I was at the Ferrari Luce EV launch before the backlash

The launch, which has become a public relations crisis for Ferrari, began about six weeks ago when an invitation arrived in my inbox to unveil the Luce, its first fully electric car.

The event was so controlled that security blocked our phone cameras to prevent unauthorized photos of the €550,000 EV, disappointing investors so much that the company’s shares fell 8% the next day. But the incident served as a reminder of what a big step the company had taken, and what the real test of the car would be like when it comes to market.

On Monday evening, I was taken with hundreds of guests in dark minibuses under police escort to the Vela di Calatrava sports complex on the outskirts of Rome.

Security tagged the cameras on our phones and laptops to cover the cameras and checked them repeatedly in case we had tampered with them.

All the secrecy and almost solemnity added to the anticipation of the launch, which was five years in the making.

Under what looked like a whale skeleton, some elements of the car were displayed under tamed lights: the platform, seats and other parts, including those presented before. Apple chief design officer Jony Ive.

Later, on stage, under a sculptural work by the famous Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, family member and Ferrari President John Elkann opened the presentation, followed by CEO Benedetto Vigna and other senior executives. A short video of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc having fun driving the new Luce is also still a mystery to us.

Finally, after an hour, the piece de resistance: Luce (“light” in Italian), available in five colors, entered, accompanied by flashing lights and loud music.

Let me be frank, I don’t even have a driver’s license; but even I could immediately tell that this was a significant departure from the Ferrari look. While the Luce came in red, it was mostly displayed in blue, including in marketing material later released by Ferrari, adding to the styling shock.

When we were finally allowed to approach the cars, a DJ came out. As the evening drew to a close, I sat in the new Luce and discovered the luxurious camel-coloured interior. It felt spacious (Ferrari’s first five-seater) and smelled expensive.

But the party really ended Tuesday morning. Ferrari shares fell 8% that day, and the car faced a lot of criticism on social media, including clue memes of a crying Enzo Ferrari and AI-generated videos.

However, Ferrari had hinted that the new car would look different. As RBC’s Tom Naryan said of the launch: “The reason Ferrari partnered with an outside designer (for the first time since 2014) was the goal of making a truly groundbreaking product.”

Standing in front of the shiny new, red one this time, CEO Vigna Luce told me: “When you have a new technology, you need to make sure that that technology is represented correctly in the design. So the design has to be different.”

But many seem unconvinced, seeing iPhone-style minimalism as incompatible with Ferrari’s aesthetic.

It turned into a national debate. Outspoken politician and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini said of the

“It looks like anything but a car from the Prancing Horse,” he added, referring to Ferrari’s famous logo. Salvini added: “Is this supposed to be ‘innovation’? Who knows what Enzo Ferrari will say…”

Former Ferrari President Luca Cordero di Montezemolo told Italian television that the model “runs the risk of destroying a legend.” “At least this is a car that the Chinese will definitely not imitate.”

The incident extended to Pope Leo, who was seen inspecting Luce and taking him for a ride in a Ferrari statement late Tuesday after the stock plunge.

However, some analysts do not expect Ferrari to need a miracle for Luce to succeed.

Bernstein analysts were inspired by the movie “Field of Dreams.”

“If Ferrari produces the vehicle, customers will come,” they wrote. “We believe there are sufficient collectors and completists, customers aiming for collector status as well as those new to Ferrari customers, to ensure that Luce firmly establishes its position within the Ferrari range.”

So hold on to your (prancing) horses, there really might be “Luce” at the end of the tunnel.