Defying criticism, Ferrari NV’s first all-electric vehicle became the most expensive new car ever sold at auction, going for $40 million.
The Sotheby’s charity auction of the Luce “tailor made” at Monterey Car Week in California broke a record set last year, when Ferrari’s customised Daytona SP3 sold for $26 million, the car maker said.
In May, Ferrari unveiled the Luce, priced at $636,356, and was met with a wave of criticism and a drop in the company’s share price. The vehicle marks a break from Ferrari’s heritage of combustion-engine sports cars.
“Tailor made” cars are one-of-a-kind vehicles customised to a buyer’s precise specifications.
The model was designed with LoveFrom, the studio founded by Jony Ive, Apple’s former design chief and a key figure behind the iPhone and iMac. The four-door car has more than 1,000hp.
Ferrari chief executive Benedetto Vigna said in May that the model was getting orders from old and new customers.
“The Ferrari Luce has nothing to do with electric cars you have seen from other players,” he said at the time. “You have to see it and drive it to understand that it wasn’t copied – not the interiors, not the exterior, not the performance.”
Ferrari raised its full-year guidance late last month, as demand for limited-run models such as the F80 and a more expensive version of its Purosangue four-seater drove higher second-quarter results.
