Who is going to service & supply parts for Masers after this FIAT takeover nonsense ? I'd be very nervous about buying a new Maser now
I wouldn't count them out just yet. This should mean Maserati dealers will be selling Alfa Romeo's too in North America at some point. That's cool
Who knows? We're dealing with Italians, yes? My guess is that you will see very little change at the retail level. All the Ferrari dealers have invested large sums into their Maserati stores and are just now starting to see some daylight with the Q-Port. Don't forget. For better or worse, FNA is FMNA. I can't see Fiat SpA unwinding this anytime soon. Dr "Masers are here to stay" Who
You mean they haven't already tanked? This whole fiasco would make a great HBS case study in how not to run a car division.
I'd be concerned more as an owner, than a potential buyer. I'm sure the Ferrari / Maserati dealerships will continue to provide parts and service, but part of the cache of owning an Maserati is undoubtedly linked to the relationship the company shares with Ferrari. Once that goes, and it becomes "just another Fiat," I fear the worst for those looking to trade out.
I recall when Fiat pulled out. There was a law that they still have to supply parts for 7 years afterwards. In actuallity parts became very cheap soon after. Supply/demand.
i can hear the class, after reducing the beautiful, wonderful Quattroporte to a few lines of accounting cr.p.... "i think ferrari's management should have come out with a maserati SUV; look how successful Porsche was with theirs". missing the point of course that P has destroyed their meaning for survival as an independent.... i am glad F tried via substantial investment to turn M around, and maybe they can't make breakeven. but the QP adds value to a boring, ugly sedan world. Watt -- HBS Class of '83, section E
As far as marketing, service, and parts, it would have made a lot more sense to transfer Alfa to Ferrari/Maserati rather than transfer Maserati to The Fiat Auto Group (Fiat, Lancia, Alfa)
Does this mean they are going to come out with a new and updated BiTurbo ? How about a retro BiTurbo ? Remember those great cars ? I saw rust beginning to form inside the engine compartment, on new "on the lot" neglected cars ! Of course the new neglected carz were no longer at a fac authorized M dealer. - There were none at the time. I still think the Ferrari salesman were actually tired of having to work selling carz. - Now it is back to business as usual.
I don't understand all the hoopla here. Fiat already owns Ferrari, who owns Maserati. Sounds like to me, this is all paperwork and stock shifting nonsense. It's ALL still Fiat.
Whole thing does seem strange, Seems they felt Maserati was a drag on Ferrari but then say Maserati will beef up Fiat lineup. By Mathias Wildt / Bloomberg News Fiat to beef up lineup by taking over Maserati Deal would mean increased cooperation with Alfa Romeo to bolster sales abroad. Fiat SpA, Italy's largest manufacturer, plans to take over Ferrari SpA's Maserati business and link it with the Alfa Romeo brand to increase cooperation between the luxury-car divisions. Maserati and Alfa Romeo will work with each other on technology and sales, building on Maserati's marketing abroad, Turin, Italy-based Fiat said. Fiat is free to reorganize its five car brands after a Feb. 13 accord restoring full control over the Fiat Auto division from General Motors Corp., which had held a 10 percent stake. Ferrari, the winner of 14 Formula One car-racing titles including the last six in a row, is 56 percent owned by Fiat and postponed a stock sale in 2003. "This move should be seen as the first of a new era," said Alessandro Frigerio, who helps manage the equivalent of $621 million at Pigoli Consulenza in Milan. "Fiat had their hands tied with GM. The moment they could act, they did, and the next step could be selling Ferrari shares." Mediobanca, Italy's largest investment bank, owns 15 percent of Ferrari after selling 10 percent of its holding to Commerzbank AG, 6.5 percent to Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., 1.5 percent to Banca Popolare dell'Emilia Romagna and 1 percent to Compagnie Monegasque des Banques, a unit of Mediobanca. Piero Ferrari, an heir of founder Enzo, owns the remaining 10 percent. Investors like Commerzbank bought their stake in Ferrari in 2002 and planned to sell it by July 2003 in an initial share sale that Ferrari postponed. The amount Fiat will pay Ferrari for Maserati is still under evaluation, a Fiat spokesman said. "The technical and commercial collaboration between Maserati and Alfa Romeo will give the latter the necessary impetus to re- establish itself as a leading contender in its segment and to expand its presence in international markets," Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne said. Alfa Romeo is one of Fiat Auto's three brands and sells about 180,000 cars a year. Maserati is sold around the world, including the United States, through Ferrari's dealers. Alfa Romeo is absent from the U.S.
