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Maserati reorganizes, tries to sharpen the trident

When's the last time we posted on a run of comprehensive success at Alfa Romeo or Maserati? True, Maserati nearly tripled its U.S. sales from 4,768 in 2013 to 12,942 in 2014. However, the brand's been stuck around that number ever since, selling 13,711 units in 2017. Worse, those figures highlight how far Maserati has fallen behind its own goals. In the last five-year plan, the brand targeted 75,000 global sales this year — then downgraded the target to 50,000 in June this year. At 26,400 units through the first nine months of 2018, short of Poseidon surfacing to work some deus ex machina, even that reduced goal won't be met. New Fiat Chrysler CEO Mike Manley is working to give Maserati the leaders and support it needs to point the trident in the right direction. On an analyst call at the end of October, Manley said, "With hindsight, when we put Maserati and Alfa together, it did two things. Firstly, it reduced the focus on Maserati the brand. Secondly, Maserati was treated for a period of time almost as if it were a mass market brand, which it isn't and shouldn't be treated that way." In October 2016, FCA named Reid Bigland to head Alfa Romeo and Maserati; this was back when Alfa Romeo dreamed of selling 400,000 cars annually by 2018. When Manley named his new executive teams last month, after assuming the CEO post following Sergio Marchionne's death in July, Manley separated Alfa Romeo and Maserati. Tim Kuniskis, who had taken over from Bigland, now heads Alfa Romeo and Jeep. Manley then restored Harald Wester to the head of Maserati. Wester ran Maserati from 2008 to 2016, after which he became FCA's chief technology officer, a role he maintains in the latest shuffle. Wester poached Jean-Philippe Leloup from Ferrari. LeLoup ran Ferrari's Central and Eastern European business operations; he now heads a concern called Maserati Commercial. Al Gardner, head of Maserati's North American dealer network since 2015, keeps that role and takes over as head of Maserati North America. Maserati has favorable brand value, but the leadership will confront almost every other problem a brand can have. Half the automaker's sales come from China, and the economic slowdown there is a serious drain on the numbers. In Europe, the WLTP emissions protocol, bloated inventories, and the need for incentives have dulled the edge. Sales worldwide are down 26 percent this year.

Maserati GranCabrio Folgore Tignanello is a wine-themed drop-top

Maserati is celebrating two of Italy's best-known exports, cars and wine, with a one-off version of the electric GranCabrio Folgore named Tignanello. The convertible was created by the brand's Fuoriserie department to celebrate 50 years of a type of wine called Tignanello. The one-of-a-kind GranCabrio was built for an Italian wine company called Marchesi Antinori, and Maserati explains that its designers were inspired by vineyards. It starts with the paint: the convertible is finished in a wine-esque shade of red called Terra di Tignanello that was created specifically for it. Flat-black 20-inch wheels, gloss-black brake calipers, and a black soft top add a touch of contrast to the look. More vineyard-inspired details are found inside. The seats are upholstered with a blend of beige leather and burgundy Vegea, which is a biomaterial made from the stalks, skins, and pips of grapes — in a way, you're sitting on wine. The stripes on the seats echo the rows of vines in a vineyard, while the dark briar wood trim is inspired by the printing burned into the oak barrels used to age Tignanello wine. You can also learn a thing or two about the wine's history: historical details are lasered into some of the trim pieces, though they're written in Italian. Power comes from three electric motors that draw electricity from a T-shaped, 92.5-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery to zap the four wheels with 750 horsepower and 995 pound-feet of torque. Maserati pegs the 5,200-pound GranCabrio's zero-to-60-mph time at 2.8 seconds. If you like wine as much as you like Italian cars, it's not too late to put the GranCabrio Folgore Tignanello in your garage. It will be auctioned off on July 14 at the Festival Napa Valley Arts for All Gala taking place on July 14 in California. The proceeds will be donated to charity. Pricing for the regular-production GranCabrio Folgore starts at about $205,000, but the one-off should sell for considerably more.

Driving the 2021 Chevy Tahoe and big news from Hyundai | Autoblog Podcast #640

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by News Editor Joel Stocksdale. They discuss some of the big trucks Joel drove: the 2021 Chevy Tahoe and a Mil-Spec-modified Ford F-150. After that is a look at the latest car news including Trofeo versions of Maserati's sedans, Hyundai's new electric brand called Ioniq, and the BMW M3 Touring station wagon and Hyundai Elantra N-Line. They wrap things up with some musings on anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution and how cars played a role in it. Autoblog Podcast #640 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Reviews2021 Chevy Tahoe Mil-Spec Ford F-150 Maserati Ghibli and Quattroporte Trofeo models revealed Ioniq becomes EV brand for Hyundai 2021 Hyundai Elantra N Line revealed BMW finally announces an M3 station wagon The 19th Amendment and how cars fit in Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: Government/Legal Green Podcasts BMW Chevrolet Ford Hyundai Maserati