The Maserati tradition of naming its car models after the most famous winds in the world started 60 years ago, in 1963, with the legendary Mistral. The Mistral was followed by the Ghibli in 1967, with the Bora making its appearance in 1971, and the Khamsin following three years later.
In 2016 the Levante, the first SUV from Maserati, joined the range. The wind that bears its name blows across the Mediterranean and can change from benign calm to gale force in an instant. The Maserati SUV, according to the Italian manufacturer, has a similar nature.
The Levante has now been joined by its smaller SUV sibling, the Grecale, named after a Mediterranean wind that can occur when a low-pressure area moves through the area to the south of the island of Malta. Grecale can also be translated as Greek wind, as the wind starts at the Ionian Island Zakynthos.
The Levante, and now the Grecale, has put Maserati back on the road to prosperity and profitability. The luxury car company, founded in 1914 by the Maserati brothers, was but a gust of wind in the automotive world a few short decades ago, teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. It is now blowing a gale, and is a force to be reckoned with.
Under the Stellantis umbrella, Maserati posted good financial figures last year, nearly doubling its net profit even though production did not increase much, with just 1,700 more vehicles sold in 2022 compared to 2021. The trend continues this year, as Maserati has doubled deliveries in the first quarter of this year compared to 2022, with 8,400 vehicles delivered versus 4,300 last year.
This trend also confirms that Stellantis is looking for profitability rather than volumes. Also, Maserati is certainly not improving profitability with the Quattroporte and Ghibli models; it is sales of the new Grecale and MC20 models that are now making the company much more profitable.
Report by FERDI DE VOS | Images © MASERATI
