Maserati Sales | FerrariChat

Maserati Sales

Discussion in 'Maserati' started by sjmst, Dec 1, 2004.

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  1. sjmst

    sjmst F1 Veteran
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    Jul 31, 2003
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    Anyone know how Maserati is doing in the USA?
    Sales on target? Or will it go the way of Alfa Romeo in a couple of years?
     
  2. Derek at FoD

    Derek at FoD Formula 3
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    Jun 10, 2004
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    Sales of the Coupe and Spyder are ok...the QP is doing very well...sold out for months. I expect Maserati will remain in the US for many years to come.
     
  3. Doody

    Doody F1 Veteran

    Nov 16, 2001
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    my understanding is that maserati is not doing well anywhere. the acquisition by ferrari was clearly a mistake based on performance thus far (maybe they have grand future plans) and they've failed to rub off much if any of the ferrari lustre onto the marquee. in fact, they may have rubbed some tarnish from the maserati marquee onto the cavallino rampante.

    the only reason corporate might be showing a profit on the marquee (if they even are) is because they're forcing cars down dealers' throats (that is, they're moving the loss downstream). the dealers are swallowing for now, but maranello is apparently providing "spoonfulls of sugar" with these "medicine" cars - and that isn't really a sustainable strategy long-term.

    doody.
     
  4. sjmst

    sjmst F1 Veteran
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    That's what I thought. People will buy Ferrari (and put up with outrageous costs of upkeep and quality problems) because of the magic of the name and some really strong points. Maserati has to be BETTER than Audi, BMW, etc if it will compete. It isn't. Too bad.
     
  5. Kewpie

    Kewpie Formula Junior

    Jun 7, 2004
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    canada
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    I think the new car sales and used car values say a lot about the brand's sales performance.

    The coupe and spyder are very underappreciated.

    The QP, i hope it will do better.

    What Ferrari and Maserati will need to do is:
    1) improve brand awareness (more racing and wins!, more ads in luxury item magazines, etc etc product placements.)
    2) improve knowledge and customer service at the retailer level (given how Maserati is promoting its exclusivity and personalization, my dealer personalized wrong items in my car :mad: )
    3) customer service.
    4) some how improve resale values........
     
  6. GhostRider

    GhostRider Formula Junior

    Dec 20, 2002
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    Tulsa, OK
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    Matt
    As long as FIAT owns Ferrari and Maserati, Maserati will never produce the cars it should be--direct Ferrari competition. They've made cars for a very subdued market where they can never shine like the Ferrari line. A very sad thing. How about a new Bora? A new Merak? Will never happen the way things are now.
     
  7. sjmst

    sjmst F1 Veteran
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    I think THOSE would be the ticket to Maserati survival.
     
  8. Bill Sawyer

    Bill Sawyer Formula 3

    Feb 26, 2002
    2,108
    Georgia
    Personally, I think Maserati needs to provide a lower cost alternative to Ferrari AND be there 4-door division. Despite the rousing reception for the 612 history indictates that it probably won't be a rousing success for long. Ferrari 4-doors just don't hold their value in the marketplace. Push them off to Maserati and also build a modern day Dino or 308 under the Maser name plate. That should do it.
     
  9. Cavallini

    Cavallini Formula 3

    Nov 2, 2003
    1,835

    Can anyone say Gransport and Quattroporte?

    The coupe and the spyder were based on a flawed design and platform, which Ferrari improved as much as they could in a certain time frame.

    Now with the Gransport and the Quattroporte Ferrari's influence is more fully developed, as well as with the addition of the new CEO Martin Leach, the Brit petrol-head, if I his name recall correctly.
    The next coupe and spyder will stand toe-to-toe with Porsche in performance, while carving its own niche and identity, as befits a Maserati.
    It should be safe to assume the ownsership experience will be world class as well.



    Forza,


    Cavallini
     
  10. parkerfe

    parkerfe F1 World Champ

    Sep 4, 2001
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    Franklin E. Parker
    Bill, FYI the 612 is NOT a 4 door. In fact, Ferrari has never produced a production 4 door, although they did make a 4 door prototype as I recall.
     
