I’m not really sure why someone would hire Ive to design a car. I don’t know much about him, but to me he’s mostly known for designing Apple products, not luxury vehicles.
Hiring someone because of their name recognition in a role they aren’t suited for would of course backfire.
(Again, maybe he does have some prior work that means he’s suited for the job and I’m just unaware)
In my small circle of car friends, the new Ferrari is being called the "Magic mouse" of ferraris and posting memes of the car upside down with the cable plugged in at the bottom.
I was hoping for an SF90 meets Nevera when they were talking about it originally :(
But that is entirely unoriginal and derivative, compared to a designer wanting to make a mark.
The hiring brand is Ferrari. Its entire business is predicated on a Paris-Hilton-style effect, whereby it is famous for being famous. Tactics like hiring Jony Ive are a common way to keep this virtuous cycle afloat. It's not really about design, it's about PR/hype/reputation/branding.
imo the exterior looks like a cartoon BYD and should be killed with fire.
however while folks are negative on Ive for the car shape, he only designed the interiors not the car body, and the interiors are kinda lovely car interior design:
-no touchscreen (dangerous while driving)
-clicky, intuitive tactile switches and buttons
-thoughtful use of color (display base color changes based on driving mode)
I mean even just looking at those air conditioning vents (rotate vent to open/close) is classive Ive: intuitive but sophisticated.
I hope more manufacturers copy these new/old patterns on the interiors.
> In a genius move, they hired design agency LoveFrom to handle the exterior and interior execution: that’s headed by former Apple chief design officer, Sir Jonathan Ive.
What prevents car manufacturers from taking a normal-looking body style and electrifying it? Seems popular with the aftermarket mods. Every hybrid and EV I can think of looks like a suppository.
Edit: I asked AI the same question and it reminded me that BMW’s i4, Camry Hybrid, Porsche Taycan, Ferrari 296 GTB (hybrid), Corvette E-Ray, F150 Lightning, and Genesis Electrified G80 all look fairly similar to standard ICE vehicles.
Ironically, I think your question is the reason it’s not done more often, or at least some brands make “very obvious” EV’s: because for some customers, they want people to know they’re different (and memorable) from the ICE vehicles.
I love the look of old cars, but there's a lot of modern safety advances sacrificed with driving around in a classic. Obvious would be modern seat belts and air bags. Less obvious are crumple zones. There's plenty of other things I'm sure that have been added in modern cars. A modern EV with the body of a 1969 Corvette Stingray or 1969 Camaro would be amazing. I'm talking modern interior materials for sound dampening and comfort like updated ACs not modern touch screen nonsense.
The safety features of modern cars are more like an insurance policy where you don't think about it until you actually need it. I replaced a 2007 Corolla with a 2015 one where after just a few months of owning the car I was in a t-bone accident on the driver side. The 2015 had side impact curtains that really saved me that I cannot imagine what would have happened in the 2007 model. I walked away from that with just a couple of scrapes.
The plenty of people comment also reminds me of the sayings about airliners. It's not that there's a lot of accidents, but when they do happen, there tends to be higher percentage of fatalities.
While there are some interesting design choices for things like the lights and wheels (across all Hyundai models, IMHO) the Hyundai EV9 is a pretty normal looking SUV.
Definitely some Toyota Prius vibes. They certainly should take some design risks, but not in the direction of an everyday commuter. I can only image the amount of patting on the backs the Ive team gave each other. Good job guys, on to the next project.
The design says: "Look at this nice Ferrari-branded toy car! You should have one in your garage, it would look cute next to your real car (_Real_ Ferrari, gas engine, looks like a sleek lion about to eat its prey)". In that sense, it might be perfect - for a brand that's not yet certain that it can stay true to itself in a EV-only world?
Thanks for the link. Totally seeing the appeal of this car.
The UX seems actually very good (based on this short review so far). Good use of physical tactile controls + flexibility of a screen.
As to external looks. Whenever I see old ICE sports cars (all those lotuses, ferraris, lamborghinis) they seem so awkward and out of place on city streets. They just scream midlife crisis. I think this will be an upgrade in that sense.
As someone who is not in the market for a Ferrari, I feel like I am crazy for actually kinda liking the look of it? (The blue is bad, they should have used the red one for all of the marketing)
I mean, I feel like it should be a departure from the Ferrari look since it really isn't one that fits the expectation of what a Ferrari is. It feels like this is more an expansion of the Ferrari brand into a new segment while also borrowing from the rest of the brand?
They even said "entirely new Ferrari".
I feel like if it did try to look like a normal Ferrari but then it didn't feel, sound, etc like one due to being Electric people would also complain.
I am also not in the market for a Ferrari. The problem is that it looks so pedestrian. Personally, I think the Ioniq has more personality. For a 600k car, it should have some appeal. This just looks like every other EV; it’s generic and boring.
I think they might have had much more success with a strategy like the R32 EV. Take something classic (like the Testarossa) and electrify it. Remind people that EVs are an evolution rather than a capitulation to generic boringness.
It’s just not an attractive design at all, and stat-wise it’s laughable compared to a Tesla, especially at that price point. There’s no way this sees production. If anything, this just harms the Ferrari brand.
