After a long 11-year run, Maserati will shelve the GrandTurismo by the end of this year.
Citing an Australian Maserati executive Carsales on Tuesday reported that the company will pull the plugs on the GranTurismo. This was supplemented by Maserati's announcement stating that its Modena plane will soon undergo production line upgrades to prepare for a new model.
General Manager of Maserati's Australia and New Zealand operations, Glen Sealey told Carsales that the company will stop GranTurismo's production by the end of the year and that dealers will stock down the models until mid-2020.
The GranTurismo will be reportedly replaced by the Alfieri coupe, based on the space-frame chassis that will spawn an additional convertible variant in the line-up. This is in addition to earlier reports that mentioned a full-electric Alfieri version produced with Ferrari.
Check out the Maserati GranTurismo Cars latest prices and specifications in the UAE.
A statement issued by the company stated that the renewal of the Modena production lines will begin by the end of this year, suggesting that the GranTurismo will remain in production in less than nine months. Apart from that, the company also mentioned a “totally new model, a characteristically Maserati sports car” that would enter pre-series production during the first half of 2020.
In early January, Maserati announced a change in its market strategy amidst a global decline in sales. A major move in its new strategy was to shed its image of a mass-market brand and ascend as a force to be reckoned with in luxury and performance car circles. New Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Mike Manley admitted that pairing up Alfa Romeo and Maserati under the same strategy was a mistake, resulting in the latter being treated “almost like a mass-market brand”.
The Maserati GranTurismo and GranCabrio are both 11 years old, effectively the oldest cars on sale today. The Quattroporte and Ghibli saloons are more than five years old, and the Levante has also not seen much traction past the two-year mark.