  11. scott61

    scott61 F1 Rookie

    Feb 11, 2004
    2,606
    North of Boston
    I have a 2004 Spyder and in my 7 months of driving have not had a single issue. I cannot say the same about my two previous vehicles (Boxster S and BMW M3). It also far exceeds them in pure driving experience. It seems Maserati is still like a big secret and most would love the car if they gave it a chance. I know I am hooked on them and cannot wait for the next generation Spyder that is rumored to be close to 470 HP. When I first got the Spyder my plan was to see how I liked Italian cars then bump up to a 360 Spider but now I just don't think that Spider is worth twice the price of a Spyder
     
  12. sjmst

    sjmst F1 Veteran
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    That is great to hear. Glad you are enjoying that car. She's a beauty.
     
  13. dave_fonz_164

    dave_fonz_164 Formula 3

    Mar 11, 2004
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    words of truth,ferrari did their best with the coupe/spyder wich is based on a ageing and somewat flawed chassis from the 3200gt yet they still managed to produce the fabulous gransport. the Qporte is the first maserati totally under ferraris watchfull eye, and its a success. i wont doubt the next gen masers will be better cars than their competitors.
     
  14. classic308

    classic308 F1 Veteran

    Jan 9, 2004
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    Develop the product, especially the coupe/spyder which is a little long in the tooth. Use the highly regarded 4 door chassis as a basis for the new 2 door.

    Would like to see a Boxster competitor;take an alfa V-6, put chains on it instead of belts, develop it enough to distinguish it from Alfa and put it in a mid-engine chassis with Pininfarina styling using Dino 246/Porsche 904 as inspiration, targa-type top. Sweet. Keep it simple like the new Lotus.
     
  15. Bill Sawyer

    Bill Sawyer Formula 3

    Feb 26, 2002
    2,108
    Georgia
    Right! My bad. I meant 4-seater of course.
     
  16. parkerfe

    parkerfe F1 World Champ

    Sep 4, 2001
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    IMHO,the only way Maserati can suceed in the USA is to remove itself from Ferrari dealerships. Being so closely associated with Ferrari hurts it in the market the company is trying to court, i.e., BMW 7 series, MB S class, Jaquar,Lexis,Audi and Porsche buyers. Those type buyers are not going to be looking for a car at a Ferrari dealership. Maserati would be much better off teaming up with a company like Audi or even Saab. Maserati would be upscale of the Audi or Saab line and would give those customers a "move up" option. At a Ferrari dealership the Maserati is seen as a "step down" instead. Plus, non-gearheads would see the cars in the showroom and maybe like and and want to buy one. Like it is now, Maserati is really not being showcased to anyone who doesn't already know a lot about the marque in the first place as the average Ferrari dealership customer already knows and loves Italian cars anyway. For example, my dentist has been trading for new BMW 7s for the last 20 years that I have known him. When I recently mentioned to him that I wanted to test drive t the QP at FOA, he said, "what's that". He had test drove an Audi A8 before his recent 745 purchase and would have considered a QP had he knew it existed. Maserati, are you listening?
     
  17. tfazio

    tfazio Formula 3
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    Apr 20, 2004
    1,968
    Michigan
    I agree with Cavallini completely. Maserati sold nearly 1000 Maserati's in the U.S. in 2003 I believe. So from a business stand point they accomplished their goal I believe. That is a lot of cars to sell for only being back in the U.S. market for 2 years (even if all the cars didn't sell for M.S.R.P). Maybe Maserati should have limited the production #'s which in turn would have greatly helped resale value. Yet I believe Maserati was thinking that low resale values will only be in the short term forecast. The Coupe' and Spyder were based on an old design and they will be improved when the new models are introduced. The Quattroporte demand greatly outweighs supply and that will probably remain the case for a few years. That in turn will mean high resale value. Some mentioned that Maserati should do more to advertise. I think they are doing more. Every month now you can find a Maserati ad in most of the major American car magazines. So they are definitely starting to try to become more main stream. The Maser Coupe even made an appearance on the Sopranos last season.

    I actually think Maserati is going to become more important now since it is going to be hard to buy a new Ferrari for less than $200K in the future. The Quattroporte will be the sedan Ferrari owners will want to take the family out to a nice dinner. The next generation coupe and spyder will be the everyday car many Ferrari owners will drive to work and use everyday. For the rest of us, Maserati will most likely be the way we get to drive/own a great Italian car sooner rather than later and get us ready for Ferrari ownership one day. When you buy a Maserati you will also become part of the Ferrari family which can only be a good thing.

