Ferrari has presented its first fully electric car. The model named Luce costs 640,000 dollars, seats five people and has no exhaust pipe. It is the first five-seat car in the Italian brand’s history.
Ferrari was founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari in Maranello, Italy. For decades the company has been associated with V12 engines, high-octane petrol and sports design. The new Luce model (Italian for „light”) visually departs from the brand’s previous products. Its futuristic design comes from LoveFrom, an agency founded by Jony Ive, former head of design at Apple.
Reactions to the Luce premiere on social media are sharply divided. Some commentators criticise the Italian manufacturer for abandoning tradition.
Enthusiasts of modern aesthetics, however, defend the new design. One X user called the Luce an absolute masterpiece of design that completely changes the game.
Ferrari’s chief designer, Flavio Manzoni, told YouTuber Cleo Abram that the concept of an electric Ferrari with such a radical design naturally polarises society. Manzoni stressed that strong emotions are an inseparable part of true innovation. He expressed his belief that critics need time to appreciate the craftsmanship of the Luce.
Performance and technology
Ferrari has applied a unique architecture in the Luce with an independent electric motor driving each wheel individually. The car accelerates from 0 to 96 kilometres per hour (60 miles per hour) in 2.5 seconds. Benedetto Vigna, Ferrari’s CEO, emphasised during the presentation in Rome that developing the model took the brand five years. All drive components are produced in‑house, which is intended to ensure full service support and the possibility of repairing the car for many decades. Ferrari said this strategy is meant to effectively protect the Luce’s resale value on the secondary market.
An EV at a time of retreat from electromobility
The Luce’s debut comes at a time when the global electromobility market is in turmoil. Lamborghini has completely abandoned plans to quickly introduce fully electric models, focusing solely on hybrids. Porsche has drastically reduced its electric ambitions, struggling with falling sales in China and tariff barriers in the United States. Ford and Volkswagen have also scaled back their electromobility spending after Donald Trump’s administration reduced tax incentives for electric cars.
For a long time, Ferrari seemed immune to these upheavals thanks to a strategy based on extreme exclusivity and limited production. However, global inflation has weakened demand for luxury goods, causing Ferrari’s shares to fall by more than 25 percent over the past year. In response to these challenges, Ferrari is introducing the Luce, but at the same time it reassures customers that tradition is not dying entirely. Alongside the electric Luce, the company’s range will still include legendary petrol engines and hybrid systems. This is the first five‑seat Ferrari in history and the first fully electric model. Time will tell whether drivers will accept silence instead of the roar of a V12.
