Ferrari is testing a Tesla Model S Plaid ahead of launching its own first all-electric supercar, which should be coming in the next two years.
Over the last few years, Tesla vehicles have been among the most reverse-engineered and tested by automakers.
Tesla was early in the electric vehicle space, and it was the first to deliver compelling long-range electric vehicles. It makes sense for other automakers to try to learn from them ahead of their own EV efforts.
We have seen Tesla vehicles torn down, reverse-engineered, or tested by Porsche, Volvo, Ford, and many others – virtually all automakers who have ventured into electric vehicles.
There’s one famous automaker who hasn’t gone electric just yet, and that’s Ferrari.
The Italian automaker, which has made hybrid vehicles in the past, has been flirting with the idea of making an all-electric supercar, but it has resisted going electric for years.
Partly because it believes internal combustion engines are “an essential part of the company’s heritage“.
But Ferrari also makes some of the best and highest-performance vehicles in the world, and the industry is coming to the realization that if you want to make the best-performing cars in the world now, you have to go electric.
With little experience on that front, it looks like the iconic Italian brand is turning to Tesla to learn about electric vehicles.
Youtuber Varryx is stalking the headquarters of the Ferrari automobile factory in Maranello to spot prototypes coming in and out of the facility, and he spotted Ferrari testing a Tesla Model S Plaid:
The Tesla Model S Plaid is the quickest production car in the world that is not in limited production.
If you include limited-production vehicles, it is best by the Rimac Nevera, but that’s a $2 million vehicle. Regardless, it is also all-electric.
The Ferrari SF90 Stradale, a hybrid, comes close behind.
It looks like Ferrari is learning that it might have to go all-electric if it wants a chance to top the list again.
The automaker has previously said it aims to bring its first all-electric vehicle to production by 2025.