    I think it would be great if Maserati offered free scheduled Maintenance for 3 or 4 years. That would help their sales a great deal I bet even if it meant a higher sticker price(not much higher hopefully). That would take away the fears many have about buying an Italian automobile. If you are going to compete against BMW, Mercedes Benz, Porsche and Aston Martin, a free scheduled Maintenance program might help convince a wife or significant other that the Maser isn't a bad way to go but who knows?
     
  18. scott61

    scott61 F1 Rookie

    Feb 11, 2004
    2,606
    North of Boston
    Yes, the Maserati gives you the pleasure of driving a fine Italian car for the same kind of money as a 911 or high end BMW. Also relatively cheap to maintain compared to a Ferrari, which makes it a great every day driver. And besides the initial savings when you purchase is also cheaper to insure and in a State like MA where we a $25 per thousand excise tax makes for less of a yearly expense. The comment earlier about buying at a Ferrari dealership did not ring true for me. While I agree that getting Maserati into more showrooms would help with sales numbers I found the buying experience excellent at Ferrari&Maserati of New England. I knew nothing about Italian cars when I decided I wanted to try and found them to be a great place to buy a car and without all the B.S that I usually found with other dealerships. As for being part of the Ferrari family, Maybe. But at least here feel more like the retarded sibling no one talks about
     
  19. Carnut

    Carnut F1 Rookie
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    Nov 3, 2003
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    I would have to say I agree alittle with everyone on this issue, but I think Parkerfe may have said it best. For many people a Ferrari dealership is where you take your kids to take pictures of the pretty expensive cars. When I first brought my Maserati coupe home only one of my neighbors even knew what it was, and they are the people driving the BMW's and Mercedes. Maserati seems to be getting the message at least around my area as new dealers (who are not Ferrari) are being opened up.

    I also think that though it appears they were trying to mimic the Mercedes price structure (S classs, CL, & SL) by keeping the coupe the spider and the QP very close price wise that was a mistake for a brand without the name recognition needed to pull it off. I have seen some of the pictures of what the new spider is going to look like and I think they might be on the right track, though I hope they dont end end pricing it at 120k
     
  20. parkerfe

    parkerfe F1 World Champ

    Sep 4, 2001
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    It seems to be that Maserati will have to sell a lot more cars to justify stand alone dealerships. I still say they should team up with another brand that they are not competing with.
     
  21. scott61

    scott61 F1 Rookie

    Feb 11, 2004
    2,606
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    How about Maserati&Yugo of New England? I did hear they had a plan to sell along side AUDI but nothing has come of that yet
     
  22. barchetta

    barchetta Formula Junior
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    Nov 5, 2003
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  23. Derek at FoD

    Derek at FoD Formula 3
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    I disagree. The typical Maserati buyer is a performance minded enthusiast, someone who researches what they want and know how and where to find it. Saab...nothing exciting there, Audi...ditto. Ford has tried this concept at the dealer level, I beleive they call it Premier Auto Group (Ford, Lincoln, Jaguar, Volvo, Aston Martin) and from what I understand, it is not working.
    Maserati is developing a pretty good advertising campaign plus the QP is receiving accolades the world over. Your dentist sounds like he just didn't research the competition before buying his new car.
     
  24. parkerfe

    parkerfe F1 World Champ

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    That is my point. The "current" typical Maserati buyer is a performance minded enthusiast that is not afraid to walk into a Ferrari dealership. However, I'm not sure there are enough of us out there to buy all the QPs Maserati wants to sell when you have the new M5, AMGs,XJRs and other performance sedans out there. The QP needs a slushbox automatic and to be sold outside of the Ferrari umbrella to suceed. There are buyeers out there NOT looking for a Maserati who would buy one if they knew it existed or saw one at a less threatening location. My dad would love a QP, but he wouldn't walk in to a Ferrari dealership at gun point. Otherwise, I suspect Maserati will go away in the USA market just like the old Bi-turbo did, in flames!
     
  25. Doody

    Doody F1 Veteran

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    i agree with frank on this one. standalone stores would be far less intimidating and/or carry far less baggage with them. there's a HUGE chunk of the public who thinks ferraris are all about balding older guys with gold chains and leather pants. or "rock stars only" sorta stuff.

    i think they ought to offer the QP with a stick option. they'd be the ONLY player in that market (remember how well the E39 M5 did initially - and that had a stick!). i told same to Maser NA. they politely told me to **** off. it's not like they don't have the parts in the bin :rolleyes: sheesh.

    doody.
     

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