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Marchionne wants Maserati to be FCA's new Ferrari

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is gearing up to spin Ferrari, its most profitable brand, off into another company, and float its stock on the open market. That means it's going to need another profit-driver to generate income for the rest of the group. And according to its chief executive Sergio Marchionne, that mantle will soon be picked up by Maserati. FCA is betting big on Maserati, which has long stood as a niche marque with a limited array of models and low sales numbers. In addition to the recently introduced Ghibli and Quattroporte sedans – now crucially offered with diesels and all-wheel drive – Maserati is preparing to roll out the Levante crossover that promises to do for the Modenese marque what the Cayenne did for Porsche. Due in part to the success of its first crossover, Porsche turned itself from a niche sports car manufacturer into an immensely profitable automaker that was (nearly) capable of buying out the entire Volkswagen Group. Maserati's resurgence is part of a two-pronged assault FCA is plotting against its German rivals. Maserati will be charged with taking on the higher end of the Mercedes, BMW, and Audi ranges (from the E-Class, 5 Series and A6 upwards). Meanwhile, Alfa Romeo will go after the lower end of the luxury spectrum with the new Giulia (aimed at the C-Class, 3 Series and A4) and other models to follow. FCA aims to turn Maserati and Alfa Romeo (along with Jeep) into global brands, broadening the narrow geographical appeal they have held until now. In order to generate enough profit to support the rest of the group as Ferrari has, Maserati will need to find a way to increase its profit margins. Bloomberg reports that Ferraris command a 13-percent profit margin, and while the ten percent that Maseratis list for is still triple that of the FCA average, slow sales are forcing some dealers to offer deep incentives that cut significantly into that margin. Related Video:

LaFerrari XX may have lapped N?rburgring in 6:35

Enthusiasts around the world - ourselves included - have been anxiously awaiting the ultimate supercar showdown. After all, we seldom see three of the world's preeminent exotic automakers come out with such closely matched machinery in such close proximity as we have with the Porsche 918 Spyder, McLaren P1 and Ferrari LaFerrari. That showdown could occur on no better a playing field than the Nürburgring, but the automakers haven't exactly been playing ball.
Porsche set down a lap time of 6:57, staking its claim as the fastest street-legal production car ever to lap the vaunted Nordschleife. Rather than challenge Zuffenhausen head-on, though, McLaren has only said that the P1 has clocked a time of under seven minutes, and though Ferrari has been testing the new LaFerrari at the Ring, it hasn't released any official time at all. Maranello may, however, be preparing to announce an even faster time.
According to word we're receiving from across the pond, Ferrari has clocked a lap time of 6:35 - only it wasn't achieved in the road-going LaFerrari, but in the upcoming track-bound LaFerrari XX. That model, which was just confirmed and spied last week, will follow in the footsteps of the Enzo-based FXX and the 599XX, which itself recorded a lap time of 6:58 in 2010. Because it's not street-legal, it didn't contend for the same honors, and within a couple of months was pipped on the leaderboard for non-street-legal vehicles by the Pagani Zonda R by over ten seconds.

Bid on Floyd Mayweather's Ferrari Enzo in New York

Floyd Mayweather has a bit of a thing for supercars. Heck, he bought 100 cars from one dealership alone. While his Ferrari Enzo is just one of many impressive cars in his collection, it's certainly special. And it's for sale. The 295th example in a run of 400 was done up in Rosso Corsa over black leather and sold new to a buyer in Dubai who barely ever drove it. Mayweather bought it from its original owner last year and put it in his collection, alongside so many other Ferraris and Bugattis. He only drove it some 200 miles, though, leaving this as one of the lowest-mileage Enzos around with just 560 miles on the odometer. Now that Mayweather is retired, he's putting the Enzo up for auction, consigning it to RM Sotheby's for its upcoming Driven By Disruption sale in New York next month. The record for the highest price paid for an Enzo at auction currently stands at over $6 million, set at Monterey this past summer by - you guessed it - RM Sotheby's. But that was the very last example, made for Pope John Paul II, with just 111 miles on it. The next highest price (also achieved by RM) was recorded a year prior at $1.925 million. That all-black example had three owners who clocked over 8,000 miles on it. The auction house anticipates that this example will sell for $3-3.5 million. Given the celebrity provenance and low mileage on this example, we won't be at all surprised to see it reach that amount. 2003 Ferrari Enzo Chassis no. ZFFCW56A130135440 Engine no. 79706 Assembly no. 52427 660 bhp, 5,998 cc DOHC 65-degree V-12 engine with Bosch Motronic engine management and electronic fuel injection, six-speed electro-hydraulic computer-controlled sequential F1 transmission, limited-slip differential and traction control, front and rear pushrod-actuated double wishbones with horizontal external reservoir coil-spring damper units, and four-wheel ventilated carbon-ceramic disc brakes. Wheelbase: 104 in. - The 295th Enzo of 400 produced - Just two owners and 560 miles from new - Formerly owned by renowned boxer Floyd Mayweather - Surely one of the finest Enzos extant FERRARI'S 21ST CENTURY SUPERCAR At the Paris Motor Show in 2002, the pressure was on for Ferrari to unveil its latest supercar. The company was back on top after years of struggling both in motorsport and in sales, and it was clear that their next supercar, the successor to the Ferrari F50, would be a monumental milestone for the company.