Editor’s Note: This week at AE, we feature a rare Rant double edition, with the breaking news this Memorial Day of Ferrari’s first EV. Peter blasts Ferrari over this truly unbelievable development. This story is then followed by our original Rant of the week – A Shred of Light in the Gathering Darkness – in which Peter doubles down on his bleak predictions for our automotive future but insists there’s a sliver of hope that “car culture” as we know it will endure. In On The Table, the new Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupe is unveiled, promising “Revolutionary performance. Maximum intensity,” according to Mercedes-Benz PR minions. And the bold Audi Concept C has garnered a number of awards. And we take another look at the delicious 2027 BMW M3 CS Handschalter, a special, limited-edition model marking the close of the M3’s sixth generation. Our video features a memorable conversation with Jim Hall on the American Inventors Interview Series. Our AE Song of the Week is “Stacy’s Mom” by Fountains of Wayne. In Fumes, Peter presents the next chapter of his series, “The Great Races,” as we take a look back at the star-studded 200-mile Los Angeles Times Grand Prix for Sports Cars at Riverside International Raceway in 1964. And in The Line, we have full results from the 110th running of the INDY 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the F1 Canadian Grand Prix from Montreal. We’re on it! -WG
By Peter M. DeLorenzo
While other exotic manufacturers, like Lamborghini, have shelved their plans to offer EVs, Ferrari has gone ahead with their plans. And I really wish they hadn’t, because after releasing a series of spectacular cars in the last half-decade, this “thing” is a flat-out abomination and has no connection to any Ferrari built before. Oh, I get it, I really do. Ferrari operatives are trying to project the brand into The Future by breaking barriers, stomping on traditions, ignoring legacies. And in order to do that, they’ve ignored every aspect of its design heritage that they have deemed worthy of forgetting about.
Oh, and in case you’re wondering, the Luce has 1,050HP with 990 newton meters of torque; 0-62 mph in 2.5 seconds; a top speed of 193 mph; an expected range of 329 miles (subject to, “yeah, we’ll see”; and a curb weight of 4,982 pounds. And, if you’re hell-bent on being The Biggest Tool in the Shed to get your hands on one, you can expect to shell out at least $650,000 for the “privilege.”
(Ferrari images)
A SHRED OF LIGHT IN THE GATHERING DARKNESS.
By Peter M. DeLorenzo
Detroit. Last week’s column seemed to strike a nerve with our AE faithful, as the idea of a government controlled, AI-driven, National Bureau of Electronic Movement (NBEM), a clearinghouse of sorts designed to monitor the burgeoning transportation needs of the collective “us” for our own good (of course), was roundly condemned by our enthusiast readers in no uncertain terms.
The incessant buzz emanating from one certain Unctuous Prick auto company executive in particular, aided and abetted by lemming-like regurgitations from more than a few misguided members of the media, along with every 30-second blurb that passes for news these days, is painting a picture that ride sharing with electrified autonomous robo-cars will be The Future of Mobility.
Soon, auto company profits – at least the auto companies that were smart enough to buy in to the notion (and lawyer-up with the key tech companies holding the intellectual property that will help get it done) – will be exploding, as our cities become hotbeds for autonomous electric vehicles. Predictions are running wild that the automobile industry and our automobile culture as we’ve come to know it will be upended in favor of a Utopian future where the hoary notion of actually owning a vehicle will give way to a sublime, hassle-free lifestyle enhanced by the act of summoning zombie cars to go to the store, to do errands, to get you to a restaurant, etc.
It will go something like this: You will pay a monthly fee like you do with your cell phone to link up with a transportation company of your choice. This will allow you access to the cornucopia of delights of a car-owning-free society like no bills for insurance, gas, maintenance, upkeep, etc., etc., etc. The sky will be bluer and the grass will be greener, and nary a discouraging word or unpleasant encounter will be found. As if.
And that’s the High-Octane Truth for this week.