This is it. Ferrari has finally mustered enough courage to unveil its first-ever all-electric vehicle to the world, the Ferrari Luce, following a lengthy teaser campaign that started more than a year ago.
Italian for “light,” the new Luce EV is also Ferrari’s second-ever five-door car after the V12-powered Purosangue as well as their largest car yet, and safe to say, it has got many people talking within hours after its global debut.
Ferrari-Certified Performance
Let’s start with the good things first—the Luce EV seems to be on par with many of its pure combustion siblings, at least according to all the superlatives listed on the brochure.
For starters, the Luce EV houses four electric motors, one for each wheel, making a combined output of 1,050 PS to enable this five-metre long GT a rapid 0-100 km/h sprint time of only 2.5 seconds before cutting off at 310 km/h.
Straight-line performance aside, no official track times have been announced by the Maranello-based marque for now, but we’ve been told the Luce is quite a usable EV too, thanks to its enormous 122-kWh battery pack that Ferrari claims is good for up to 530 km of WLTP range.
Charging performance is also quite respectable, where the Luce’s 800-volt in-house-developed battery architecture allows the EV GT to support up to 350 kW of DC fast charging. Not exactly BYD’s Flash Charging level, but this setup is enough to see the Luce’s large battery pack receiving 70 kWh of juice in just 20 minutes.
Not content with the biggest Ferrari ever title, the Luce also takes home the heaviest Ferrari title, with the whole EV GT tipping the scale at 2,260 kg, but engineers at Maranello manage to keep the weight distribution rather balanced at 47:53, front to rear.
Another title claimed by the Luce is for having the largest wheels ever fitted on a production Ferrari, measuring 23 inches at the front and 24 inches at the rear, and they are made from lightweight alloys. Given its ginormous size, only Bridgestone, Michelin, and Pirelli are able to supply the tyres for the Luce, available in normal, winter, and run-flat options.
Penned by Ex-Apple Chief Designer
Perhaps the most controversial thing about the new Luce is the fact that Ferrari has employed the help of LoveFrom, a design house founded by former Apple chief designer Jony Ive, who is known for designing the iMac, iPhone, and iPad.
But unlike Ferrari’s previous collaborations with exterior design houses (Pininfarina and Bertone), LoveFrom apparently was given the freedom to create something new and unconventional for the Luce.
This results in this ultra-clean, glasshouse-like design that carries almost no design traits from other Ferrari models, with only the iconic Prancing Horse emblem being the recognisable design bit.
Up front, the Luce rocks a massive frontal wing with a clean front fascia featuring slim LED headlights. Mind you, the gloss black parts on both the bonnet and the front bumper are not just accents, they are actually part of the car’s two-piece body construction, with the coloured parts being the outer shell.
The de-Ferrari-isation is even more apparent from the side, where the Luce gets short front and rear overhangs that give it the typical EV GT look, plus large air channels behind the front wheels. Equally quirky are the suicide-style rear doors, with their handles being snuck around the B-pillars.
The rear is where the Luce is finally recognisable as a Ferrari, all thanks to the signature quad round LED taillights. This is also where people could mistake the Luce for a sedan, whereas instead the entire back panel lifts as a hatch.
Most Digital-Forward Ferrari to Date
Sir Ive’s industrial design background takes a front seat inside the Luce’s cabin, where it features a mix of physical controls and digital interfaces to possibly make it the most digital-forward Ferrari to date.
The industrial design inspiration starts with the steering wheel, which is machined from recycled aluminium that moves together with the instrument cluster to keep key information directly in the driver’s line of sight.
There’s also the large central OLED touchscreen that looks like a more avant-garde version of an iPad, while most of the physical controls are located on both the screen and the floating central console, including for the drive selector, window switches, climate controls, and many more.
The Luce is also the contender for the most luxurious production Ferrari title, too, where buyers can choose several optional amenities, including massage functions for the front seats and a 21-speaker, 3,000-watt surround sound system. Aside from the spacious rear passenger compartment, the Luce’s large facade also gives it a large 597-litre boot space—which is the largest in any production Ferrari to date.
Europe First, the Rest of the World Later
Orders for the all-new Ferrari Luce EV have already been opened for the European market with an estimated price tag of €520,000 (RM2.396 million) before options and customisations. Keen to see this all-electric behemoth to make its regional debut in the near future?
