Everyone loves the Luce. Or at least the internet thinks it’s the most mocked thing since the Cybertruck arrived. The hype is real, but the hate is louder.
Ferrari revealed this thing Monday. It has five seats (gasp). It was designed mostly by Jony Ive. Yes, that Jony Ive, working through his firm LoveFrom alongside Marc Newson.
It sounds impressive on paper. One thousand horsepower. 0 to 60 in just over two seconds. Fast cars are fast cars. But look at the shape.
It’s a wedge. A blunt, smooth, almost Nissan-like slab of glass and aluminum.
The rejection covers the whole map. From flimsy jokes to outright vitriol. Bloomberg called it “quite a stretch.” Even the stoic news desks are raising their eyebrows.
So here is the real question: Who is this for?
Not me. Definitely not you. The price tag sits around $650k. That is before the options. And before you apply, remember Ferrari picks its friends. It is exclusive by design.
Is it for current owners? Unlikely.
Over 80 percent of people buying a Ferrari last year already had one. They like the angry lines. The sharp edges that used to decorate bedroom posters for decades. This? It’s smooth. Bland. A betrayal of the brand DNA.
Maybe it’s for other designers. The interior has actual knobs and clicky buttons. Ive went analog in a digital world. I’d like to steal those ideas.
“If it had been legislated, the resulting challenge would appear similar.”
Is it for regulators? Probably. The EU bans gas engines by 2035. Ferrari needs an EV portfolio to stay relevant. Compliance isn’t sexy, but it is necessary.
Ive himself acknowledged the pressure. In an interview with Cleo Abram he referenced secret sketchbooks. Mood boards, notes, panic.
He compared the task to Patek Philippe watches. How they survived the quartz crisis.
Patek kept making mechanical watches while also making quartz ones. They transitioned gradually.
But then Ive added the kicker.
What if Patek had to go all quartz by law? That is Ferrari right now. Legally forced. No choice but to pivot.
Telling, isn’t it?
Yet I don’t buy the “just a compliance car” excuse. Ferrari said it expects the Luce to make money. From day one. Profit. Not just greenwashing.
Their commercial officer admitted something else to the Financial Times. The goal was polarization. But also?
They are targeting people who already own electric cars.
Stop. Read that again.
Ferrari wants the EV buyer. Not the purist.
That means their core customer isn’t the buyer. That’s a radical shift. Or maybe it’s a necessary one.
Which leaves the final, glaring option.
China.
Chinese buyers have only been about 10 percent of Ferrari’s sales recently. A decline. Executives want to fix that. China is the biggest market for batteries.
Look at the Luce again.
Doesn’t it look like the stuff coming out of Chang’an? NIO? Zeekr? That sleek, tech-heavy aesthetic is huge in Beijing and Shanghai right now.
The design makes sense there. It looks like local royalty.
So maybe we have been asking the wrong question.
Will Western gearheads accept the plastic smoothness of the future? Maybe.
But will the Chinese tech-rich class care about the Prancing Horse badge? They have cheaper options with faster updates and more screens.
Prestige is a fading currency.
Will the badge pay the premium?
We will see.
