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Rich kid uses puppy to polish Maserati as Internet howls

Update: The original Instagram video appears to have been removed, but the video can still be viewed at this link. One of the Rich Kids of Instagram may never attempt to perform manual labor again after the 2-3 seconds she spent using a puppy to "polish" a rare Maserati. She cast it as a joke, but the Internet wasn't laughing. Instagram user m666ya, who is said to be a young, beautiful, wealthy collector of supercars in London - or, she at least has enough access to photograph them and occasionally show herself behind the wheel of one - posted this clip of an extremely cute puppy detailing a limited-edition Maserati MC12, which sells for $1.5 million or $2 million (depending on who's doing the telling). It got picked up on the Rich Kids account two days ago: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The Maltese puppy is compliant and seems, well, maybe not in distress but probably not having the time of its life, either. And m66ya or whoever is doing the buffing keeps it exceedingly brief. Some of the reaction has been predictable. The New York Post tabloid called her "barking mad." And social-media reactions to the post were similar: "Not funny." "Animal abuse." "Disgusting." "This is just wrong." "Shame on you." "This is actually sickening." "Money can't buy you class and in your case, values." "Dogs are so loyal and only want to love and please their owner. You do not deserve any devotion of love from this innocent puppy." "Psychologists will tell you, simple abuse of animals often leads to abuse of humans in later life. Seek some help now." A few commenters defend the clip and suggest people lighten up. Some doubled down on the joke: "It's better to use a cat so you can hear your engine purr." A blogger joked you'd never actually use a dog to polish a $2 million car because dirt in its hair could scratch the paint. And one young philosopher of Instagram, whose spelling is too poor to quote him directly, makes the fair point that perhaps some people are less angry about the dog than they are jealous that these ne'er-do-wells are rich. A spokeswoman for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said: "We can understand why people are concerned about this video.

Maserati ramping up production of Ghibli, Quattroporte

While Porsche may be relatively new to the four-door game, Maserati has been building the Quattroporte with few interruptions since 1963. But like its rival from Stuttgart, the Trident marque is rapidly shifting from a sports car company primarily to a manufacturer of high-end family transportation. Not only does it have the new Quattroporte on the market, but now it's got the Ghibli sedan as well and the Levante crossover on its way.
It's a gambit that's reaping huge benefits not only for Maserati itself but also for its newly merged parent company Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, which is finding the mass market less lucrative than it once was and is positioning both Maserati and Alfa Romeo against other luxury marques like BMW, Audi and Porsche. As a result, Maserati is considerably expanding its production.
Last month, Maserati sold over 3,000 cars, putting it on track to double its sales from 2013. But it's not about to stop there. With growing demand for its authentically Italian luxury sedans, Maserati is shifting more workers to its assembly plant in the Turinese suburn of Grugliasco (where the QP and Ghibli are made) and shortening vacation time to ramp production up from 750 cars per week to 900.

Maserati hand-painted tricolor stripe shows Italian pride — for a price

Italy has gone through a rough time with the coronavirus, but now the country is emerging from the worst of it and is experiencing a renewed sense of national pride. Rome's famous Colosseum is illuminated in the green, white and red of the Italian flag, and Maserati is getting into the spirit as well. The company is offering a narrow tri-color stripe in the same green-white-red on the hood and roof of new Maseratis. Waving the proverbial Italian flag with your Maserati doesn't come cheap, however. The option is $5,000, although we should point out that it is hand-painted. The stripe is available on a small number of 2020 model year Levantes and Ghiblis exclusively in conjunction with the Nero Ribelle (metallic black) body color. We're told the special stripe will be offered more widely as a special-order option for 2021, where it can also be paired with other body colors. Pricing for the 2021 model year has not been released. Related video: