Italian luxury carmaker Ferrari has a long history of making luxury sports cars. So, when the company unveiled its most utilitarian vehicle in its 75-year history, CEO Benedetto Vinga had only one request, "Please don't call it a SUV, because it isnt", Bloomberg reported.

Founded in 1947, Ferrari is synonymous with cars that remain closer to the ground and faster than its competitors. Most patrons and admirers of the vehicles would rather see their favorite carmaker not release new cars than see its DNA diluted to satisfy the passenger vehicle segment.

Just six years ago, CEO Sergio Marchionne figuratively chose death over making a crossover vehicle at Maranello. Yet here we are talking about a four-door four-seater vehicle displaying the famous prancing horse logo.

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The Ferrari Purosangue boasts a 715 horsepower V12 engine and an automatic transmission that delivers a top speed of 192 miles (310 km) per hour. Details on Ferrari's website state that the F140IA engine on the car has a peak torque of 716 Nm, with 80 percent being available at 2100 rpm.

As one would expect from a Ferrari, the throttle response in the Purosangue is also aimed to be similar to that of its sports cars, with the company tapping into its Formula 1 know-how to get the most for its new vehicle too.

Under the carbon-fiber roof, one gets four large electric heating-equipped seats and two rear-hinged doors that make it easy to get in and out of the car. The 125-gallon (473 liters) trunk is the largest one Ferrari has ever offered, and folding the rear seats can provide extra space when needed.

The Purosangue costs 390,000 euros (US$390,000), which is higher than the Lamborghini Urus and Bentley Bentayga, priced at US$ 225,000 and US$206,800, respectively. The four-door 4x4 wheel drive Purosangue beats both the Urus and Betayga on acceleration since it can clock 0-60 mph (0-100 km) in 3.3 seconds.

The unveiling of Purosangue makes it clear that the Italian carmaker is looking to widen its base and cater to the different needs of its customers. This might break the hearts of some Ferrari fans who might start thinking that the company is not staying loyal to its spirit of making sports cars.

On a deeper level, one can see that the company has done everything possible to keep that spirit alive. Ferrari currently offers the 296GTB and SF90 Stradale in plug-in hybrid variants but decided to go along with the combustion engine on the Purosangue. This must have been a difficult decision, considering that the company is aiming for a 60 percent portfolio of battery-only and plug-in hybrids by 2026.

With the Pursosangue to be made available only next year, the company could have even chosen an electric powertrain for the vehicle but stopped short of doing so since it could not assure the performance expected from its cars.

It is likely that while being the first of Ferrari's utilitarian cars, the Purosangue might be the last of its combustion engine-only cars. So, the whole question of whether Purosangue is an SUV or not is moot.

As CEO Benedetto Vigna told reporters at Maranello, "It's a Ferrari."