Maserati Plans SUV Made In Detroit With Ferrari Engine

by David Kiley (RSS feed)
Jan 13th 2011 at 9:02PM

How is this for a mixed pedigree? Chrysler, which is managed by Fiat executives these days, plans to build a Maserati SUV in Detroit at an assembly plant that kicks out Jeep Grand Cherokees and Dodge Durangos, which are built on an engineering platform developed with Mercedes-Benz for its M Class SUV stemming from when Chrysler was owned by Daimler.

Now comes word that the forthcoming Maserati SUV will be fitted with a Ferrari engine. Fiat also owns Ferrari, which has supplied engines to Fiat's Lancia, Alfa-Romeo, Maserati cars, as well as Formula One teams.

"It will be a rock and roll engine," said Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne. It may come in both a V-8 and a V-12 version, said the CEO in a roundtable interview at the North American International Auto Show that included Luxist.com

The SUV should be ready for Maserati showrooms worldwide in 2012.

Tags: Ferrari, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Maserati SUV, North American International Auto Show, Sergio Marchionne

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Spectacular Bid Jan 13th 2011 11:29PM

This plan has been discussed openly in the past few months and I cannot find a person who thinks its a smart idea. Obviously no executive wants a modern day version of Chrysler TC by Maserati. However it will be hard to avoid going down that same path. One of the elementary problems with the TC could arise again: the body will come from an existing Chrysler/Jeep offering. (The TC used effectively the same body as the LeBaron which sold for far less.) Its hard to radically deviate from the supplied Jeep underpinings with a totally different body style.

To stray too far away from the Jeep assembly erodes the economic feasibility of launching a "new" car. It almost has to use as many shared Jeep components as possible. Jaguar however tried the same with borrowing items from Ford parts bin, people knew it, and sales suffered.

So how will Maserati justify selling at a massive premium something that looks like a slightly more refined and sleep Jeep? The era of just tossing in a deluxe sound system, navigation system, faster engine and leather interior really doesn't cut it. Unless you make the body so distinctive - like the rest of the Maserati lineup - it will be quickly deemed a dressed up Jeep and sales targets will be impossible to meet.

Its a shame that after Ferrari poured so much of their talent and vision (and FIAT's money) in to reviving Maserati from the DeTomaso days that anyone would consider cheapening the brand with rebadged product. If they want to sell a more premium priced Jeep then use the Alfa Romeo name which is exotic in history yet has no existing US lineup to protect with image.