That is clearly not the mistake, there are images of it in blue, red, and yellow. I've also seen a couple of different styles of wheels. The design looks bad (for a Ferrari) in every iteration. The overwhelming feedback on public discussions is that it looks [cheap|terrible|boring|notFerrari].
I’m not really sure why someone would hire Ive to design a car. I don’t know much about him, but to me he’s mostly known for designing Apple products, not luxury vehicles.
Hiring someone because of their name recognition in a role they aren’t suited for would of course backfire.
(Again, maybe he does have some prior work that means he’s suited for the job and I’m just unaware)
And a lot of people think he ruined at least some Apple products (too-thin laptops).
> he ruined at least some Apple products
In my small circle of car friends, the new Ferrari is being called the "Magic mouse" of ferraris and posting memes of the car upside down with the cable plugged in at the bottom.
I was hoping for an SF90 meets Nevera when they were talking about it originally :(
But that is entirely unoriginal and derivative, compared to a designer wanting to make a mark.
> the "Magic mouse" of ferraris
Could be worse. Could be the 1998 iMac mouse of cars. (No way to tell which way it's going.)
Jony Ive without a Steve Jobs to keep him grounded doesn't work.
From my work experience, you can't give a designer unlimited power because he/she will turn the product into an art project.
Not to mention iOS 7.
And the iPhone 5c which had toy-like colors and was reminiscent of Fisher-Price products. The 5c case with holes made it even worse.
The hiring brand is Ferrari. Its entire business is predicated on a Paris-Hilton-style effect, whereby it is famous for being famous. Tactics like hiring Jony Ive are a common way to keep this virtuous cycle afloat. It's not really about design, it's about PR/hype/reputation/branding.
imo the exterior looks like a cartoon BYD and should be killed with fire.
however while folks are negative on Ive for the car shape, he only designed the interiors not the car body, and the interiors are kinda lovely car interior design:
-no touchscreen (dangerous while driving) -clicky, intuitive tactile switches and buttons -thoughtful use of color (display base color changes based on driving mode)
I mean even just looking at those air conditioning vents (rotate vent to open/close) is classive Ive: intuitive but sophisticated.
I hope more manufacturers copy these new/old patterns on the interiors.
> he only designed the interiors not the car body
TopGear reports otherwise [0]:
> In a genius move, they hired design agency LoveFrom to handle the exterior and interior execution: that’s headed by former Apple chief design officer, Sir Jonathan Ive.
[0] https://www.topgear.com/car-news/electric/its-finally-here-m...
you are correct, I amend my claim.
the interiors are nice, but overall imo the car is a design failure.
Is the giant rectangle in the middle of the dashboard not a touchscreen?
fair point, but it is not a tesla-style “giant iPad”
primary inputs while driving are buttons and knobs
What prevents car manufacturers from taking a normal-looking body style and electrifying it? Seems popular with the aftermarket mods. Every hybrid and EV I can think of looks like a suppository.
Edit: I asked AI the same question and it reminded me that BMW’s i4, Camry Hybrid, Porsche Taycan, Ferrari 296 GTB (hybrid), Corvette E-Ray, F150 Lightning, and Genesis Electrified G80 all look fairly similar to standard ICE vehicles.
Ironically, I think your question is the reason it’s not done more often, or at least some brands make “very obvious” EV’s: because for some customers, they want people to know they’re different (and memorable) from the ICE vehicles.
> What prevents car manufacturers from taking a normal-looking body style and electrifying it?
Audi and BMW have been doing this for years at this point.
BMW i4 is a 4 series grand coupe (i.e., hatchback sedan in this case).
Audi ev suvs are super close to the gas versions. Both are shifting overlapped designs around though, perhaps specializing.
Also, it seems Mercedes will discontinue the EQS and EQE lines and replace them with electric S- and E-Class: https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/electric-mercede...
I used to want an electic aventador but now I'm just going for a lotus exige s 240 in chrome orange it's a sub $100K car attainable for me
> What prevents car manufacturers from taking a normal-looking body style and electrifying it?
Isn't that literally what the first Tesla was? An existing Lotus chassis with electric guts?
I do think it's kinda weird that Ferrari didn't do something similar, or at least closer to that, compared to... this thing.
And the original Model S proved that you can have a nice electric car that looks nice and "normal" as opposed to weird blobs of the time.
especially with older cars . would love to revive cars from 60s-80s
I love the look of old cars, but there's a lot of modern safety advances sacrificed with driving around in a classic. Obvious would be modern seat belts and air bags. Less obvious are crumple zones. There's plenty of other things I'm sure that have been added in modern cars. A modern EV with the body of a 1969 Corvette Stingray or 1969 Camaro would be amazing. I'm talking modern interior materials for sound dampening and comfort like updated ACs not modern touch screen nonsense.
I agree. Love older cars in the way they look, but I consider them only a little safer than a motorcycle.
And plenty of people drive motorcycles and old cars every day without incident. Just from a percentage basis it’s not as safe.
