On Tuesday, the CEO of Ferrari sought to ease concerns that the company’s future electric vehicle may sacrifice performance, telling CNBC that the luxury automaker had a “deep understanding” of vehicle dynamics.
Benedetto Vigna was asked during an interview with CNBC’s Joumanna Bercetche about the weight of batteries needed in an EV and whether an electric vehicle would be able to maintain the handling, power, and aerodynamics of a Ferrari.
“In terms of drive, in terms of … vehicle dynamics, we can manage this additional weight,” he said.
“It’s true, we have a few 100 kilos more than a regular ICE car for the same kind of horsepower, but what really … reassures me is the fact that we have [a] deep understanding of the vehicle dynamics.”
“Consider today, a lot of cars have, more or less, access to the same electronic chips,” Vigna said.
“But we in Ferrari … the engineers in Ferrari, are able to provide something that is unique, that is distinctive.”
“So it’s a challenge,” he went on to state, “but we see it as an opportunity … to continue to make something unique.”
Ferrari wants to release a fully electric vehicle in 2025, but internal combustion engines will continue to play an important role in its future.
ICEs will account for 40% of the company’s “product offering” by 2026, while hybrid and fully electric vehicles would account for 60%. By 2030, ICEs will account for 20% of the company’s offerings, while hybrid and fully electric cars will each account for 40%.
Ferrari’s ambitions for electric vehicles include the assembly of battery cells in Maranello, Italy. “The handcrafted battery modules will be integrated into the chassis of cars in a process focused on reducing the weight of the vehicle,” it says.
Summary
Other luxury automobile manufacturers, including Volkswagen’s Bentley Motors and BMW’s Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, are also considering electrification initiatives.
All of this occurs at a time when major European economies are putting out plans to abandon diesel and gasoline-powered road vehicles.
By 2030, for instance, the United Kingdom intends to prohibit the sale of new diesel and gasoline automobiles and vans. Beginning in 2035, all new automobiles and vans will be required to have zero tailpipe emissions.
The European Union, which the United Kingdom will leave on January 31, 2020, is pursuing identical goals.
