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Mondial
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PRESS
RELEASE Antonio
Ferreira de Almeida, Maserati
S.p.A. Press and Communication MASERATI'S
SALES PERFORMANCE The first eight months of this year have clearly shown a positive sales trend for Maserati: some 1493 cars, 1299 of them 3200GTs, were delivered by the end of August, representing an increase of 55% over the same period of 1999. Of these, 48% were equipped with automatic transmission. THE
MASERATI MODELS ON DISPLAY AT MONDIAL DE
LAUTOMOBILE 2000
- Maserati's stand at the Paris Mondial de lAutomobile includes three 3200 GTs, two manual, one automatic. Their colours are Blu Nettuno, Quarzo Dolomite and a new colour, Rosso Mondiale, the same colour worn by the 250F with which Juan Manuel Fangio won the Formula 1 World Championship in 1957. The 3200 GTs are equipped with a turbocharged 90 V8 engine producing 370 bhp (271 kW) and 491 Nm of torque at 4500 rpm, a sophisticated drive-by-wire system operating the throttle valve and overseeing the ASR traction control. Customers are offered a choice of two transmissions: either a manual 6-speed gearbox, or a BTR automatic transmission. Designed
by Giorgetto Giugiaro, the 3200 GT offers comfort and luxury surroundings
besides its prodigious performance, thanks to its high-quality trim and
the unusual degree of spaciousness afforded by its full four-seater
interior. The 3200 GT also scores highly for its interior ergonomics. QUATTROPORTE EVOLUZIONE The car on display, in Blu Nettuno with a beige interior, features a 3.2-litre V8 engine producing 335 bhp and 450 NM of torque at 4400 rpm. The Quattroporte Evoluzione is available in two versions - manual (6-speed manual gearbox) or automatic (4-speed). The Silver 3200 GT which took part in the Canada 10,000 and USA 20,000 expeditions is also on display. The trip eventually took the Silver 3200 GT to Monterey, California, where Maserati was celebrated as Marque of the Year. Many Maserati collectors, with their wonderfully restored cars, met at the Laguna Seca race track and at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Two of the coups on display have been fitted with options from the Officine Alfieri Maserati personalization program. This program was specifically set up to enable customers to personalize their car, enabling them to choose from a selection of colour and trim combinations to best suit their individual tastes and needs. Customers can opt for nonstandard bodywork colours and can even order special paints by supplying a sample of the colour of their choice. The Maserati stand, in fact, includes a 3200GT that has been finished in Rosso Mondiale and features Maserati's racing setup, which includes carbon fibre highlights, new 15 spoke alloy wheel rims and electronically adjustable suspensions. Among the interior trim options are a choice of stitching for the leather trim and the finish of the piping, as well as personalized aluminum sill kick plates. MASERATI IN FRANCE AND ITS MAJOR MARKETS Since 1998 Maserati has been represented in France by the importer Ch. Pozzi S.A. The positive trends over the first months of this year on the French market have continued with 81 cars delivered at the end of August, enabling the 3200 GT the to achieve a 13% share of the French luxury sport coup segment. Of the 3200 GTs sold, 40% were equipped with the automatic gearbox, a figure that confirms the appeal of the exceptional performance provided by the GTA version. Orders indicate an increase in the order of GTAs up to 50% by the end of the year. The most popular colours are Blu Nettuno, Grigio Touring (silver gray) and Grigio Alfieri (anthracite Gary). Maserati's biggest market is Germany, with 370 cars sold in the first 8 months, nearly doubling the 1999 figures, and netting the 3200 GT a 7% share of the luxury sport coup segment. The German market is followed, in order of importance, by the UK (11% share), Italy (17%) and Switzerland (16%). BACK
IN THE USA This
year the Maserati North America company was registered. The
team working on the return to the U.S. market will finish its organization
by the end of 2001, by which time new Maseratis will return to American
roads. During
a media meeting held in Monterey, Stuart Robinson, President of Maserati
North America, announced the objective to sell more than 40% of Maserati's
production in the USA, which is expected to reach 9,000 cars annually over
the next five years, compared to today's output of 2000 units. THE ADVENTURE GOES ON. . . After the Canada 10,000 expedition, which took two 3200 GTs to the northern point of the American continent, the pair headed to Monterey, California, and are now about to start a Road Show through France, travelling from Paris to Monte Carlo, passing through Lyon, Nantes, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Marseille and Cannes. At the end of this new adventure the two cars will have been driven more than 25,000 kilometres, and will continue to make further trips with journalists on the wheel. The
"Silver" and "Blue" Maserati, as they have been named
during the Canada 10,000 expedition, are the protagonists of this raid
which continues through Europe after so many kilometres in Canada (2000 of
which were on gravel roads, incidentally) and California.
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