A LEGENDARY car manufacturer has been forced to scrap three potential models due to poor sales as fear grows for the brand’s future.
A major investment has fallen through – exacerbating the firm’s rocky financial position.
A major car brand has axed three potential models after losing financial backing[/caption]
Maserati has had to ditch its plans for electric motors[/caption]
The comes as Stellantis scraps a £1.3billion investment for the project[/caption]
A shadow has been cast over Maserati’s future as backing for the carmaker’s electric models falls through.
Global automaker and Maserati parent company Stellantis was set to throw £1.3billion Maserati’s way but decided to axe the investment.
Stellantis chief financial officer Doug Ostermann said they pulled the plug on the Maserati projects claiming they need to review the pace in which sports car owners will move over to EVs.
He said: “We have to recognise that the dynamics in that business, particularly in the Chinese market, and our expectations in terms of how quickly that luxury market would transition to electrification.”
With over a billion pounds of financial aid written off, three of the Italian carmaker’s projects also went down the drain.
The potential models included the MC20 Folgore as well as replacements for the Quattroporte and Levante.
This would be Masterati’s electric line of motors, adapting to the EV revolution, but now the dream might not make reality.
With slowly waning sales and eye-watering financial losses, the lack of funding will hit the brand hard.
Last year, the firm lost a colossal £226million and the number of units sold plunged from 26,600 to just 11,300 in 2024 alone.
These numbers are less than half of the figures Maserati should be dealing with – especially as a luxury sports car brand.
Before he left the firm last year, Stellantis’s boss Carlos Tavares said the low sales at Maserati were due to advertising issues.
Tavares told Top Gear: “Maserati is in the red. The reason is marketing.
“The Maserati brand is not clearly positioned and the storytelling is not how it should be.
“The brand is not just about sports cars, it’s about gran turismo, it’s about quality of life, dolce vita and technology.”
After Stellantis scrapped the investment plans for the potential EVs Italy‘s fierce trade union FIM has demanded answers.
FIM General Secretary Ferdinando Uliano said: “Maserati represents one of the most critical situations.
“Despite the quality and high-performance models, the brand suffers from errors and carelessness in terms of marketing.
“We can no longer waste time.”
The union has scheduled a meeting with Stellantis in a bid to get clarity on the future of Maserati on March 11.
