Fiat’s $115,000 Maseratis beat US slowdown
Sales of Fiat’s Maseratis, which sells at $115,000 and gets 12 miles a gallon, jumped 20 per cent in the US last month and are up 16 per cent for the year to 1,353 vehicles.
By Bloomberg |
MICHIGAN: Fiat has figured out how to beat the slump in US auto sales caused by a slowing economy and record gasoline prices: sell a $115,000 sports car that gets 12 miles a gallon.
Sales of Fiat���s Maseratis jumped 20 per cent in the US last month and are up 16 per cent for the year to 1,353 vehicles, according to Autodata Corporation in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey. Sales of all luxury cars have dropped 15 per cent, and total vehicle sales are down 10 per cent.
The Grand Prix-inspired Maseratis serve a niche of buyers who want something more exotic than Daimler���s Mercedes-Benz, yet more affordable than Italian competitors Ferrari and Lamborghini, said Wes Brown, automotive analyst at Iceology, a Los Angeles-based market research firm.
���If you���ve got money, you want people to know you���ve got money, and people want to find something that not everybody has,��� Brown said. ���They are saying, ���I don���t want a BMW or Mercedes, which you can see on every corner.������ Ferraris, also produced by Turin, Italy-based Fiat, cost more than $2,10,000 and have a years-long waiting list, Ruggero Mango, a marketing analyst for the brand, said in January. Lamborghinis, made by Wolfsburg, Germany-based Volkswagen, start at $1,90,600.
Ferrari sales slumped 9 per cent in June and 3.9 per cent for the first half of the year, according to Autodata. Fuelling Maserati���s growth are new models and an expanded network of 54 US dealers, up from 32 six years ago, said Paul Faletti, vice president of sales at Maserati North America, based in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. Customers see Maserati as more exotic than its primary competitors, the Mercedes S-Class or Bayerische Motoren Werke���s 7-series sedans, Faletti said.
Sales of Fiat���s Maseratis jumped 20 per cent in the US last month and are up 16 per cent for the year to 1,353 vehicles, according to Autodata Corporation in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey. Sales of all luxury cars have dropped 15 per cent, and total vehicle sales are down 10 per cent.
The Grand Prix-inspired Maseratis serve a niche of buyers who want something more exotic than Daimler���s Mercedes-Benz, yet more affordable than Italian competitors Ferrari and Lamborghini, said Wes Brown, automotive analyst at Iceology, a Los Angeles-based market research firm.
���If you���ve got money, you want people to know you���ve got money, and people want to find something that not everybody has,��� Brown said. ���They are saying, ���I don���t want a BMW or Mercedes, which you can see on every corner.������ Ferraris, also produced by Turin, Italy-based Fiat, cost more than $2,10,000 and have a years-long waiting list, Ruggero Mango, a marketing analyst for the brand, said in January. Lamborghinis, made by Wolfsburg, Germany-based Volkswagen, start at $1,90,600.
Ferrari sales slumped 9 per cent in June and 3.9 per cent for the first half of the year, according to Autodata. Fuelling Maserati���s growth are new models and an expanded network of 54 US dealers, up from 32 six years ago, said Paul Faletti, vice president of sales at Maserati North America, based in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. Customers see Maserati as more exotic than its primary competitors, the Mercedes S-Class or Bayerische Motoren Werke���s 7-series sedans, Faletti said.
Download
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
Download
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
ADVERTISEMENT
