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0-to-62 in 2 seconds: Maserati Alfieri electrics will take on Tesla with Ferrari's help

Maserati's long-delayed flagship, the Alfieri sports car, will go electric, offering hybrid, plug-in hybrid and full-electric versions, parent company FCA said today its five-year plan. The Italian brand also outlined plans to launch a midsize SUV, all-new versions of the Quattroporte and Levante, and said it intends to electrify its entire fleet by 2022. Tim Kuniskis, head of the Maserati brand, said in a presentation in Italy that Ferrari will supply all future powertrains across every configuration, including hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery-electric vehicles. The brand also announced that it will market full-electric vehicles under the Maserati Blue name. The goal for Maserati Blue is to offer battery-electric versions of four cars: the Alfieri, a convertible version called the Alfieri Cabrio, the Quattroporte and the Levante. All will feature three motors with e-all-wheel-drive, torque vectoring, 800-volt battery technology, long driving ranges and quick charging. They'll also be based on a lightweight modular aluminum platform. If the Alfieri sounds familiar, it should: It first debuted as a 2+2 sports coupe concept at the Geneva Motor Show all the way back in 2014. Back then, it was likely to use Maserati's turbocharged V6 and V8 engines and be rear-wheel drive only. But the concept has hit a series of delays on the way to production. Plans for the new version call for a new modular aluminum space frame to minimize weight gain — Kuniskis says it weighs only about 385 pounds more than the conventional combustion-engine version — and it will offer all-wheel-drive with full active torque vectoring. Top speed will be more than 186 mph, and it'll go from 0 to 62 mph in around 2 seconds. There's no name yet for the forthcoming midsize utility vehicle, which Maserati says will be offered in hybrid and PHEV configurations. It promises a best-in-class lightweight platform and power-to-weight ratio and 50/50 weight distribution. A high-performance Trofeo model will also be offered. New versions of the Quattroporte luxury sedan and Levante crossover will also be based on a new lightweight, modular platform and will include Level 2 autonomous-driving capabilities, with Level 3 available by late 2021 or early 2022, Kuniskis said. Both vehicles will get a Q4 all-wheel-drive system and come with a choice of three powertrains, including hybrid and PHEV.

Maserati Alfieri Concept draws from the brand's past, looks to its future

We may be just as (if not more) used to the idea of Maserati making four-door passenger cars as we are of Porsche or Aston Martin doing the same, but the Trident marque is no less routed in producing sports cars than its German and British rivals. The trouble is that, now seven years on the market, the GranTurismo is Maserati's only two-door model, and it's growing a little long in the tooth to serve as the brand's halo car. Especially when it starts looking back at its history on the occasion of its 100th anniversary. So to mark the milestone, and reconnect with its more sporting past, Maserati has rolled in to Geneva with the concept car you see here.
It's called the Alfieri, and we've been anticipating its unveiling since (if not long before) rumors surfaced last week of its impending arrival, followed by confirmation from the manufacturer and the leaked images we brought you mere hours ago. But now it's been unveiled in the metal.
The Alfieri's wheelbase is 9.5 shorter than the GranTurismo, but packs the same 4.7-liter naturally-aspirated V8.

Only best-performing US Fiat dealers to get Alfa Romeo franchises

Alfa Romeo has been rumored to return to the US market so many times for so many years, it's hard to keep count. This time, though, Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne promises that it's for real. Alfa is scheduled to reappear in the States this summer with its 4C sports coupe as its introductory model. However, buyers won't be able to pop into just any Fiat showroom and leave with a 4C – it's planning to only sell Alfas at its best-performing dealers, according to The Detroit News. In fact, the first 4Cs sold here won't be sold at Fiat dealers at all. Instead the first shipment of cars in June will go to Maserati dealers, not unlike the handful of Alfa 8C Competizione coupe and convertible models that trickled in starting in 2008. According to Fiat Chrysler spokesperson Rick Deneau, the company is still deciding which Fiat retailers will participate in Alfa's reentry. Many of Fiat's US dealers are apparently not happy with the meritocracy approach. They built Fiat showrooms partially on the promise that Alfa would enter the US market in 2012, then 2013, and now later this year. Even worse for them, the prospects for more mainstream Alfa Romeo models in the US are still questionable. This isn't the first time that we've heard that Fiat plans to keep Alfa Romeo exclusive in the US. Still, Fiat only plans to export about a 1,000 4C sports coupes a year here. If Alfa wants to be a legitimate player in America and be a money-making concern globally, it will need far more sales than that. Featured Gallery 2015 Alfa Romeo 4C: First Drive View 57 Photos News Source: The Detroit NewsImage Credit: Copyright 2014 Matt Davis / AOL Earnings/Financials Marketing/Advertising Alfa Romeo Fiat Maserati Coupe Performance Sergio Marchionne alfa romeo 4c fiat dealers