If you didn’t believe it before, you need to start believing now. The Ferrari SUV is happening as CEO Sergio Marchionne himself confirmed to Bloomberg that it’s not a question of “if” anymore as it is “when” it’s going to happen. Marchionne added that the Italian automaker is “dead serious” about its SUV plans. That’s a step further from his past comments when he only mentioned the possibility of a Ferrari SUV as something that will “probably happen.”

The talk within Ferrari now moves on to the next phase of the SUV project: production. Marching didn’t elaborate on the specifics of the SUV, or as he calls it, the “FUV.” Instead, we learned that the Italian automaker will spend the next 30 months - two-and-a-half years - discussing the production volume of the model. Seeing as this is Ferrari, don’t expect the final number to be high since the company wants to preserve its status of exclusivity. Tacking a production volume in the high four or five digits would run counter to that position so at best, we can expect somewhere in the neighborhood of 2,000 units, give or take. For now, Ferrari’s concern is how it plans to strike a balance between exclusivity and scarcity, something it plans to address when it rolls out its new five-year plan in the first quarter of 2018. That plan should reveal more information about the Ferrari SUV and all other models that will create the company’s lineup in the next decade.

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What does a Ferrari SUV mean for the Prancing Horse?

You can spin this question a number of different ways because that’s how big of a deal a Ferrari SUV really is. On the one hand, the significance of Ferrari pushing itself beyond its current limits shouldn’t be underestimated. Remember, this is the same supercar brand that prides itself on its exclusivity above everything else. There were points in the past when the thought of a Ferrari SUV was not only dismissed but ultimately laughed at.

But the current landscape of the segment has changed. Brands that consider themselves competitors to Ferrari - Lamborghini, Aston Martin, and even Bentley and Rolls-Royce - have all jumped on the SUV bandwagon for the same reason. It’s lucrative to be included in this market and capitalizing on the demand for these cars is a smart business move. Ferrari understands that now and it’s a big reason why the Prancing Horse is galloping its way to having its own SUV in the near future.

On the other hand, there will remain those people who will scorn at the thought of a Ferrari SUV and treat it as the antithesis of everything that Maranello is supposed to stand for. In their eyes, Ferrari should be the one automaker that doesn’t buckle under the weight and appeal that comes with being part of the SUV market. What these people don’t realize though is that Ferrari is it’s own company now. It separated from the FCA group in 2014 because it wanted to make it on its own in the business. It’s done a tremendous job so far at doing that, but in the end, its biggest concern now is making sure that its bottom line is as robust as ever. That can only be accomplished by making sure that it explores every possible venue where it can maximize its profits. An SUV does that, so it’s no surprise that the company is now moving in that direction.

Whatever happens with its SUV plans, we can all be sure that everybody’s going to start talking about it once more details become available. It’s already a hot-button topic today, and we know next to nothing about it. Imagine the narrative once Maranello gives us more information about the model.

References

Read our full review on the 2020 Ferrari SUV.

Read more Ferrari news.