Alexandre
It was presumed, and now it's confirmed: Stellantis is seriously considering finding a new home for Maserati. At a time when the luxury brand is struggling within the Group, with figures in the red for the first time in many yearsNatalie Knight, CFO of Stellantis, confirmed that the group was looking for the best option for Maserati's future.
"The future is how we maintain the best value [...] There may come a time when we ask ourselves what would be the best home for Maserati."
Natalie Knight CFO Stellantis
The situation of Maserati deteriorates in 2023 with declining figuresand the brand has struggled to recover since the beginning of 2024. This period has been marked by direction changesthe postponement of new product launches and Technical doubts about using the STLA Large platform by Stellantis. A clear sign of the difficulties encountered by Maserati is its notable absence from Stellantis Investor Day 2024where it was the only brand not to be represented.
What are the options for Stellantis?
Two major options present themselves to Stellantis. The first is the complete sale of Maserati to another company. Potential buyers include automotive groups, although specific candidates have yet to be determined. However, Ferrari appears to be a plausible buyer.with persistent rumors suggesting their interest for several months.
The second option is a spin-off. Maserati would then become an independent entity, with Stellantis as a shareholder alongside other companies, possibly Ferrari or another company. This strategy would enable Maserati to restructure while retaining a link with Stellantis. This spin-off has been on the table for many months. but was only to be carried out on one condition, which has not yet been met.
The utopia of the 100 % electric luxury brand
Stellantis nurtured the ambition of transforming Maserati into a 100 % electric brand, a vision that today seems utopian. To date, no luxury brand has ventured to offer an all-electric range. Even the CEO of Rimac, a manufacturer of electric sports cars, has expressed reservations about the long-term viability of electric hypercars. Ferrari plans to launch an electric 100 % model in 2025, but this will be an exception in a predominantly combustion-powered range. Lamborghini is taking a similar approach, with a single electric model planned for 2028.
Another example is Lotus, which took the plunge with the 100 % electric car and saw an increase in revenue with 6970 cars sold, but also announced losses of $750 million in 2023. Despite positive reviews for the latest Folgore models, Maserati's electric turn seems premature in a market that is still too niche.
The legacy of FCA and Stellantis
It would be unfair to blame all Maserati's woes on Stellantis. FCA, the former parent company, failed to develop a Giorgio platform compatible with electrification, nor a plug-in hybrid technology for its V8 (Ferrari origin) and V6 (Nettuno) engines. The Ferrari terminates engine contract a few years ago also left Maserati without new engines, relying solely on the Alfa Romeo V6 evolved into the Nettuno V6.
This series of decisions led Stellantis, which has a global technology strategy for all brands, to opt for the 100 % electric, leading to the current situation. 3 years ago, we wrote this prescient article, Maserati to suffer further in coming yearsand what was supposed to apply to France has spread to a more general scale.
Maserati's future is uncertain, but one thing is clear: Stellantis is exploring all options to give the luxury brand the best chance to prosper. The next few months will be crucial in determining the future of this Italian automotive icon.
When they merged, they knew very well that they couldn't do anything for Maserati, even for Alfa Romeo or even Dodge. Stellantis is run by a team, that of PSA, and PSA is mid-range/low-range. Almost no legitimacy at the top end of the market.
I don't really believe in the Ferrari spin-off, because it's simply not Ferrari... Let's hope they don't sell it to a Chinese or Indian conglomerate like a dirty sock...
Bravo stellantis, to be followed by Alfa Romeo and Lancia in puretech.
puretech is definitely an obsession! change your record!
This is how a "reference shareholder" behaves in 2024: no certainty of commitment beyond six months, a constant inability to invest or to bear losses, a desire to develop a luxury brand but to do away with everything that is exclusive to this brand, pretending to believe that marketing (which costs next to nothing, how convenient) will be enough. With this way of doing things, the Venetians would never have created their commercial fleet in the 14th century. The Chinese, on the other hand, have stayed the course for several decades.
We're asking a generalist like Stellantis, under PSA domination, to understand what Maserati's top-of-the-range, sporty luxury is, and it's not working.
