Howard Dalziel is quick to admit that the last time Maserati was in the fleet space was eight years ago, with the Ghibli diesel. He says: “When we introduced Ghibli in 2014, it had a good place in the fleet environment, with comparable C02 to a contemporary diesel BMW 5 Series, or Mercedes E-Class at the time. So, yes, that was a great starting point and a completely different market for Maserati.
“I joined shortly after, when the car was not quite as strong in terms of the Benefit in Kind liabilities, so it became less relevant as we moved through 2017-18. Unfortunately, the perception of Ghibli suffered too. It’s still the same shape now, but a very, very different – better specified car.
“What we’ve really worked hard to do, not just with Ghibli but other models as well, is to understand what the car represents. When it was originally out there it was just called Ghibli, and it may have had £10-15,000 of options on it. As far as the industry is concerned, that was the Ghibli and they valued it as such. So, we’ve spent a lot of time introducing trim derivatives, talking to the leasing community especially, and the data providers, and really engaging them in the process to improve our perception and to improve our forecast residuals.
“So that’s what happened, and clearly, we’re moving into a completely new space with the inevitable pursuit of electrification. We’re getting the Grecale Folgore SUV next year (Folgore meaning lightning in Italian). We’re going to get that to market promptly, to take massive advantage of current Benefit in Kind (BiK) legislation, and I think there will be no stopping us to be honest.
“Grecale which is coming in the next few weeks is going to be hugely successful in the retail environment, it is slightly less relevant in the corporate space – simply because of its CO2 level. These are global cars, not cars designed to take advantage of UK company car tax legislation. There will be scope, there will be opportunities, there are fleets out there, limited liability partnerships and so forth. Plus, other corporate organisations that have car policies that don’t involve BiK tax, where we will be and already are enormously successful.
“The next car will be the GranTurismo coupe, which we get next summer and will too have its own Folgore EV version. In fact, it will be our first fully electric car ever. It will be a phenomenon, it’s hard to keep to ourselves, but in terms of technology that’s in the car, it’s going to be something else in terms of performance and its positioning in the market, as a luxury four-seater.
“It will never be an aspiration of the brand to be a volume manufacturer, but there is certainly massive scope for growth, and it’s recognised firmly in Italy that the UK market, in terms of electric, has the potential to grow very, very significantly. We’ve registered so far this year, 602 cars. So, there hasn’t been the pursuit of volume that we saw in 2017-2018 particularly around Ghibli; we are not forcing cars into the market, we are making less cars than the market needs. But of course, in only doing circa 600 cars, the growth potential for the UK market is massive given the profitability of the brand now, and given the profitability of the dealer network, and the expanding dealer network as well – that can only mean good things ahead.”
It is still early days, but Dalziel has always been talking to what he perceives as the right organisations. He explains: “I came into Maserati from the contract hire and leasing industry – from the biggest player in that, so I’ve kept my ties there and across other fleet and leasing businesses. We’ve always been talking to them, we’ve always been doing what we can with them and in some respects, that’s meant engaging very successfully with some funding intermediaries, brokers, which has been good for us in terms of their routes to market. But again, its been discreet in volume – we’re talking to all the major players in the leasing environment. We’re talking to Octopus Energy too, in terms of their growth plans, and in terms of when we will have electric vehicles – where the potential is – we’re engaging with them early.
“We’re making sure the free servicing offers, that are included in the pricing of all Maserati models now, remove that perceived doubt and uncertainty of ownership. So, it’s about early engagement, and getting ourselves ready for what’s to come.
“Within a year we’re expecting Grecale Folgore, we’ve seen it, we know it exists, we’ve seen the drivetrain, but we’re waiting for specific detail about range and the all-important power and so forth.
“In terms of cost, we look at what other manufacturers are managing to achieve, and there’s no reason why Maserati can’t do the same. What’s great for us, we’re the foremost luxury, exclusive brand of the Stellantis Group. That gives us certainty, that gives us much more confidence and gives us access to a much bigger level of resource and technology than has historically been the case. So, again another positive.
Dalziel believes the Grecale Folgore EV will be a tremendous success in the UK, with its GranTurismo sibling arriving even sooner, but there are plenty of Maserati EV models to come after that as it looks to have an electric version of every model by 2025. “Other products will follow in terms of an electrified Quattroporte, which will probably replace the current car and the Ghibli, and a new Levante will be based on an electric platform when it comes. But clearly that’s some way ahead.
“The place Maserati has in the supercar world is being made the most of, as is the fact that we now have an accessible car that goes head-to-head with the Porsche Macan. We believe our car is best-in-class. Think of a Maserati in terms of looks and performance, then build in everyday practicality – the Grecale is a Maserati that you can use as a family car, as a prospect to be driven every day.
“Grecale is designed with a new client in mind – more family-orientated, for people who love tech, whilst still serving our traditional customers. When you see it, you see the inside of it, then you’ll understand how this will come to pass.
“We’ve always had a perception problem in the UK, in terms of thinking the cars are more expensive than they are. This goes right back to Ghibli. When I joined, Ghibli was less than £50,000 – but it looked more than a £50,000 car. Grecale will come in at around £58,000, so right on Porsche Macan money, and from a monthly payment perspective, because our residual values are so strong, because of the work we’ve done with CAP and others, then in terms of the monthly amount, it will be very competitive, you can be sure of that.
“We’re a small team, so when I get a Grecale, it will be my job to get it around the leasing industry. It will be down to us as individuals to promote it, and the free servicing offer that I’ve already mentioned. All the Grecale range, most of the Ghibli and Levante range, have a servicing pack built into the list price. So that won’t be obvious to customers when they walk into a dealership and are having a conversation with our sales team. It is all about making the brand more approachable, welcoming people into the dealerships and viewing Maserati as a realistic ownership experience.
“We won’t discount, we don’t need to – that’s a thing of the past. Grecale will stand on
its own two feet – in terms of being a best-in-class proposition.”
Dalziel tells me they’ve sought out whatever opportunities that they can find. He says: “I guess it goes back to concentrating on the main things that will make the most difference to us. Those relationships that we built, clearly, we have a captive funder in the form of Leasys, but those that we built elsewhere – either through a funding broker, or directly with the larger leasing companies, then we will maintain them.
“Where’s my first area of focus when I get the keys to a Grecale? I think I will be concentrating on the top fleet and leasing businesses in readiness for the Folgore EV. It is staggering when you talk to these organisations about their order books, the percentage of electric vehicles on order, and in the case of Octopus Energy, the fact that they are concentrating exclusively on electric vehicles – and nothing else.
“These are where our growth opportunities lie. We probably haven’t got the resource and infrastructure to talk to each and every one of them – but we will maintain as many relationships as we can – with as many as we can.”
