- Ferrari chairman John Elkann credits Amazon’s Jeff Bezos with inspiring the Luce EV.
- “You need to really think hard about building an electric vehicle,” Bezos told him in 2016.
- Ferrari’s first electric car has proved controversial for both its powertrain and design.
The world doesn’t need more reasons to dislike Jeff Bezos or the Ferrari Luce. But Ferrari’s chairman just gave us one anyway, explaining that a conversation with the Amazon founder helped push Maranello to develop its first electric car.
John Elkann told a conference that a conversation with Bezos in 2016 convinced him that Ferrari needed to take the idea of an EV seriously, Reuters reports.
Related: The Aftermarket Already Has Plans For Ferrari’s $639K Luce EV
“I don’t know anything about cars, but I know about innovation,” Elkann recalls Bezos telling him 10 years before Ferrari unveiled the production Luce. “And I think that you really need to think hard about electric vehicles.”
Ferrari has produced some controversial cars in the past, including the 1974 Dino 308GT4, whose fashionably wedgy Bertone styling was a radical break from the swoopy Pininfarina lines of the brand’s earlier cars. And the 2012 FF shooting brake also got some flack for its awkward styling.
But no Ferrari has ever got fans worked up for the wrong reason like the Luce. Going electric was always going to be a much more controversial move for a brand like Ferrari than for a company like Kia, or even Porsche. But maybe Ferrari could have escaped much of the criticism if the Luce didn’t look like it does.
Apple Influences
Both the exterior and interior design of the Luce were handled by LoveFrom, whose team includes former Apple designer Jony Ive. And while the interior has drawn praise for its Apple-like high quality materials and tactile switchgear, the body itself looks kind of dumpy.
“We weren’t in any way intending to do a controversial Ferrari,” Elkann told conference guests. “What is important is how much that touches your conviction. What it did is that it made our conviction very strong.”
Goes Like A Ferrari
Ferrari always intended the Luce to appeal to a very different audience than the one buying its other cars. But even if it looks nothing like most gearheads’ idea of a Ferrari, the Luce at least goes like one. It has four motors that collectively make 1,035 hp (772 kW / 1,050 PS), and can hit 62 mph (100 kmh) in just 2.5 seconds. A massive 122 kWh battery gives an unimpressive 329 mile (530 km) range.
It’s also priced like a true Ferrari. The Luce costs €550,000 in Europe, and while US prices have yet to be revealed, they’re likely to be in the $640,000 range.
Ferrari, Prime Minister’s Office (GODL-India), GODL-India
