Thursday, January 19th, 2012 at
5:05 am
For the second time in nine years, Maserati execs showcased a luxury SUV at the Detroit auto show — but this time, they plan to build it. The luxury Kubang SUV, which will share a platform with the Jeep Grand Cherokee, will be built at Chrysler Group’s Jefferson North Assembly plant in Detroit and exported worldwide. When it’s built, the SUV will have an Italian-made engine developed by Ferrari combined with a new eight-speed automatic transmission. Interior components for the vehicle also will be developed by Maserati, said Harald Wester, Maserati’s CEO. Ferrari and Maserati are both brands owned by Chrysler Group’s parent company, Fiat S.p.A.
Maserati introduced a luxury SUV concept in Detroit in 2003, but never green-lighted the vehicle.
The concept vehicle that appeared in Detroit today is the same vehicle that made its world debut at the Frankfurt auto show in September.
The SUV’s pricing, specifications and name were not released.
The luxury performance brand does not have an SUV in its lineup, but Wester said an expansion into the segment was necessary for Maserati’s development.
“Maserati is a natural to build such a vehicle,” he said, “and the time is right to do so.”
Friday, January 6th, 2012 at
3:04 pm
Maserati is an Italian luxury car manufacturer established on December 1, 1914, in Bologna. The company’s headquarters is now in Modena, and its emblem is a trident. It has been owned by the Italian car giant Fiat S.p.A. since 1993. Inside the Fiat Group, Maserati was initially associated with Ferrari S.p.A., but more recently it has become part of the sports car group including Alfa Romeo.
The Maserati brothers, Alfieri, Bindo, Carlo, Ettore, and Ernesto were all involved with automobiles from the beginning of the 20th century. Alfieri, Bindo and Ernesto built 2-litre Grand Prix cars for Diatto. In 1926, Diatto suspended the production of race cars, leading to the creation of the first Maserati and the founding of the Maserati marque. One of the first Maseratis, driven by Alfieri, won the 1926 Targa Florio. Maserati began making race cars with 4, 6, 8 and 16 cylinders (two straight-eights mounted parallel to one another). Another Maserati brother, Mario, an artist, is believed to have devised the company’s trident emblem, based on one the Fontana del Nettuno, Bologna. Alfieri Maserati died in 1932, but three other brothers, Bindo, Ernesto and Ettore, kept the firm going, building cars that won races.
