Maserati counts on Chrysler platforms, dealers to boost sales; gets $1.6B investment

[nadepalma]

Fiat counts on Chrysler tie-up to boost Maserati
New Quattroporte showcases Marchionne's ambitions for luxury sports car maker
Wire reports
December 10, 2012

NICE, France – Maserati expects its new Quattroporte sedan to help the brand boost annual sales to 50,000 units.

Fiat is investing 1.2 billion euros ($1.6 billion) in Maserati, hoping technology and dealerships from its tie-up with Chrysler will help the luxury sports car brand to take on German rivals BMW and Porsche.

Maserati targets sales of at least 13,000 Quattroportes in 2013, compared with a total of about 4,700 cars Maserati sold in the first three quarters of 2012.

Maserati's expansion is also critical to Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne's plan to turn around the Italian group's European operations, which Fiat expects will lose 700 million euros this year.

Chrysler 300 chassis, Ferrari engines
The Quattroporte, which competes with the BMW 7 series and the Porsche Panamera, is built on a Chrysler 300-derived chassis. The four-door sedan will be offered with a 3.0-liter V-6 engine delivering 410hp and a 3.8-liter V-8 delivering 530hp. Both engines are built at Ferrari's Maranello complex.

The launch is being watched by both enthusiasts and investors alike to see how well Fiat executes its ambitious plan to leverage Chrysler's market access and shared technology to build up the Maserati brand in the United States.

The Quattroporte and the upcoming Ghibli share components with the Chrysler 300 sedan as part of Marchionne's strategy to use the same technology for different brands to reduce development costs. The Ghibli will compete with cars such as the Mercedes-Benz E class and BMW 5 series.

CONTINUE READING AT: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...boost-maserati

[nadepalma]

Some of this information is old, and some very much new (or at least it is to me).

We've always known that the Levante was going to use the Grand Cherokee's architecture as a starting point, and I think all industry-watchers may have suspected that the 300-platform would become the foundation for the Ghibli (and the eventual Alfa Romeo 166-successor). However, this is the first I've heard anything on the Quattroporte using a "300-derived chasis" for its underpinnings.

Is the platform even that flexible to stretch to an S-Class/7-Series size? Is this confirmed anywhere else besides on AutoNews?

Also the "plan to leverage Chrysler's market access" is newsworthy. To me that sounds like Fiat/Chrysler are planning on selling Maserati through the existing Chrysler sales channel. Obviously I don't think that means selling Maseratis next to Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep/Ram (or even Fiat) products, but it is notable since Maserati has always been twinned with Ferrari in most markets. Going to Chrysler dealers (and presumedly asking them to build new stand-alone Maserati showrooms) is a development unto itself, I think.

Looking at this long-term, perhaps they want to try and make a real go of getting Maserati onto more shopping lists? And, perhaps, Marchionne is stealing a page from VW and other automakers in this move to make Maserati more "obtainable" to consumers?

As stated in other articles (most recently in the piece cited in the "How VW is run like GM used to be, operates like no other carmaker today" thread), part of what makes VW Group so profitable is their ability to share commonality between their brands - but more specifically between VW and Audi. Audi alone makes huge profits to buoy the entire group, and most of those products share quite a bit with more "commonplace" VW products. Its those deep profits that help the entire group compete in other market areas.

The idea, obviously, isn't really "something new" since other companies do this. But applying it to more than just the Levante at Maserati is somewhat new. To me, Maserati was always seen as being a brand just a rung or two below Ferrari. In chasing the deep profits of the German luxury brands (or those who control them), its almost a though they are "lowering" the mystique of what it is to own a Maserati and making it more obtainable.

And since Harald Wester is also in charge of Alfa Romeo (and runs both brands as a kind of single "product portfolio"), I wonder if that means that the eventual return of Alfa Romeo won't see Alfa twinned with Fiat studios but Maserati botique showrooms?

[Pellz]

This is interesting. So the Quattroporte is a Mercedes Benz and a Ferrari?

