Thursday, March 28

Adjusting the Goals

04.12.16 - Maserati Alfieri Concept

The name of Maserati comes with a great deal of clout and vehicles that are some of the most visually appealing to ever be made. The trident badge stands for quality, attention to detail, specific styling and a feeling of something seriously special. Even though Maserati has made some bold claims that the company would reach sales of 75,000 units by 2018, recent announcements seem to have that possibility in jeopardy and the goals may need to be adjusted.

What has happened at Maserati to cause the goals to change and the delays in plans? First the Alfieri will be delayed. The Levante crossover SUV, that will be the first SUV from this company, is scheduled to be released first. Instead of bringing us something new in the form of the Alfieri, we will see replacements for the GranTurismo and GranCabrio before the Alfieri is even considered again for production. This could be a huge blow to the sales goals stated in 2014 when the concept version of the Alfieri was showcased.

In 2014 Maserati stated they would bring us several new models using a five year plan that had the Alfieri slated for production in 2016 with a convertible version that would follow in 2017. The slow sales in China may be partly to blame since this was where the Alfieri was intended to be launched. Another part of this decision could be that FCA which is the parent company for Maserati and Alfa Romeo has chosen to focus its efforts on two or more of the Alfa Romeo models rather than giving Maserati the attention it needs.

Not only were we supposed to receive some new models from Maserati, the goal was to bring in a wide selection of new V6 engines that offered a variety of horsepower numbers. These engines would carried 410, 450 and 520 horsepower and would have the power pushed to either the rear wheels or to all four based on the model and version chosen. We were also promised a new GranTurismo that would produce 560 horsepower and be offered in the 2018 model year, but that seems to be on hold as much as the rest of the models from Maserati.

Because of these changes the Levante will be launched but the Alfieri, which is the 2+2 sports car that would create a great following, has been delayed with no new date set as to when it will be launched. This has caused Maserati to lower its expected sales goals to 50,000 units a year by 2017 instead of the 75,000 by 2018 they hoped for. Much of this sales success will be based upon the Levante which will give other premium luxury models a great competitor, but it seems that is where Maserati will be left for now. Hopefully FCA will wake up and put their focus on Maserati to allow the company to reach its goals.

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