Stellantis needs to take urgent action to revive Maserati after sales plummeted by 57 percent last year, dropping to just 11,300 cars. The Trident’s parent company has denied reports that it plans to sell the Modena-based marque and insists it has no intention of shutting down the storied luxury brand. So, what’s the plan? Help Maserati from within by working more closely with another automaker located just about 160 miles away.
Alfa Romeo, which isn’t exactly thriving either, will join forces with Maserati. Santo Filici, CEO of both brands, says a plan has been drafted but still needs approval from Stellantis’s new top brass. The automotive conglomerate's CEO, Antonio Filosa, is scheduled to meet with representatives from the two Italian marques on June 23 to finalize the details.
Filici told Australian magazine Drive that Alfa Romeo and Maserati will collaborate on the development of new cars. A merger appears to be off the table, as the CEO has previously stated that the brands occupy different positions within Stellantis. Alfa is “premium,” while Maserati is “luxury.” Even so, the two companies are expected to consolidate efforts in other areas to reduce costs by “finding synergies where is possible.”
“Of course, we are touching ... [vehicle] development. It's one of the pillars that's in this plan that we are going to close. For sure, we are also touching other columns ... meaning organization [structure], meaning our [dealer] network footprint, and ... considering our plants here in Italy. There is a big job to do. We are going to close this plan.”
Regarding what went wrong at Maserati, former Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares stated that the products were fine, but poor marketing led to a lack of clear brand positioning. Elsewhere, the fully electric MC20 has been cancelled after the company realized that wealthy buyers still prefer combustion engines. The next-generation Quattroporte, which will also replace the Ghibli, has been pushed back to 2028.
Alfa Romeo faces its own challenges, as the launch of the next-generation Stelvio and Giulia is taking longer than expected. Initially planned solely as EVs, both models will also receive combustion engine variants, requiring additional engineering. Like many other automakers, Alfa recently abandoned its EV-only strategy.
Source: Drive.com.au
