Ferrari’s U.S.-listed shares fell 5.3% Tuesday after the luxury automaker unveiled the Luce, its first fully electric vehicle and one of the biggest shifts in the company’s history.
The four-door Luce, Italian for “light,” debuted in Rome as Ferrari pushes into the electric vehicle market while some luxury competitors scale back EV plans amid weaker demand.
Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna described the launch as “a very, very important day” and the start of “a new chapter” for the automaker, CNBC reported.
“We are convinced that a company demonstrates its leadership when it has the courage to dare and to take on the challenge of new technologies,” Vigna said in a Ferrari statement.
Ferrari’s First EV
Ferrari developed the Luce over five years and worked with LoveFrom, the creative collective founded by former Apple design chief Jony Ive.
The company said it designed and manufactured the vehicle in-house in Maranello and incorporated more than 60 new patents.
The Luce marks a major departure from Ferrari’s traditional lineup. It has four doors, five seats, a larger body, center-opening doors, a rear liftgate, and four electric motors, one for each wheel.
The vehicle generates more than 1,000 horsepower, reaches 60 mph in about 2.5 seconds, and has a top speed of roughly 192 mph.
Ferrari said the Luce can travel more than 500 kilometers, or about 310 miles, on a full charge.
Investors React
Ferrari shares in Milan fell about 8% Tuesday, while U.S.-listed shares dropped 5.3%, CNBC reported.
Analysts pointed to concerns over Ferrari’s move into EVs, the vehicle’s design, and the cost of developing an electric model.
“Ultimately many fans are disappointed that Ferrari is embracing the EV concept, believing it dilutes the supercar brand, which has modelled itself around classic design and raw, combustion-engine power,” Morningstar chief equity strategist Michael Field told CNBC.
Anthony Dick, an auto analyst at Oddo BHF, called the market response unusually sharp.
“The market has spoken,” Dick said, CNBC reported, calling it “by far the sharpest reaction we’ve seen for a car design.”
Ferrari Bets On New Buyers
“In our client base there are many … who are still looking for something completely different, to be used in different moments of life,” Ferrari chief marketing and commercial officer Enrico Galliera said, CNN reported.
The launch could also help Ferrari compete in markets such as China, where electric vehicles are more common and gasoline-powered luxury vehicles face higher taxes.
Ferrari also emphasized that it tried to preserve the emotional experience associated with the brand, including sound.
“What is important is the emotion that is [being given] to the driver,” Vigna said, CNBC reported, adding that “each engine has its own sound.”
Ferrari joins other high-end automakers navigating an uncertain luxury EV market as demand remains uneven worldwide.
