GTC4 Lusso vs FF

I think that you can do better than $220k on a 2016 FF. Got a ‘15 in July with 4K miles for $185k from a dealer. Never driven the Lusso but unless you want the latest thing and/or are looking for better entertainment system I find the FF to be a phenomenal car. And personally I think it looks better. No way worth $110k delta. My two cents


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i drove the lusso. its more refined than the FF for sure. paying 330k for a used lusso makes no sense to me. If you want to make a statement to your dealer then order a new lusso and get the good will that goes along with it. otherwise pay 150k and get an FF and you wont have any complaints. Keep in mind my FF has a full novitec on it and when im in sport with the valve closed i can carry on a bluetooth phone call much more clearly than i can in my stock abarth 500.

 

^That's because you drive that Abarth like a mad man!!

 

I put 3,500 miles on my FF before my Lusso which now has 2,000 miles. So...

Price aside, the Lusso is all around a better car. My only complaint is the quiet exhaust. Price gap is up to you to decide.

 

Sold my FF and ordered new Lusso which i should have any day now. Also test drove Lusso little while back.

Is it "worth" 150k more than FF with similar mileage? Very hard question to answer. Hint is just at how much you value speccing your car in details, being the first owner, your relationship with dealer, if you like the lusso design better.
Would also depend on your use: daily driving the car often in town, having an upgrade gear box and interior mattered to me. I liked FF better until Lusso grew on me enough to make me feel FF (while beautiful) was now dated by Lusso exterior design.
I wouldn't call driving the Lusso more refined than the FF. Is a F12 less refined than Lusso? It is simply more "insulated" from outside: better suspensions filtering more, less cabin noise, bit less engine noise.
For a true daily driver, the150k gap (230k actually in addition to FF I sold prior to receiving Lusso) make sense for me, in this case, at this time.

 

Could not agree more.

 

Recently replaced the standard FF stereo for a Alpine ILX702D with Apple Carplay. Even controls on steering wheel still works. Great update


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+1. Had FF, now driving Lusso almost daily.

 

Keep the F12 and get an FF . For me there is no way to justify another $150k for a daily driver. I may get a Lusso at some point - ~2 years. i imagine they will be in the low 200s by then.

 

Holy cow- I drove the GTC4... maybe the little things make all the difference for me, but the difference from the FF -for me & going from distant memory- is massive- the FF always felt like a bit of a concept car- a very well done one- but still a concept car. I could just feel it shuffling power between the contact patches and I found that distracting and the interface in the car was a little bit disjointed and it was a little too rough in how it rode given its mission (my roads are not the greatest)- basically it wasn't refined enough for me but neither was it sporty enough. I was frustrated with the choices they made. This is purely a subjective reaction.

In contrast, I found the GTC4 is a cohesive car. It is surprisingly nimble for its size. In normal, spirited driving, the 4WS just makes the car feel smaller than it is, but it is entirely natural feeling. To be sure, I did not push the car the way I might on a track, but I did drive it with a little gusto, in 35F conditions but on winter performance tires. The car was amazing. The other surprise is the comfort. Better than what I remember the FF. Yet also excellent body control. Compared to a Bentley you might say its a little firm, but not FIRM. Feels very solid. Its also extremely FAST. The sound is very quiet until you get on it and then its still not as loud as the F12. Its like ½ the F12 except at the upper RPMs and then its like maybe 65% of the F12. The automatic mode is even excellent. It just works and gets out of your way. The car is the perfect daily if you want to have that Ferrari experience but maybe not shout it quite as much. The touchscreen system works well as do all the new controls. As crazy as this sounds, this car strikes me as a bit of a strange union between my F12 and my daily driver BMW 750. The thing I am still trying to wrap my head around is that it works so well. Its brilliant! What a friendly beast!

 

Beauty review I am status 92 today .. beast will be here oh so soon!

 

Thank you for making me appreciate the Lusso even more after reading your fantastic positive review.

 

You are absolutely right on, its brilliant! The more you drive the Lusso the more you love it.

 

Beats me why the Italian Autostrada Police don't use them, much more practical than the Lambos they use.

I think the way everyone becomes addicted to driving the Lusso, including me, it could well be the first ever Ferrari where 10k miles per annum will be seen as typical. About time too I say.