The market is not yet ripe for all-electric vehicles. Alfa Romeo, with its new all-electric Giulia and Stelvio, is about to experience the same thing. Hybrid models are essential to convince customers.
It was Stellantis who electrified Maserati ... Monsieur C.Tavares and his team. For him, until a few months ago ... electric was the future ... and now apparently the future Stelvio will probably have a combustion engine ... which one the PureMerde ...er sorry the PureTech? FCA's combustion engines have always been superior to those of PSA.
Stellantis didn't do anything, it was FCA that created the Giorgio platform and adapted it for electric vehicles - perhaps with Rimac, given the similarity of the technologies used with Porsche in the GranTurismo Folgore. Clearly, the merger and Stellantis contribute nothing, serve no purpose and invest nothing. On the contrary, Stellantis is destroying jobs at Maserati...
I sincerely hope that Maserati will be sold to the Chinese! They know what they're doing, they prepare long-term strategies, they're reliable investors and I'm sorry, but industrially, nobody in the world does it better! They have the best tools and technologies. Many European luxury brands are now under Asian flags. The Germans aren't interested in turning around a luxury brand that isn't German, and that's understandable. The USA doesn't know how to make cars anymore, except for Musk, and the French - well, sorry - drive for France, as proof! But we can't blame them... The first to be affected by this brand are the Italians, but there are no longer any Italian groups or brands capable of investing. Ferrari can be forgotten, they won't be risking any money. Especially as their competitors are just waiting for a slip-up to sink them. It also seems that the Italian government is looking for a legal way to "steal" the Inocenti and Autobianchi brands from Stellantis and franchise them to the Chinese... To be verified. In any case, we can see that for the moment, Italy is no longer in a position to propose an industrial project. It's a sleeping beauty, but the future is frankly gloomy...
It will be Ferrari as in the past. The majority shareholder of Stellantis and Ferrari is Exxor (Agnelli family).
Since Ferrari makes a lot of money, it should take over Maserati.
This will bring
Classy enthusiasts and those less fortunate, a friendly spirit for these beautiful Italian cars.
Yours sincerely
A sporty-luxury or sporty-premium division comprising Ferrari, Maserati and Alfa would make sense. But it would require a real strategy and investments that Stellantis will never put in place.
It's a sweet illusion, unfortunately.
Maserati will be sold to any Chinese, Indian, or other buyer, and become as exciting as Lotus, MG, Jaguar (RIP). Or the brand will be killed by Stellantis.
It's hard to imagine another future for this former Italian star.
Stellantis könnte die Luxusmarke Maserati an die Chinesische Automarke Geely verkaufen
Geely hat mit der schwedischen luxusmarke volvo gute erfahrung
Mit freundlichen grüssen
Mesut Uyanik
how come the brilliant strategists and engineers at tistellantis didn't think of the miracle solution, i.e. we put three PR TECH 1.2 engines together and produce the first nine-cylinder engine in history,,, Is that ridiculous? Yes, but Stellantis' management of all these brands is ridiculous. So why not
Anie will soon send Tavares back to Renault or elsewhere, before the damage is irreparable.
oops small error of distraction
I hope Ferrari can save the Maserati soldier with models and engines that won't denature the brand!
Our technocrats have bankrupted some of the world's finest automotive brands by imposing the "all-electric" concept. These prestigious brands, reserved for the pationnés (the wealthy...), are distinguished primarily by their beautiful engines. It makes no sense to install an electric motor under the hood of a Ferrari, whether Tesla owners like it or not!
The Chinese are ten years ahead of the Europeans when it comes to electric vehicles. Who's going to invest several hundred thousand euros in a beautiful Italian car when we know nothing about the engine under the hood: technology, origin... A €70,000 Chinese electric car is likely to be better than a prestige Italian or German...
But our eco-friendly technocrats are not enthusiasts, but ignoramuses of the automotive world, who will stop at nothing to deviate from their course, which is leading the entire exceptional car industry into the wall.