Maserati Lineup Will Never Go All Electric, U.S. Boss Says

Maserati is getting help. FCA’s Italian luxury brand struggled in the first quarter of 2019, but the brand is getting additional sales and marketing help globally, FCA CEO Mike Manley told investors today on a call to report first-quarter earnings. Maserati shipments were down 41 percent, and net revenue fell 38 percent in the first […]

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Maserati is getting help. FCA’s Italian luxury brand struggled in the first quarter of 2019, but the brand is getting additional sales and marketing help globally, FCA CEO Mike Manley told investors today on a call to report first-quarter earnings.

Maserati shipments were down 41 percent, and net revenue fell 38 percent in the first three months. That’s on top of a 28 percent drop in sales in 2018. Those numbers are not a good trajectory for a brand that FCA’s five-year plan designated as a key pillar of the group’s future growth and success.

But improvements are coming in the second half of the year under new brand chief Harald Wester, who is also the company’s chief technology officer. And the brand is regaining momentum, said Manley, even as it awaits new products and battles the headwinds of slowing auto sales in China.

The Maserati lineup will be replaced by the end of 2022, and the brand will add two new vehicles. The first piece is a new sports car that will be shown at the 2020 Geneva auto show, said Al Gardner, head of Maserati North America. Also coming is a midsize crossover to slot under the full-size Levante and compete in the fast-growing segment.

Maserati will have a full suite of hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and electric vehicles by the end of 2022 but has not released what form of electrification each model will get. Maserati will never go all electric. “This is a brand that needs combustion engines. It needs that raw emotion,” Gardner said.

Gardner says the Maserati brand needed to return to its roots. It was founded as a race car company in 1914 and remained race focused until 1947 when it introduced the first A6 grand tourer which was a mashup of performance and luxury with Italian sophistication and elegance. Today a hallmark is the twin-turbo V-6 and V-8 engines built by Ferrari.

In his eyes, the problem is not with product, but product awareness. The Levante SUV, launched three years ago, still has only 22 percent awareness and competes against performance SUVs with three times that awareness, Gardner tells MotorTrend. Maserati needs to get on people’s radar, and Gardner is convinced a test drive will make the driver fall in love with the Levante, especially the new 550-hp GTS and 590-hp Trofeo with the Ferrari V-8.

Maserati was just one factor in first-quarter earnings that saw FCA profit fall 29 percent. There were also losses in China and Europe and fewer deliveries in North America. Production in the U.S. was down about 90,000 units, half of it from phasing out the old Wrangler and selling the new model only. And there were some lost Ram sales as the plant prepares to launch the new heavy-duty trucks.

Manley said sales will get a boot in the second half of the year with the launch of the new Jeep Gladiator pickup and the Ram heavy-duties. Both launches are on track.

The outlook is not as promising for the Chrysler and Dodge brands, which suffered from poor sales of cars and minivans. FCA has announced plans to end the third shift of minivan production in Windsor, Ontario, by September 30. It plans to invest in the plant for new product, which is expected to include an all-wheel-drive version of the minivan. Windsor could also get a new Chrysler crossover based on the same minivan platform.

Meanwhile, efforts are underway to turn around fortunes in Asia and Europe. The Fiat Chinese joint venture with Guangzhou Automobile Group is being restructured. In Europe, FCA faced big fines for not having enough electric vehicles to meet emissions regulations. That prompted FCA to strike a deal with Tesla to pool its fleet and bridge the gap for a few years until FCA has more electrified vehicles on the road and can use its own technology to be compliant. Manley said he’s also looking at more partnering with Peugeot to develop future vehicles.

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