***1964 Fiat 500 D - Suicide Doors*** on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Maserati confirms Levante SUV for 2015, Alfieri for 2016

The Maserati share of the big Fiat Chrysler event today was expected to be something of a snooze, at least relative to the very busy Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Alfa Romeo portions. But the truth is there was plenty to pay attention to where the premium Italian brand was concerned. After all, moving from its 15,400 unit sales in 2013 to a target of 75,000 global sales in 2018 is going to take some doing.
One piece of big news is a shakeup in the existing ranks. 2014 will mark the final year of production for the GranTurismo (and its soft-top counterpart), meaning Maserati will be limited to just its Quattroporte and Ghibli sedans until the Levante SUV arrives in 2015, confirming previous reports. The first SUV to wear the trident, the Levante will only be available with all-wheel drive, but it will boast a Porsche Macan-smiting pair of V6s, with 350 and 425 horsepower, respectively.
Things get back to normal in 2016, as Maserati resumes sports car production with a road-going version of the Alfieri Concept from the 2014 Geneva Motor Show. Again, this is confirmation of a previous report. That car will be joined by a convertible variant in 2017. It seems like Maser is taking aim at, well, everything with the Alfieri, offering a 410-hp, V6-powered variant that dispatches its power to the rear wheels, to go along with 450- and 520-hp versions of the Alfieri's V6 that will only get their power to the road through an all-wheel-drive system.

Fiat Chrysler's third-quarter operating profit exceeds expectations

MILAN — Fiat Chrysler on Thursday posted higher than expected operating earnings in the third quarter, lifted by record profitability in North America, as the carmaker heads to a merger with French rival PSA. The strong results led Fiat Chrysler (FCA) to reiterate its full-year guidance of adjusted earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) over 6.7 billion euros ($7.5 billion). It also expects a further improvement of its financial performance in 2020. FCA and PSA said earlier on Thursday they planned to join forces through a 50-50 share swap to create the worldÂ’s fourth-largest automaker, triggering a new wave of consolidation in the car industry. Earnings/Financials Chrysler Fiat

Hybrid and Electric Jeeps, Fiats, and Alfa Romeos to be built in Poland

WARSAW - Fiat Chrysler will invest more than $200 million in its plant in Tychy in Poland, where new hybrid and electric Jeep, Fiat and Alfa Romeo models will be built, Deputy Prime Minister Jaroslaw Gowin said on Tuesday. The investment comes as a boost to emerging Europe's largest economy, which is hoping a switch to electric vehicles can help its auto sector catch up with regional rivals including the Czech Republic and Slovakia. "Modern, hybrid and electric cars of the Jeep, Fiat and Alfa Romeo brands will start to leave the factory in Tychy in 2022," Gowin wrote on Twitter. Gowin said there could be further investment in the plant in future but gave no details. Fiat Chrysler, which is planning a $38 billion merger with French rival PSA to create the world's No.4 carmaker, said in a statement that early preparations for the expansion and modernization of the plant started in late 2020. The plant in Poland's industrial southern region of Silesia is one of the company's largest and currently employs around 2,500 people. Fiat Chrysler confirmed that new hybrid and electric Jeep, Fiat and Alfa Romeo models would be built in Tychy. It said the aim was to start mass production of the first of the three new passenger car models for the group's brands in the second half of 2022. Under a 2018-2022 plan, FCA pledged to invest 9 billion euros in electrification as part of investment plans totaling 45 billion euros. (Reporting by Alan Charlish and Agnieszka Barteczko in Warsaw, Silvia Recchimuzzi in Gdansk; editing by Jason Neely and Susan Fenton) Auto News Government/Legal Green Plants/Manufacturing Alfa Romeo Fiat Jeep Green Automakers Electric Future Vehicles Hybrid