Ferrari's high-performance SUV will be available in late 2019

The North American Auto Show taking place in Detroit is not only an opportunity for car manufacturers to showcase their cutting-edge technology products, but it is also an opportunity for manufacturers to express their views and concerns about the future development direction of their companies as well as the auto industry.

During an interview with the press at the event, Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne confirmed the presence of a high-chassis vehicle with the famous Ferrari brand. Moreover, the public will not have to wait 5 years like the Lamborghini Urus or longer than 13 years for the Alfa Stelvio Quadrifoglio, but the Ferrari SUV will be available from the end of 2019.

Last November, the charismatic CEO expressed his intention to build an SUV or a Ferrari Utility Vehicle (FUV). Not long after, Lamborghini entered the high-performance sports SUV game with the Urus.

Mr. Sergio Marchionne revealed further: "It will have all the inherent utilities that a Ferrari utility vehicle needs to have, but the driving feeling will be like a Ferrari."

Speaking to AutoExpress about the possibility of building the world's fastest SUV - something Bentley and Lamborghini have been pursuing - Sergio Marchionne said: "So far the fastest SUV belongs to the Alfa Stelvio Quadrifoglio and I don't think this is too big an obstacle for Ferrari. We will do our best to create the fastest SUV."

In Italy, before the Lamborghini Urus appeared, the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio was the fastest SUV with a twin-turbocharged V6 engine producing 503 horsepower, the car could reach a speed of 0 to 100 km/h in 3.8 seconds and a maximum speed of 283 km/h. However, Alfa Romeo's car was quickly overshadowed when the Lamborghini Urus appeared. The twin-turbocharged V8 engine produced 641 horsepower, accelerated from 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.6 seconds and had a maximum speed of 304 km/h. Like it or not, this is Ferrari's real goal!

Responding to the announcement time, the 65-year-old CEO revealed: "It could be late 2019 or early 2020. I saw it when I was in Europe 8 days ago and it is currently in the initial testing stages, everything is generally going well."

Of course, this is bad news for the die-hard fans, but for FCA's leadership, behind the plan to develop a separate SUV to compete with rivals is a promising profit. Mr. Marchionne announced that Ferrari was out of debt in 2018, even though sales were not as expected. Therefore, the appearance of an SUV with Ferrari's own characteristics seems inevitable.

Thus, after super luxury names like Bentley, Lamborghini, Rolls-Royce (which is scheduled to launch Cullinan this year), Ferrari is the last car company to participate in the high-performance super luxury SUV segment.