 

Autostrada don't use them because Ferrari didn't not give them any car for free, like Lamborghini did with only a handful of them.

 

Hey guys,

This is my first post here, so let me tell you a bit about me first.

I daily drive a 2013 FF for 1 1/2 years now. I tested both the GTC4 Lusso and the GTC4 Lusso T for a few days.

Off course I drive other more sportier 2 Seater cars for leisure, but the FF is my main family car and the one that I use for longer trips trough Germany, Switzerland, France and Italy. I even drive my son each day to kindergarden with it. I´ve driven it for about 25k kilometers so far. Let me state upfront that I majored in design, to explain why my point of view is not only focused on the driving experience and the usability, but also on design issues.

These are my initial thoughts: Basically, the GTC4 is the Facelift of the FF. Same goes for the 812 which is basically an improved generation of the F12. The facelifts have some technical improvements - the rear wheel steering would be the most important to me, as it makes the car behave like a (much) smaller car. This especially comes in handy in a parking garage or while taking narrow corners. There are some (many) other refinements as well. Overall, both the 812 and the GTC4 have a more precise feedback from the steering wheel and a somewhat firmer feeling while steering, without becoming heavy. This is what I like about them and many owners I spoke to on some Ferrari events that have an FF and test drove a GTC4 confirmed this observation as what struck them the biggest difference.

Now some comparisons, broken down into categories.

EXTERIOR
I like the simplicity of the shape and some design details, that bring a nice contrast between big, elegant surfaces and very small patters and arrays. I´m talking about the air vents on the side, that have a very filigran mesh, which I love for it´s delicate structure - by having these tiny, tiny holes, the side panels look even bigger and longer. Same goes for the arrays in the nicely sculpted big and long headlights. The back of the car is also nicely done with the single round taillights.
All of these three details, which are key to me, have changed in the GTC. The air vents on the side, citing the 60s, are clumsy to my eye compared to the mesh structure from the FF. The headlights seem smaller and not as complex - they even remind me in their formal language of the Jaguar F Type. The double taillights are a bit to much for my taste, they make the back look cramped and over featured. The only thing I do prefer on the GTC is the small spoiler on the end of the roof.

Broken down, my heart beats faster every time when I see a FF parked somewhere and it doesn´t do this with a GTC. It just doesn´t appeal to me in that way the FF does, which is a bullseye for my aesthetic taste.


INTERIOR
As for the seats, the GTC is using the new sleek "Diaspona" design language first seen in the 458 and brought to completion in the 488. Everything is heavily sculpted while light in the overall thickness. The seats in the FF where to me the perfect balance between the clumsy leather thrones from the 456 and 612 era AND a sportier, elegant new touch. I love them. The GTC4 seats -at least to my eye- belong in a 488 or maybe the new Portofino. They are pretty firm and not that comfortable, the headrest however is as plush as the leather pillows in the back of a Rolls Royce, what strikes me as not well done and somehow not fitting the purpose, it´s super "unsporty".
The entertainment system reflects the long years of lacking behind - but I always found that a pleasant thing of having a Ferrari. I loved how you could hide the stereo in the 599GTB behind those nice flags, the size of the entertainment system in the FF was (to me) the perfect size. I thought of this as a nice way to put the sportiness factor more upfront and reduce the electronic gadgetry to the necessary minimum, while staying functional. It made perfect sense to me.
The steering wheel in the FF had A LOT of functions. The steering wheel in the GTC4 (which has a better grip to my taste) has ALMOST ALL of the functions the car has to offer. Don´t like that. It´s nice to have some driving related functions there, but I don´t want so many other knobs overcrowding the most important piece of surface that I touch in the car.
Most other aspects - room for passengers, trunk, storage compartments stay almost the same. Cupholders could be debated. The new key fob - Nah, don´t like it, but it´s not causing me any headache either. The old cheap key had it´s charm, but they wanted to improve and came up with a unelegant, not really defined form that has no relation to any formal design piece on any Ferrari - an intern ****ed up, but no big deal. It´s just the key.

Broken down, the FF´s interior is a bit quirky with it´s odd doubleslot-sized old school entertainment system, but I love the politeness and cleanliness of the dashboard and the overall interior. It doesn´t get in the face of the driver and it´s socius. The seats are the best seats I ever had in any car. The GTC´s interior pokes at you. On every detail of the dashboard it does. The air vents protrude, the screen is "Hey look at me how big I am!" and the sculpted Diaspona seats are in some parts to firm and in other parts to soft. Also, it looks cheaper to me than the FF´s interior. The passenger display got upgraded about ONE cool feature - your socius may skip some tracks and become the DJ of the tour. This really is nice.

DRIVING EXPERIENCE: GENERAL
Yes, the FF looks a bit like a concept car (even though Ferrari has a very long history of four seaters). And it even feels like that in some ways, as some user here described perfectly. It´s not a totally refined limousine, it´s more a sportscar with 4 seats, and yes, it´s undecided in a way. BUT it´s also not a FAKE sportscar like for example the Mercedes CLS, the BMW 5Series GT or the Audi A7, which are only sportier looking versions of an E Class, 5 Series and A6. I love that about the car -it´s bold, it´s a statement, it´s not fully thought trough. Sometimes, it rattles and squeaks somewhere. Not much, just a tiny bit. To me - this what a handmade car should do sometimes. I want to get to know it´s noises, the sounds that i makes when it´s cold, when it has been driven, when it drives down a bumpy road - it gives me feedback. I feel like I know my car over time. Also, it reminds me of the fact I don´t use a 7 Series or an A8 or the Ghost for the day. Compared with the FF, the GTC4 is super quiet. It seems to be way better machined in those aspects. But also, I lacks personality to me.
And the Lusso T - man, that was the biggest disappointment in any Ferrari I have driven ever. After a while, I felt riding an slightly bigger 2017 VW Golf R, it even hat a similar sound. Don´t even want to rev it.
The sound from the FF -especially when it´s cold- is way more "Ferrari" to my ears than the GTC4. Please let´s all forget about the Lusso T anyway. It´s the first and hopefully the last time ever that Ferrari built a more affordable and specced down version of one of it´s cars.

DRIVING EXPERIENCE: CITY
This is where the FF is not as practical and the GTC4 shines. Narrow corners in the garage - easy with the GTC4, sometimes really annoying in the FF. Parking also. BUT: This is not the category based on which you should decide what is the better Ferrari, is it? And also - even if it´s a bit of hassle - It´s not really a car that was designed with the sole purpose of driving to IKEA, but a car that should have that capability also, on the end of a list with more important capabilities it needs to have.

RELIABILITY - ASTONISHING!
As I stated in the beginning, I only have a few days experience with the GTC4 Lusso and the Lusso T. But as for my FF, it´s the most reliable car I ever had. It seems to be build forever. As long as you put large amounts of fuel and oil into it, exchange the spark plugs and the break linings when it´s necessary, it´s causing me no problems at all (fingers crossed). I drove many modern German cars, which should be way more reliable than a Ferrari, and no Sir, they all had some issues, even major ones.

I hope this could be of some help. Have a nice day my friend!

Cheers, F

 

I hope I dont feel the same way, just traded my FF and have a Lusso T on its way.

 

Hi Brian.

 

Lol too funny! OMG .. its Donnie's first post so I guess he is not familiar with Brian

Donnie that is one long review of which I did not have the time to read through in entirely but kudos to you for putting it together. All I can say is that the V12Lusso is a WAY WAY better Daily Driver then my FF was and I drove that for 42000km! Not sure how Ferrari could have done any better outside of adding a full exhaust OPEN button

 

What a charming way to welcome someone on their first post....



Regardless, welcome to Fchat, @Donnie Darko.

I am weighing up getting a used FF vs Lusso, so your write up was appreciated all the same.

 

I’m only being silly (couldn’t resist!). Welcome Donnie, but I don’t really agree with your analysis of FF v Lusso. The Lusso’s appearance is much better resolved than the FF, the car is better developed - less of the noise you don’t want (tyre roar etc.) sweeter noises from where you do want (the engine). The interior is much nicer, I mean much. The infotainment is years ahead, and others might enjoy paying $300k for a Chrysler system from the early 2000’s but personally I prefer not to do that given the choice, even when it is sitting in a car that is more about performance and continent crushing than listening to music.

It’s the way of things, new car is better than old. It’s no more Ferrari, it doesn’t insult the brilliance of the FF, it costs more, and for all those reasons it might be a good decision for some people not to make the switch. But to say the old car is not as good as the new one is the same as saying Ferrari don’t know anything about building sports cars.