Maserati Alfieri sidelined; GranTurismo first

Maserati will fail to introduce its promised six new models by 2018, it has been revealed.

The target of the much-hyped six new cars by 2018 was set in 2014 by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles' boss, Sergio Marchionne, as part of his ambitious five-year plan for the car-making giant.

Out of the six, so far Maserati has delivered three cars -- the facelifted Ghibli and Quatroporte sedans and the large Levante SUV -- but now, according to Autocar, progress has halted.

Next up was supposed to be the firm's first-ever Porsche 911 rival but, according to insiders, the Alfieri due next has been put on ice.

Instead, the Italian car-maker has now chosen to prioritise the development and launch of an all-new replacement for the GranTurismo and GranCabrio.

According to the British magazine, the Alfieri coupe and convertible will now not arrive until "at least 2020".

Earlier this year motoring.com.au revealed that the fate of the Italian 911 rival was uncertain following the refusal of then Maserati boss, Harald Wester, to confirm the Alfieri's launch date. Wester was also reluctant to be drawn into discussion over Marchionne's ambitious 2018 75,000 sales target for Maserati.

Originally revealed at the 2014 Geneva motor show, the two-seat Alfieri was initially scheduled to arrive in 2016. Now, the 911 rival will be leapfrogged by the GranTurismo that will arrive some time in 2018, followed shortly after by the GranCabrio in 2019.

Confirming the switching of both models, Maserati Europe's boss Giulio Pastore told Autocar: "We won't forget that Maserati is well known in its history for beautiful 2+2 GT cars and we will replace them [GranTurismo and GranCabrio] and then the Alfieri."

Potentially delaying the Alfieri even further, according to Pastore, is a failure within Maserati to decide the platform and even the final styling of the coupe.

Design sign-off, alone, is now expected to take until 2018, says Pastore.

Once green-lit, takeing the project from concept to production could be as quick as 22 months, says Maserati's exterior design chief Giovanni Ribotta -- mirroring the time it took for the car-maker to rush the Levante SUV to market.

Despite not having reached production, Ribotta told Autocar the Alfieri Geneva concept had been hugely influential for the car-maker.

“The Alfieri has been very important for Maserati,” he said.

“The grille and much of the shape and details have influenced the Ghibli and the Levante.”

Ribotta also went on to confirm that Maserati would not base a smaller SUV on the forthcoming Alfa Romeo Stelvio SUV.

Instead, the Italian car-maker will concentrate on its existing line-up of vehicles that will soon, potentially, include a Levante powered by the Ferrari-derived 375kW/600Nm twin-turbo 2.9-litre petrol V6 from the Alfa Romeo Giulia QV.