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Maserati confirms Levante SUV for 2015, Alfieri for 2016

The Maserati share of the big Fiat Chrysler event today was expected to be something of a snooze, at least relative to the very busy Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Alfa Romeo portions. But the truth is there was plenty to pay attention to where the premium Italian brand was concerned. After all, moving from its 15,400 unit sales in 2013 to a target of 75,000 global sales in 2018 is going to take some doing.
One piece of big news is a shakeup in the existing ranks. 2014 will mark the final year of production for the GranTurismo (and its soft-top counterpart), meaning Maserati will be limited to just its Quattroporte and Ghibli sedans until the Levante SUV arrives in 2015, confirming previous reports. The first SUV to wear the trident, the Levante will only be available with all-wheel drive, but it will boast a Porsche Macan-smiting pair of V6s, with 350 and 425 horsepower, respectively.
Things get back to normal in 2016, as Maserati resumes sports car production with a road-going version of the Alfieri Concept from the 2014 Geneva Motor Show. Again, this is confirmation of a previous report. That car will be joined by a convertible variant in 2017. It seems like Maser is taking aim at, well, everything with the Alfieri, offering a 410-hp, V6-powered variant that dispatches its power to the rear wheels, to go along with 450- and 520-hp versions of the Alfieri's V6 that will only get their power to the road through an all-wheel-drive system.

Maserati Levante will borrow Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid's PHEV powertrain

The plug-in hybrid tech from the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivan will move seriously upmarket into a future version of the Maserati Levante crossover. The PHEV model should arrive around early 2018 or possibly the end of 2017, division boss Harald Wester told Motor Trend. Wester was blunt about the reason for using the minivan's powertrain. "A standalone program would be suicidal so we have to look at FCA," he said to Motor Trend. However, he expects the PHEV to comprise a tiny portion of the luxury CUV's sales volume – possibly as low as six percent. The Pacifica Hybrid will be the first PHEV minivan in the US when it arrives in the second half of 2016. The powertrain combines a 3.6-liter V6 that runs on the more efficient Atkinson cycle, and two electric motors, which are in the gearbox. A 16-kWh lithium-ion battery under the floor stores the energy for the system. Chrysler estimates the setup can carry the minivan 30 miles purely on electric power and achieve 80 MPGe. The first examples of the Levante should arrive in the US in August, according to Motor Trend. Maserati plans initially to offer its luxury crossover here with two twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V6s. Base models use a version with 350 horsepower and 368 pound-feet of torque. The S trim gets some extra grunt thanks to a tune that makes 430 hp and 427 lb-ft. Both models come with an eight-speed automatic transmission, all-wheel drive, and a limited-slip differential. The Maserati will have a fleet of posh, European crossovers to fight against, and the PHEV will possibly offer an edge to entice a few green-minded, wealthy customers. Related Video:

Maserati confirms limited edition Quattroporte Zegna for production

Last year two of the biggest names in Italian style – one from the automotive industry and one from fashion – announced a partnership. Together Maserati and Ermenegildo Zegna revealed a "concept" version of the Quattroporte at the Frankfurt Motor Show, only given how production-ready the show car already looked, nobody really believed it would remain just a concept. And now, having revealed the final version in Geneva, Maserati has confirmed it for production. Limited production, that is, because Maserati will only build 100 examples of the Quattroporte Zegna edition for consumption around the world. That's about one-thirtieth of the number of cars Maserati produces each month at this point, and while the Modenese automaker doesn't break down its sales figures by model, the QP accounts for a large proportion of those numbers. Maserati also hasn't said just how much it will charge for the Zegna edition, but you can bet it'll be a handsome premium – more than some of those designer-edition hatchbacks get at any rate – yet it'll undoubtedly offload the entire run in short order. "ONE OF 100" THE MASERATI QUATTROPORTE ZEGNA LIMITED EDITION Wednesday, July 16, 2014 – After making its world debut at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, Maserati has revealed an exclusive limited edition Maserati Quattroporte in collaboration with luxury Italian fashion house, Ermenegildo Zegna. Just 100 examples of the limited series will be built which feature colour schemes, materials and exclusive trims which link the histories of the two brands. To celebrate the launch of the Quattroporte Zegna Limited Edition, Maserati and Zegna are embarking on a tour of four international events starting in Shanghai in July 2014 before stopping in New York (Sept 2014), Dubai (Feb 2015) and Milan (Spring 2015). The events are designed to present the Quattroporte Zegna Limited Edition to an exclusive audience and to celebrate the partnership between the two Italian brands; both of whom are masters in Italian excellence. The exclusive event locations have been carefully selected to enhance the uniqueness of the alliance and represent the pinnacle of Italian elegance. Guests will be able to discover the car's premium finishes in detail and see the extraordinary result of the partnership. World famous Italian photographer, Fabrizio Ferri, will be in attendance at each of the four events capturing 100 unique images – 25 from each occasion.