Ferrari foolishly resists EVs, calls ICE ‘an essential part of the company’s heritage’
Ferrari (RACE) will continue to develop and build internal combustion engines (ICE) well into the late 2030s despite calls from several of its key markets to adopt EVs. According to Ferrari’s CEO, the automaker will continue to build ICE vehicles as “an essential part of the company’s heritage.”
Ferrari still resists EVs and will continue to build ICE cars
Although Ferrari models are known for quick acceleration, the automaker is moving at a sluggish pace toward zero-emission electric vehicles.
Although most automakers are targeting at least 30% to 50% EV sales by 2025, Ferrari plans to release its first fully electric vehicle that year, making up just 5% of total sales by 2026.
For some time now, Ferrari has resisted pure EVs citing the technology as “not ready” for use in supercars. Despite this, electric technology offers more power and instant torque.
Several startups and automakers are advancing technology to prove it, such as the all-electric Lotus Evija, with over 2,000 hp (1,500 kW) and 1,256 lb-ft of torque (1,704 Nm) for an impressive 0 to 186 mph in just over nine seconds.
Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna recently told the BBC that the company would be “arrogant” to dictate what customers can buy despite calls for sustainable transportation. Vigna added that Ferrari would continue to resist EVs and instead build ICE cars, building on “an essential part of the company’s heritage.”
Despite several major auto markets banning the sale of new ICE vehicles, the EU recently agreed on a synthetic e-fuels provision, giving Ferrari the green light to continue building ICE vehicles.
Last year, Ferrari revealed it would strive to become carbon neutral across its value chain by 2030 through new renewable energy and materials, in addition to the automaker’s electrification journey.
Ferrari currently offers four hybrid models but still has no pure EV plans until 2025. The automaker expects fully electric vehicles to represent 40% of its fleet by the end of the decade.
Electrek’s Take
Ferrari is missing the idea here. As many automakers are using the electric era to redesign the brand, Ferrari is sticking to its “heritage.”
As the late Steve Jobs, one of the most influential disruptors of all time, once famously said:
Some people say give the customers what they want, but that’s not my approach. Our job is to figure out what they’re going to want before they do. I think Henry Ford once said, ‘If I’d ask customers what they wanted, they would’ve told me a faster horse.’ People don’t know what they want until you show it to them. That’s why I never rely on market research. Our task is to read things that are not yet on the page.
We are already seeing this happen in the auto industry, with the Tesla Model Y on track to become the best-selling passenger vehicle globally. In fact, both the Tesla Model Y and Model 3 cracked the top ten best-selling cars globally last year.
Although Ferrari has built a solid image over the years as one of the top sports car makers, buyers’ habits are changing. Consumers are becoming less concerned with brands and more with a vehicle’s performance and technology.
Ferrari waiting until 2025 to launch its first EV, delaying electrification further, could cost it in the long run. Buyers are converting to electric at a record pace, and the technology will only continue to advance from here, resulting in more power, less weight, and reduced costs.
If Ferrari doesn’t build an electric supercar, plenty of startups and other automakers are looking to take its place in the luxury sports car market.
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Volkswagen has officially cancelled the long-delayed ID.7 electric sedan in America, instead focusing on selling it in Europe and China.
The ID.7 is VW’s electric mid-size sedan offering, currently available (and selling well) in Europe and also in China.
Previously the ID.7 had been intended to launch in 2024 in North America, after launching in Europe in 2023. But when launch time came close, VW delayed the North American debut of the model indefinitely last May.
As recently as October, VW America’s boss Pablo Di Si (who has since moved on) said that the ID.7 could still come in 2025.
But now we know that that indefinite delay is now fully definite: the model has been canceled in the US and Canada.
The news was broken yesterday by The Car Guide, speaking with a VW Canada representative. We’ve since reached out to VW, who confirmed the news to us.
Automotive News quoted a VW spokesperson saying the decision was made due to “the ongoing challenging EV climate.” Last year in North America, EV sales grew by 9%, faster than the overall auto market which grew at 2.5%, suggesting that the market is in fact more challenging for non-EVs than EVs at the moment. Further, gas car sales have been in long term decline since 2017, whereas EV sales have risen drastically in that time period.
That growth was achieved with very few available sedan models as well, with almost every EV available in America being an SUV-type. Adding additional model availability could open up the market to more buyers who want a right-sized vehicle instead of a land yacht.
But VW has been having a challenging time itself in the US. Until recently, it only offered a single SUV model, the ID.4, in the US. While the ID.4 has brought a lot of upgrades recently, it’s also one of the few vehicles whose sales were down in a growing market (which was true even before the stop sale which has now been lifted after fixing a door handle problem). Perhaps VW could have benefitted from offering a vehicle in a different format.
VW had previously blamed its delay of the ID.7 on “market conditions.” It didn’t specify which market conditions it was referring to, but we have some suspicions.
Manufacturers have a belief that Americans only want SUVs (or so they say – really, this is at least partially driven by emissions rules), and the ID.7 is not one. Although VW at one point did try to portray it as one – when we first saw the ID.7 it was in the guise of the “Space Vizzion” concept, and VW said it “combines the aerodynamic qualities of a Gran Turismo with the generous interior space of an SUV,” trying to leverage Americans’ supposed desire only for land yachts by portraying a somewhat more sensible wagon as something it’s not.
That said, the car likely would have been higher-priced than the ID.4, as it is in Europe. The best-selling electric sedan in the US is the Tesla Model 3, with few other options outside of the luxury market. The ID.7 could have offered an alternative for buyers who are looking for something that isn’t associated with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, but its likely high starting price might have limited that appeal.
But while this is a disappointment for those of us waiting for more right-sized electric vehicles, it doesn’t mean the end for new VW EVs in the US. Automotive News quoted a VW spokesman as saying that “electric vehicles continue to be a core part of Volkswagen’s long-term product strategy, and new electric models will continue to be introduced for this market.” So, stay tuned for more.
Well, if you still want an electric VW, there’s always the ID.4. To contact a local dealer and see if they have any VW ID.4s ready to sell, feel free to use our link. You can also reach out about the ID.Buzz, if a quirky electric minivan is more your speed.
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