[Rocket 88]

So they'll be selling Maseratis at Alfa & Fiat showrooms in the USA. Neat.

[germeezy1]

If Jeep Grand Cherokee, and Dodge Durango based Mercedes ML's and GL's are quite relevant than perhaps 300C based Quattroportes will also be quite notable. I would need more information before I believe that the Quattroporte is LX based because in all reality it is most likely a variation of the LY platform created for a still born Chrysler Imperial. Interestingly enough with no mention of the platform in press releases I noticed the well disguised to the untrained eye high cowl height of the LX/LY platform, and also the tell tell relatively small daylight opening which indicated to me at that point it could very well be LX/LY based.

[AdmiralViscen]

Of course LX can be larger, it is derived from LH, which was larger.

And it is not a Mercedes.

[Carguy]

It seems to me Alfa Romeo would be a better fit as a BMW MB competitor then Maserati!

[logansowner]

Seems pretty ambitious to double their sales in 1 year, but I've been known to be wrong before. Just ask my wife.

[baloo]

If Jeep Grand Cherokee, and Dodge Durango based Mercedes ML's and GL's are quite relevant...

They use the same platform, but the ML/GL are certainly not Cherokee or Durango-based.

[69gtsdart]

Ok 1st of. The GC and Durango are not Based on the Mercedes Platforms. . They were Co-developed by Chrysler and Mercedes with more help from the Chrysler side of things being that MB did not have a platform worthy enuff for a Small to Large midsize SUV. Same goes for the 300 "almost", The Drive train was from MB but the platform is actually Chryslers (thats why its called LX since it was still based on the "LH" Platform which could had also been RWD.. The Current M Class SUV's should still be on the GC platform just more evolved. you can see the similarities especially on the Dash.




Another thing. The platform for the 300 has been extended before, check this pic below:

it just wasnt cost effective for Chrysler to do it, it was built by a coach builder. would be really costly for chrysler to do with the New 300 since its more evolved platform


I see Maserati having its own showrooms with companys like Lamborghini and Porsche along with Alfa Romeo/Maserati/and Fiat Dealerships

[69gtsdart]

It seems to me Alfa Romeo would be a better fit as a BMW MB competitor then Maserati!

Alfas (atleast in Europe) will still sale FWD MiTo's and Giulietta's along with RWD Sports and sedans like Mercedes does in Europe. they will be competiting with BMW in the states while Maserati competes with Porsche and Jag.

[germeezy1]

They use the same platform, but the ML/GL are certainly not Cherokee or Durango-based.

It could be argued that they are especially since the GC, and Durango preceded the current generation ML and GL. Obviously there are differences between them but actually less than there will be between a 300C , and a Quattroporte.

[baloo]

It could be argued that they are especially since the GC, and Durango preceded the current generation ML and GL.

That would be a very poor argument. The fact that Chrysler released the Grand Cherokee 12 months earlier doesn't mean that MB based the ML/GL on the GC. A development cycle is far longer than 12 months, and Chrysler surely wasn't doing development work for MB years after the companies split.

Both companies were already working together on the next generation SUVs when Chrysler was sold, and both continued their respective programs after the sale, rather than scrapping them and starting over.

[cad1cts]

According to WCF/MT the Quattroporte will be 207.2" long, 76.7" wide, and a 124.8" wheelbase. The AWD on the V6 sounds very much like the AWD developed for the 300. Did Magna develop the system for the 300? I don't recall if they did it or not. The V6 will weigh 4101 and 4189 for the V8. The front suspension is a control arm set up and the rear suspension is a multilink one. It sounds like a pretty nice package.

[JBsZ06]

I think a shared platform is genius. Maserati's have a lot of profit built into them and the new cars I am sure will be both stunning and excellent performers.
Turbocharge the 3.6 v6...and the hemi and let her rip...

The cars will be stunningly designed and fast as he'll...what more does a maserati need to be?

Other than reliable which the Chrysler connection offers.

My only question would be ...does fiat still need Alfa?