FERRARI LUCE: THE PRANCING HORSE GOES ELECTRIC, AND IT’S SOMETHING ELSE

Read Time:5 Minute, 46 Second

Ferrari unveiled its first fully electric car in Rome on Sunday, and it didn’t just dip a toe in — it cannonballed. The Ferrari Luce (Italian for light) made its world debut at the Vela di Calatrava sports complex, a city chosen with intent: it was in Rome, on 25 May 1947, that Ferrari scored its very first racing victory. Seventy-nine years on, the marque returns to start another chapter.

That chapter involves four electric motors, one per wheel, 1,050 hp, a 0–100 km/h sprint in 2.5 seconds, and a claimed range of 530 km. This is not a compliance car.

A FERRARI FIRST — AND THEN SOME

The Luce is only the second four-door Ferrari ever made, and the first with five seats. The electric architecture made that possible — no transaxle layout means no structural compromise on the fifth chair. It also means no central tunnel, which gives the interior a cabin volume Ferrari describes as genuinely surprising relative to the car’s exterior footprint.

Kerb weight sits at 2,260 kg — heavy by supercar standards but creditable for the class — and Ferrari has worked hard to disguise it. The centre of gravity sits 95 mm lower than in the Purosangue, and the yaw inertia is 15% lower, which Ferrari says makes the car handle like something 400 kg lighter than it actually is. On paper, that’s an extraordinary claim. On track, we’ll find out.

THE NUMBERS

Maximum power: 1,050 cv (772 kW), in Launch Control
0–100 km/h: 2.5 seconds
0–200 km/h: 6.8 seconds
Top speed: 310 km/h
Battery: 122 kWh, 800V architecture
Fast charging: up to 350 kW (70 kWh recovered in 20 minutes)
Range: 530 km (estimated, homologation pending)
Wheels: 23-inch front, 24-inch rear — the largest staggered fitment on any production Ferrari

DESIGNED BY JONY IVE. YES, REALLY.

Ferrari handed the design to LoveFrom — the creative collective founded by Sir Jony Ive (the man behind two decades of Apple hardware) and Marc Newson. This is the first Ferrari not designed in-house, and it shows — in a good way.

The result is unlike any Ferrari before it. The defining feature is what the designers call the glass house: a pure, shell-like greenhouse that extends below the beltline and wraps the cabin without interruption. Floating aerodynamic wings front and rear hover around that glasshouse volume, carrying the lighting and aero loads so nothing cuts into the pure form. The headlights and taillights are embedded flush in transparent panels; when switched off, they almost disappear. The halo tail light treatment is a deliberate nod to the 360 Modena and 458 Italia — old-school Ferrari fans will notice it.

Inside, the approach is mechanical-meets-digital done properly. Physical buttons, dials, and toggles cover the most-used functions; Samsung OLED screens (four of them, including a layered binnacle display with actual analogue needles floating over a digital face) handle the rest. The key is made from Corning Gorilla Glass and uses an E Ink display — a world first in a production car. When you dock it, the Ferrari yellow pulses across the interface. It’s theatrical in a way that feels earned.

HOW IT DRIVES — ON PAPER

Four independent motors mean true torque vectoring on every wheel, every corner, simultaneously. Ferrari’s new Vehicle Control Unit updates its targets 200 times per second and manages the 800V powertrain, the 48V active suspension, and the 12V auxiliaries under one architecture. The e-Manettino offers three power modes — Range (320 kW, rear-biased), Tour (460 kW, all-wheel drive), and Performance (725 kW, full attack). The classic five-position Manettino sits right beside it.

The paddle system is new too. Rather than fake gear changes, Ferrari engineered a torque shift engagement system: the right paddle dials up torque delivery across five levels, the left increases regenerative braking across five levels. It’s a genuinely new way to interact with an electric drivetrain, and it sounds more intuitive than most EV paddle gimmicks.

Sound, for the record, is not synthesised. A precision accelerometer sits in the rear axle housing and captures the actual mechanical vibration of the rotating components — amplified, filtered, and sent to the cabin through a 21-speaker, 3,000W audio system. Ferrari calls it functional sound: it’s loudest in Performance mode, silent in Range. Whether it satisfies the ear the way a V12 does remains the one question a press release can’t answer.

THE ECOSYSTEM

Ferrari has committed to building all major components — motors, battery pack, inverters — in Maranello. Over 60 new patents are tied to the Luce. The battery carries an 8-year warranty covering all key electric powertrain components. The existing seven-year maintenance programme applies here too.

Launch colours are Azzurro la Plata, Giallo Luce, Rosso Dino, Bianco Artico, and Rosso Fiammante. The yellow was developed specifically for the Luce, inspired by the historic yellow of the Ferrari badge — and it appears on the wheel hubs and steering wheel as well.

Pricing has not been announced. Deliveries are expected to begin in due course, and this being Ferrari, the allocation conversation has probably already started.

The Ferrari Luce was unveiled in Rome on 25 May 2026. Full technical specifications are available below:

DIMENSIONS AND WEIGHT

Length 5026 mm

Width (without mirrors) 1999 mm

Height 1544 mm

Wheelbase 2961 mm

Front track 1696 mm

Rear track 1690 mm

Kerb weight* 2260 kg

Kerb weight to power ratio 2.16 kg/cv

Weight distribution 47% front / 53% rear

Trunk capacity 597 l