Ferrari NV unveiled its first production-volume plug-in hybrid, the 1,000hp SF90 Stradale, as the supercar maker aims to keep pace with tightening emissions regulations while still satisfying its power-hungry customers.
The model will begin shipping in the first half of next year, according to people familiar with the matter. It will be equipped with three electric motors, adding 220hp to a 780hp V8 turbo combustion engine - the highest output of any 8-cylinder in Ferrari history, according to a statement on Wednesday.
“This is the first step inadirection that Ferrari is committed to pursuing,” chief executive officer Louis Camilleri said. “By entering this segment, I am convinced that we will attract new customers who will quickly become loyal ones.”
The Stradale isn’t the first hybrid Ferrari’s ever made. In 2013, the company began selling a limited-edition supercar with the technology, the £1.2 million (RM5.6 million) LaFerrari, which was followed by an open-top version. But where only 499 examples of the first model were made, the low-slung Stradale will be part of Ferrari’s ongoing lineup.
And unlike the LaFerrari, it’ll be able to run in electric-only mode for at least 25km, “ideal for city centre driving or any other situation in which the driver wishes to eliminate the sound of the Ferrari V8”, according to the statement.
The Stradale represents the initial thrust of the Italian sports-car maker’s plan to comply with tightening rules on carbon emissions in the European Union. Maranello-based Ferrari expects to equip about 60 per cent of total production with a hybrid engine by 2022.
The new model is also the first Ferrari sports car to be equipped with four wheel drive, a step necessary to fully capture the power unleashed by the hybrid powertrain. From a standing start, it’ll be able to reach 100km per hour in 2.5 seconds.
Ferrari didn’t disclose the price of its new car. It’ll fall somewhere between the £300,000 (RM1.4 million) Ferrari 812 and the LaFerrari, Enrico Galliera, Ferrari’s chief marketing and commercial officer said at an unveiling event on Wednesday.
While Ferrari trails much of the industry in shifting to electrified vehicles, plans have been in the works since at least 2015, when the late chief executive officer Sergio Marchionne spun off the 72-year-old company from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV. At the time, Ferrari was working on a battery-powered supercar to challenge Tesla Inc. A fully-electric supercar could come after 2022, Marchionne’s successor, Louis Camilleri, said in January.
The luxury carmaker has escaped much of the pressure that’s beset the auto industry, where manufacturers are struggling with declining markets and electric-vehicle investments that dent profits. Supplying cars to the world’s wealthiest people, Ferrari trades with a valuation on par with luxury retailers like Prada SpA, and its 14 per cent jump in first-quarter profit beat the highest estimate.
Camilleri aims to generate £2 billion (RM9.33 billion) in adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization no later than 2022. To get there, Ferrari is planning more profit-boosting limited-edition sports cars and will unveil record five new models in the coming months. --Bloomberg