Ferrari admits it didn’t expect so much rejection of the Luce, its first electric car

Ferrari seems to have underestimated the passion and conservatism of its enthusiasts. The Luce, the Italian brand’s first sedan and first 100% electric car, was launched under a storm of criticism that took the manufacturer by surprise. Priced at US$ 640 thousand (about R$ 3,3 million), the model breaks with almost all the pillars that define a Maranello sports car: it lacks the soul of combustion engines and the aggressive aesthetics typical of Italians, which has given way to a controversial look, closer to a gadget than a race car.

It’s no coincidence. The design of the Luce was in charge of LoveFrom, the studio of designers Jony Ive — former head of design at Apple — and Marc Newson, in partnership with Ferrari’s design director, Flavio Manzoni. Hence the recurring comparison, among critics, with an Apple product. Emanuele Carando, Ferrari’s global marketing director, admitted to the Edmunds website that the company expected a polarized reaction, but not of the magnitude that came. Even the brand’s former president, Luca di Montezemolo, even acidly suggested that Ferrari should remove the “Cavallino Rampante” from the hood of the new sedan.

Despite the rejection, the strategy was intentional. According to Carando, the brand decided not only to electrify the platform of an existing model, such as the Purosangue, but to take advantage of the electric architecture, which allows for a shorter hood and greater interior space. The executive tries to calm the spirits by drawing a parallel with the launch of the Purosangue itself, also the target of harsh criticism and accusations of “betraying the history of the brand”, but today one of the manufacturer’s most acclaimed models.

Under the bodywork signed by LoveFrom, Luce delivers Ferrari performance: there are about 1,050 hp distributed by four electric motors — one on each wheel — and a 122 kWh battery. Curiously, the interior, full of physical controls in aluminum and glass, contrary to the large screens of rival electric cars, ended up being praised even by those who criticize the exterior.

Unveiled in Rome in May, the Luce is also the first five-seater Ferrari and the most expensive model in the catalog, above the Purosangue. Carando is betting that the rejection will subside over time, as has happened with other controversial models of the past. For him, in marketing there is no such thing as bad advertising: all the negative repercussions, says the executive, end up working as free advertising.