The safety features of modern cars are more like an insurance policy where you don't think about it until you actually need it. I replaced a 2007 Corolla with a 2015 one where after just a few months of owning the car I was in a t-bone accident on the driver side. The 2015 had side impact curtains that really saved me that I cannot imagine what would have happened in the 2007 model. I walked away from that with just a couple of scrapes.
The plenty of people comment also reminds me of the sayings about airliners. It's not that there's a lot of accidents, but when they do happen, there tends to be higher percentage of fatalities.
These guys do just that. used to live walking distance, awesome stuff.
https://evwest.com
While there are some interesting design choices for things like the lights and wheels (across all Hyundai models, IMHO) the Hyundai EV9 is a pretty normal looking SUV.
The stock fell down to the price it was a SIX days ago. It was even lower at 321$ 11 days ago. Guess the guardian forgot to mention that.
https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/RACE/?guccounter=1
til ferrari's ticker is RACE !
Definitely some Toyota Prius vibes. They certainly should take some design risks, but not in the direction of an everyday commuter. I can only image the amount of patting on the backs the Ive team gave each other. Good job guys, on to the next project.
Probably have to turn it upside down to charge it
There is some chat as to why it looks like that shape below [0]. In short no engine space constraint & aiming for efficiency rather than downforce.
https://youtu.be/K-o0r2zSgCE?t=2162
Without the badging I wouldn't have guessed Ferrari.
Agreed. This looks more like a Mustang to me.
Fiat Multipla.
The Ferrari Testarossa (F110) is probably the most beautiful of their line IMHO, hair-rising roar it has too.
The design says: "Look at this nice Ferrari-branded toy car! You should have one in your garage, it would look cute next to your real car (_Real_ Ferrari, gas engine, looks like a sleek lion about to eat its prey)". In that sense, it might be perfect - for a brand that's not yet certain that it can stay true to itself in a EV-only world?
Divisive. there is someone who liked it?
Johnny Ive presumably likes it.
Looks like a nice Kia or Hyundai.
the most biting comment I've seen yet
Before I saw the car, I figured the response would be overblown like many are these days, but yikes that is really an uninspiring silhouette.
It’s fine looking car.
It isn’t a fine looking Ferrari or even close.
Marques Brownlee toured one recently - "Ferrari Luce is the Most Controversial Ferrari Ever"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Reu1WS3BhM
Thanks for the link. Totally seeing the appeal of this car.
The UX seems actually very good (based on this short review so far). Good use of physical tactile controls + flexibility of a screen.
As to external looks. Whenever I see old ICE sports cars (all those lotuses, ferraris, lamborghinis) they seem so awkward and out of place on city streets. They just scream midlife crisis. I think this will be an upgrade in that sense.
As someone who is not in the market for a Ferrari, I feel like I am crazy for actually kinda liking the look of it? (The blue is bad, they should have used the red one for all of the marketing)
I mean, I feel like it should be a departure from the Ferrari look since it really isn't one that fits the expectation of what a Ferrari is. It feels like this is more an expansion of the Ferrari brand into a new segment while also borrowing from the rest of the brand?
They even said "entirely new Ferrari".
I feel like if it did try to look like a normal Ferrari but then it didn't feel, sound, etc like one due to being Electric people would also complain.
I am also not in the market for a Ferrari. The problem is that it looks so pedestrian. Personally, I think the Ioniq has more personality. For a 600k car, it should have some appeal. This just looks like every other EV; it’s generic and boring.
I think they might have had much more success with a strategy like the R32 EV. Take something classic (like the Testarossa) and electrify it. Remind people that EVs are an evolution rather than a capitulation to generic boringness.
> As someone who is not in the market for a Ferrari, I feel like I am crazy for actually kinda liking the look of it?
s/Ferrari/Tesla and I think we have the sentiment of any cybertruck owners
Reminds me of Homer Simpson designing a car for his half brother and making him bankrupt.
The front looks very not Ferrari.
It’s just not an attractive design at all, and stat-wise it’s laughable compared to a Tesla, especially at that price point. There’s no way this sees production. If anything, this just harms the Ferrari brand.
Holy shit is that thing ugly, both inside and outside. Hiring Jony Ive was a huge mistake.
Thank God only a few will be produced and those will be squirreled away by a handful of oligarchs and will never see the light of day.
Am I the only one who was impressed by the interior design? But yeah, the body is ugly as hell, I think it lacks aggression in the design.
Related:
Ferrari Luce
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48271629
[dead]
The main mistake made here is that the color is a weird sky blue. The actual shape looks great - just needs to be red.
That is clearly not the mistake, there are images of it in blue, red, and yellow. I've also seen a couple of different styles of wheels. The design looks bad (for a Ferrari) in every iteration. The overwhelming feedback on public discussions is that it looks [cheap|terrible|boring|notFerrari].
It looks like Hundai's homage to Ferrari.
It looks like something you put VHS tapes in to rewind them.
It looks like a Lotus Elise.
To me, it kind of reminds me of a Lucid Motors car.
It looks like Nissan Leaf
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48275386
Nah, the main mistake is Jony Ive. one hit wonder.
To me, it looks a bit like a kit car (especially from the back)
https://www.reddit.com/r/itsalwaysafiero/
There's red one as well.