Luxury car maker Ferrari’s first electric car will cost at least 500,000 euros ($535,000) as it prepares to open a factory to make the model, potentially increasing group output by up to a third, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The Italian brand known for its thunderous gasoline engines has said it will launch an electric car at the end of next year, a price that signals confidence that ultra-wealthy drivers are ready to embrace electric vehicles even as mass-market rivals slash prices of electric vehicles (EVs) amid sluggish demand.
While not including features and personal touches that typically add 15 to 20 percent, that price still significantly exceeds the average selling price of around 350,000 euros (including options) for Ferrari and many competing luxury EVs in the first quarter of this year.
In the less-luxury segment, Porsche’s electric Taycan starts at around 100,000 euros ($107,000).
Ferrari did not respond to requests for comment on the price of its first EV or about the new factory it plans to open on Friday in its headquarters in Maranello, northern Italy.
The factory, or e-building, is a bold move for a company that delivered fewer than 14,000 cars last year and plans to eventually boost production capacity to around 20,000 vehicles, according to the sources, who asked not to be identified discussing the matter.
Exclusivity underpins brand prestige and high prices, so increasing production is risky.
But with the launch of its Purosangue SUV in 2022, Ferrari has shown it can succeed beyond the boundaries of traditional two-seater sports cars and grand tourers.
“Demand for Ferrari is growing and Ferrari has the room to satisfy some of that without compromising its exclusivity,” said Fabio Caldato, portfolio manager at AcamA SGR, which holds Ferrari shares.
For some models, the wait time can exceed two years.
“The time frame isn’t getting shorter. Being on a waiting list is a status symbol in itself,” Caldart said, pointing to the rise in potential wealthy customers in emerging markets such as India and the Middle East.
Second EV model
The new Maranello factory will provide Ferrari with additional vehicle assembly lines to manufacture petrol, hybrid and new electric vehicles, as well as parts for these hybrid and electric vehicles.
It is expected to be fully operational within three to four months, sources said.
A second EV model is also in the works, but development is still in the early stages and the company may not want to increase total production to 20,000 units per year, at least in the short term, the sources said.
“The state-of-the-art factory will ensure us the flexibility and technological capabilities to exceed our needs for years to come,” Chief Executive Officer Benedetto Vigna told Ferrari shareholders in April.
The increase in production will likely be accompanied by an increase in models, as Ferrari sticks to its policy of keeping production within a certain range, no matter how successful a model is, the people said.
Rival Lamborghini plans to start selling its first electric model in 2028. Its CEO, Stephan Winkelmann, told Reuters that having the right product was more important than being first.
Mediobanca analyst Andrea Baroni said he expected Ferrari’s new electric car to be more expensive to maintain profit margins and to compensate for the development of new all-electric technology and the need to source more parts from outside.
“We expect the new EV to be a niche model, accounting for just over 10 percent of annual sales,” Baroni said, adding that Ferrari’s core customers still prefer gasoline models.