I think the QP is awesome but I'm leery of service now bcus of this mess. I'd love to see a new Bora & a New Ghibli spyder now That would rock Also a Corvette priced Maser would bring in a lot of profit I know Ford & GM make big $ on their SUVs but has Porsche made a lot of $ with the Cayenne ?
Maserati prices are guaranteed to tank now that Dr. Who, AKA Dr. Tax and Dr. Maser, bought one. Look what he did to Maranello prices.
I don't have time to dig it up right now but there have been a few threads on the subject. IIRC Jim G sez they are.
The Cayenne is making huge $ for P. It will insure that P will remain independant if they wish to. It is also a GREAT truck. IMO Ferrari will be spun off. Due to the chachet it will be valued at a huge p/e for a car co. and will bring much needed $ to FIAT. As for Maser it's finances will be buried within FIAT which is the problem. IMO FIAT has a tough row to hoe. If FIAT does not make it Maser will now go down as well. Maser adversely impacked Ferrari's profit last year. I personally feel that if Toyota builds the concept pickup truck I saw at CIAS Ford, GM, and C will be in BFT. Of all the car Co.'s that is the one that IMO will remain standing.
Jim, you are, of course, right as rain. Toyota could probably replace GM today if they wanted to with their current business model. However, when they shift into second gear, there''ll be no catching them. For example, try this one on for size -- You go down to your local Toyota Lifestyle Center, which is no bigger than large gas station where you design and build YOUR car on the computer. (After trying out some of the demos at the Lifestyle Center.) In no more than 3 weeks, your Toyota Lifestyle Coordinator delivers YOUR car to your home and hauls away your trade in. Not only does this car come with a 10-year warranty, but your Coordinator will program the car to intregrate it with your home computer system so that it will unlock whichever door you want and change the thermostat settings, among other things. And, oh, did I mention the guarannteed trade in value? Or did I mention that your Toyota will cost 20% less than competing brands? What are the odds of Fiat Auto surviving in this world? Zero, zip, nada. Hell, GM is not even going to make it. Then when Toyota merges with Wally World, Jump Back Jack! In the short run, though, I predict that you will see very little change in Maserati in the US. After talking informally with a few Ferrari dealers, none of them even want to drop the Maser line. After three years of pouring money down a hole, they are actually making money on the Q-Port and breaking even on the rest. Plus, if MNA gets separated from FNA, things can only get better. I was wondering if you have heard the same or different? Thx, Dale
I think the change will be incremental but it will happen. While the dealers may not drop Maser tomorrow the idea that Maser is worth the investment they were required to make because for example: "We'll give you more 430's" will be realized for what it means which over time will be zero.
I don't think the entire line is going to tank, but I've gone to 2 dealers here in L.A. and they're both willing to discount the '04 Spider from $104k to the low $70's. These are brand new cars. I know they're now considered a year old, but that's quite a discount. The qp is holding at sticker if you order one and above sticker if you want it now. The '05 Spider is being discounted, but only a little. The dealers here are even discounting the GT about $2,500. Pretty interesting based on how few they're producing. I guess time will tell where Mas will end up.
new model of the coupe and spyder are coming soon, dosnt help the current lineup and the coupe/spyder never really hit it off in NA, makes them a great bargain though.
