Nissan just won the Internet – then disappeared

Nissan Ireland has briefly stolen the spotlight from Ferrari's controversial new Luce EV after posting – and then deleting – a social media jab comparing the Italian brand's first electric model to a Nissan Leaf.

The post quickly became one of the most widely shared reactions to the Luce's polarising debut, which has already sparked criticism from fans, former Ferrari executives and countless netizens.

Of all the Ferrari Luce memes doing the rounds, one comparison hit differently: the Nissan Leaf.

Nissan Ireland capitalised on social media chatter by comparing the Luce EV to the Nissan Leaf by posting a side-by-side image and the caption: "They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so thank you Ferrari. Nissan. Always a smart choice."

The image paired a teal 2026 Nissan Leaf with a light blue Ferrari Luce carrying the caption: "We admit, we're flattered."

The comment section, predictably, detonated.

To be clear about what we're dealing with here: the 2026 Nissan Leaf will be priced at around $50,000 while the Ferrari Luce opens at approximately $750,000 when it arrives in Australia.

That's a gulf of more than $700,000.

No-one is cross-shopping these two. If you're choosing between a Leaf and a Luce, you have bigger problems than which EV to buy.

And yet, squint at them side by side in the same shade of blue and there's something there.

The high roofline, the rounded silhouette and the inoffensive hatchback proportions all scream sensible family transport rather than "I will destroy you on the autostrada".

The Luce's coupe-like shape and blue paint have fuelled online arguments about whether Ferrari's design has strayed too far from its heritage.

Then Nissan Ireland went quiet.

The post came down.

Someone clearly got word from upstairs – whether that was Nissan headquarters in Japan nervous about poking a hornet's nest or something more Machiavellian happening in the background, we may never know.

But the internet had already done its work.

Screenshots were everywhere. The joke had escaped.

The deleted post became the defining meme of a launch that was already spiralling into internet folklore.

The launch reportedly triggered an eight per cent plunge in Ferrari's stock immediately following the reveal, while the meme factories went into overdrive within hours.

The hits kept coming.

One user likened the tangerine and yellow variants to matching vacuum cleaners. Another shared a screenshot of ChatGPT roasting the design, with the chatbot describing it as what you'd get if someone asked AI to combine a Ferrari, a 1980s vacuum cleaner and a toaster.

The dashboard swivel display was compared to a toilet paper holder.

Someone photoshopped an Apple logo onto the bonnet and, honestly, it was hard to argue with. "Make Ferrari great again," quipped one commenter.

Another dubbed it the "Prancing Hearse". Even Ferrari royalty wasn't sparing.

Former Ferrari CEO Luca di Montezemolo told Italian journalists: "If I were to say what I truly think, I would damage Ferrari. We risk the destruction of a myth. I hope they remove the Prancing Horse logo, at least from that car."

And the Nissan Leaf comparison wasn't even the only meme of its kind.

Others speculated that Jony Ive had simply dusted off a failed Apple Car project and handed it to Ferrari – which, given that Ive's LoveFrom collective co-designed the Luce, lands with uncomfortable plausibility.

Which raises the question: did Ferrari know exactly what it was doing?

You don't hire the man behind the iPhone and accidentally produce something this confrontational.

Ferrari has been here before, sort of.

When the Purosangue – its first SUV – arrived, the purists wept. Then wealthy buyers purchased them in huge numbers and the weeping stopped.

The Luce may follow the same arc: scorned today, coveted tomorrow, with the added bonus that anyone spending this kind of money probably considers the mockery a feature rather than a bug.

In 2026, being hated is sometimes more valuable than being admired.

Ferrari has ensured its first EV won't quietly fade into the background of automotive history.

As for Nissan Ireland, it threw the best punch of the week, landed it perfectly, then was apparently told to put its hands back in its pockets. The post is gone.

The screenshot lives forever.

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