Ferrari’s first all-electric production car, dubbed the Luce, has sold for $40 million at a charity auction, setting a new record for a new vehicle at such an event. The sale occurred less than three months after the $550,000 five-seater model faced significant criticism upon its unveiling in May.
The Luce was a collaboration with LoveFrom, a design firm co-founded by former Apple design chief Jony Ive. Critics had lambasted the battery-powered grand tourer's unconventional exterior, questioning its resemblance to the traditional Ferrari identity.
This backlash caused a notable dip in the company's stock value, with shares closing 8% lower in Milan and falling 5% in New York on the first trading day after the exterior was revealed. Former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo publicly expressed his hope that the company would remove the iconic prancing-horse badge from the vehicle.
Ferrari acknowledged that the intensity of the public reaction was unexpected. Global marketing director Emanuele Carando stated that while the automaker anticipated a polarizing reception, they "didn’t expect such a magnitude" of negative feedback. Product chief Gianmaria Fulgenzi commented that the Luce "needs to be digested."
Despite the controversy, the auction results indicate that the criticism did not deter at least one buyer from paying a substantial premium for the first production chassis. Bidding for "Chassis 0" reportedly began around $1 million and rapidly escalated into the eight figures, eventually reaching the $40 million final bid at RM Sotheby’s Monterey auction.
The proceeds from the sale will be directed toward educational initiatives through the Ferrari Foundation. The charity car featured a unique pearlescent exterior designed to shift appearance with changes in light and viewing angles, along with a specially configured light-colored cabin and bespoke design elements such as unique wheels, brake calipers, and badging.
The owner of this unique Luce will have to wait for delivery. The car will return to Ferrari's Maranello facility before being handed over in the first quarter of 2027. The $40 million sale price surpassed the $26 million fetched by a specially commissioned Ferrari Daytona SP3 at a charity auction in 2025.
Ferrari has maintained that demand for the Luce remains in line with projections. Chief Executive Benedetto Vigna stated in late July that orders were meeting expectations, coming from both existing Ferrari clients and new customers. Reports also indicated that Ferrari had met its 2026 target for Luce production, just under 500 units, within two months, partly driven by demand from China, though Ferrari has not confirmed specific figures.