, and they made station wagons.

 

I agree.

12 cylinders or walk.

 

Lamborghini allready made an MPV in the eighties (well, Bertone did). V12 Countach engine somewhere in there.
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Well, as flippin ugly as that Lambo is, GM still beats it with the Aztek. Amazing what almost 20 years of art and design can give us. You know, just because Ford bought out Jaguar, as far as I am concerned Jaguar died. It ceases to exist excepting by name only. They never made an SUV that I know of. Neither did Rolls/Bentley, Aston, or TVR. Maybe with Rover leading the way England car makers didnt feel the need??

 

JP,
although I can understand your point of view, I can also understand diversity in explanding business to increase profits. If it didn't work out, they can just discontinue & move onto the next project. Keep doing the same thing that you are good at for long time is as hard as creating new thing & being successful.

We may loot Ferrari to stay pure as sports car mfr, but at the same time, we know today's Ferrari is not the same as when it was established. They have evolved as time passed by. Even if Ferrari makes SUV, their sports car will be still a sport car, and their racing heritage won't be lost.

 

i dont think ferrari will follow porsche and make a fool or there product like porsche has

 

The Autobild picture borrows a lot from the Lambo LM. Is that for real or a photoshop?

If you look at it the other way around: if you have to buy a SUV, wouldn't you rather buy a Lambo instead of a GM?
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I don't think Porsche has made a fool of itself. It wanted to survive as an independent auto manufacturer and it did not have the luxury of overpriced cars or ridiculous waitlist with which to do so.

 

There was some Lambo LM owners on the board at one time don't know if they are still around or not. From what I recall they were not that great and they were REALLY expensive to fix.

 

Seems like lambo has been reusing wheel ideas
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*Cough* http://www.engadget.com/2006/01/18/oregon-scientifics-ferrari-fmp160/ *Cough* What about selling out? Most whored out automotive name in terms of licensing you convientently forget?

Who's really the bigger sell out? The companies that make various automobiles and puts their name on them or the companies that will sell their name to anyone for anything for a price?

 

None of the companies you accused of selling out are 'just a sports car company' anymore either. It seems to me [and I could be completely wrong] that you have some sort of an issue with SUVs and can't accept their existence by a sports car manufacturer.

I have to ask you this [and I'm positive someone will chime in loudly]: What is the big difference between a Porsche Cayenne Turbo and a 612 Scag? I mean really, one cannot argue to me that the 612 was built for tearing it up at the track like a 430 was. A 612 and Cayenne have essentially the same purpose, getting people from point a to point b in luxury comfort while knowing you have a fancy name behind you and power on tap, ready to go, at a moments notice. The Cayenne just sits higher. The 612 is as much of a sports car as a CL65 (which few would call a sports car) so now by deduction we can no longer classify Ferrari as a company that just makes sports cars. Now you've gone and ruined my day, thanks

*goes and rips Ferrari posters off wall feeling betrayed*

 

VAG's Tourareg made a very good race vehicle at the last Paris to Dakar.
As for selling out some think that Ferrari putting it's name on many products that have nothing to do with their heritage is selling out while others realize that without sponsorship F1 would not exist as it does today which some feel might be a good thing.

The Cayenne has enabled P to be one of the most profitable car Co. existant and to have the money to develop their sports cars and support racing which adds to their rich heritage.

Ferrari is soon going to be selling a new lower priced "Dino" which they hope will increase their annual production by a large margin. Some may see that as selling out.

I personally think that Heritage is a good thing to recognise but unless one earns a reasonable ROI they won't be around to continue it.

 

To chime in loudly, the whole purpose behind huge ground clearance vehicles is offroad use - things like Paris-Dakar - or street driving in bad weather. Ferrari has a much business there as it does in NASCAR. As long as Ferrari remains a company founded in F1 racing and Italian stylishness, it's playing in the right space. I love my 328, but if I had unlimited funds I would love to have a great GT car like a 575M as a daily driver. Not a huge 612 fan, but it's a fine fit with Ferrari's line.

Minor hijack, but this is what Jaguar needed before Ford kicked them into the coffin:
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Very true. That photo was taken in the Museum at an investor meeting. We all said build it. I put in an order. They never built it. Very sad what's happened to that once great Co.

 

I do not believe Ferrari is able to make an SUV that Americans would buy due to quality and maintenance issues that soccer moms would not tolerate.

 

Unless it had 12 cylinders

 

My mom would trade her Lexus in if one of the power mirrors stopped working. I'm sure she'd be delighted with Ferrari's vast service network and almost-free maintenance...

 

We have a lot of Moms driving Range Rovers here... what's the difference?

 

Ferrari already did make any SUV, It was badged as "Laforza". Do a quick web search and you'll find loads of info. Also, there were (probably false) rumours as of last year that they're going to make another one.
see: http://www.autoblog.com/2005/02/04/a-ferrari-suv/2
The below images were probably someone's idea of a joke.
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