2007 Maserati Quattroporte on 2040-cars

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Maserati Levante production starting next year, Alfieri could come within 28 months

Maserati is on a roll. The new Ghibli and Quattroporte have been huge successes, and it unveiled the gorgeous Alfieri concept (pictured above) at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show. The next step for the brand is getting the Levante crossover into production.
"We are getting Mirafiori ready for production [of the Levante]. The first bodies are expected for 2015," said Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne to Reuters in Geneva. He also said that there isn't much keeping the Alfieri off the streets. "The platforms and motors are there. Technically, production could start in 24-28 months," he said. However, Marchionne refused to say whether the company would actually give the concept a green light to be built.
Fiat hopes to be profitable again by 2016, and while its acquisition of Chrysler is certainly going to help, rejuvenating Alfa Romeo and Maserati are also a major part of the plan. In 2013, the Italian luxury brand saw sales more than double to 15,400 vehicles. Maser is still far away from its goal of selling 50,000 units by 2015, but it's quite a start. Fiat bought Maserati in 1993, but business went through a decade or more of doldrums and falling sales. It appears that the century-old brand is finally finding a path forward with some gorgeous new cars.

Maserati teases us with its MC20 testing in the snow

It may be feeling spring-like here in parts of the United States, but there was still plenty of snowpack in Livigno, Italy, when Maserati took its forthcoming MC20 supercar out for a photo session during some cold-weather testing at Ghiacciodromo Livigno.  "During its cold-weather mission, the super sports car was tested to evaluate engine cold starting, the low-temperature performance of its elastic components and the car’s handling on cold and low-grip asphalt surfaces," said the accompanying release. "The test is also performed to verify correct functioning of the Climate Control System in cold conditions; tests were also conducted on the battery, suspensions and brakes." Just reading that, you'd think their trip was all business. Indeed, this is the latest stop on the MC20's worldwide durability testing tour, but from the playful scenes we see here, it's pretty obvious that the engineers had their share of fun giving the MC20's suspension and powertrain a workout in the low-grip environment.  2022 Maserati MC20 winter testing View 5 Photos The MC20 is a mid-engined, 621-horsepower, mid-engine super-coupe that was built with the race track in mind. Power comes from a new V6 that is the first in the company's new "Nettuno" (Neptune) engine series. The twin-turbocharged mill produces 210 horsepower/liter, making it one of the most power-dense engines in the world. It was designed, developed, and produced in-house by Maserati's engineers despite sharing some of its fundamental design with other performance engines in its corporate family.  Maserati has only unveiled the street-legal variant of the MC20 seen here so far, but we expect it won't be long before we hear more about its competition aspirations. 

Car designer Frank Stephenson wants to show you something ... smaller

Influential car designer Frank Stephenson has often thought small. Now he’s thinking smaller. Throughout the past three decades, he has shaped — literally — some of the most indelible designs in automotive history: the modern Mini, the Ferrari FXX track star, the Maserati Gran Sport, a range of stunning McLarens and down to the funky 21st-century version of the Fiat 500. Now heÂ’s turned his pen to fashioning watches. His Cosmos analog piece, made to mirror “a black hole in space” and detailed “with an orange pinstripe which simulates the supernova glow of a neutron star,” features a Japan-built quartz movement and was created in concert with the Time Concepts company. “ItÂ’s the age-old adage ‘car people are watch people,Â’ so it was a natural step for me to get creative with timepieces too,” Stephenson said in a statement. “The collection showcases the love I have for exceptional and emotionally charged design, just like what is required in designing world class cars.” While Stephenson, who is 64, may be best known publicly for his vision of “affordable style” with the Mini and the Fiat, his ethos also translated to the utilitarian. In the case of BMW in the mid-1990s, the company was hustling to market an SUV, and turned to him for inspiration. His team had six months to complete the project. The result was the high-end X5, which Stephenson sketched during a two-hour flight. In 2018, Stephenson established the independent design company, Frank Stephenson Design, based in London. Related video: Design/Style BMW Ferrari Fiat Maserati McLaren MINI Gadgets watch frank stephenson