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Fiat set to invest $12B on new models, stop Euro losses in 3 years

Naturally, you'd expect a massive automaker like Fiat to have an in-depth plan to exit the current European-market doldrums, and you'd expect that plan to include plenty of new vehicles to attract those precious buyers that still remain despite the financial downturn. And you'd be right, though Fiat does seem to have a few unexpected twists up its corporate sleeve.
Perhaps the biggest shocker is a report that Fiat will completely drop the Punto, a car with mass-market appeal aimed at small-car buyers cross-shopping the popular Volkswagen Polo. Its replacement will be a five-door Fiat 500 aimed at upmarket buyers (sounds awfully similar to the 500L) that will be built in Poland. Lower-end customers will reportedly be served by variants of the Fiat Panda.
Borrowing a page from the BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen playbook, reports Automotive News, Fiat is said to have plans to reignite production at its Italian factories by retooling them to build high-end vehicles from Maserati and Alfa Romeo. These will be marketed as premium products, built by skilled Italian workers (who are paid wages that are 75-percent higher than those building Fiats in Poland), and will be sold around the world.

Share price falls on skepticism of Chrysler-Fiat five-year plan

Following this week's Fiat Chrysler extravaganza, where the Italian-American manufacturer announced its plans for the next five years, the Autoblog staff was cautiously optimistic of the company's future. Investors? Not so much.
Fiat saw its shares tumble 12 percent in Wednesday's trading, falling from 8.67 euros ($12.06 at today's rates) to 7.44 euros ($10.35) as of this writing, with blame partly going to the Italian half of the FCA marriage, which recorded a pretty significant drop in profits during the first quarter of this year.
The plan, which will cost around $77 billion over the next several years, is facing criticism from investors thanks in part to a 1.4-percent drop in Fiat's first-quarter profits, to 622 million euros ($862 million). That figure is also short of Bloomberg analysts' projections, which predicted $1.18 billion in profits before taxes, interest and one-time items.

Maserati updates Quattroporte, Ghibli for 2015 at LA Auto Show

Maserati won't be showcasing any all-new products at the Los Angeles Auto Show this year, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have anything to celebrate. It is, after all, the marque's centenary this year, and in 2014 has achieved the best sales it's ever racked up in the US market.
The most noteworthy Trident model to be displayed in LA next week will be the revised Quattroporte, the S Q4 and GTS trims of which are treated to some enhancements for the 2015 model year. The top-spec Quattroporte GTS in particular "benefits from a sportier and aggressive appearance," highlighted by color-matched lower bodywork, an updated emblem, red accents on the wheels and upgraded equipment inside, including red leather upholstery, contrast stitching, piano black trim and integrated wifi.
For 2015, the smaller Ghibli sedan also gets standard navigation and Bluetooth connectivity, as well as a new finish for the brake calipers. Maserati will also showcase the GranTurismo MC Centennial Editions, as well as the Alfieri concept originally unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show (new images of which we've included below). Finally, the Petersen Automotive Museum is also collaborating with the Italian automaker to display an array of historic Maseratis in the West Hall lobby of the Los Angeles Convention Center.