While the luxury brand has a set of hybrids and electric vehicles set to release by 2022, Gardner believes that the brand needs to return to their roots. So instead of pushing for electrification, they're going to look toward gas engines for the future.
"This is a brand that needs combustion engines. It needs that raw emotion."
This is an interesting turn in what is arguably the worst that Maserati has ever performed. The first quarter of 2019 has been a rough one for the brand, showing a 41 percent drop in shipments, a 21 percent drop in sales, and a net revenue decline of 38 percent in the last three months. In simple words: they're doing terribly.
Gardner doesn't think it's a problem with the products, however. He believes the issue lies with awareness. The 2016 Levante SUV only had a 22 percent awareness, with the competition as high as 66 percent. We aren't sure how they calculate that kind of information, but it makes sense that people aren't interested in cars that they haven't heard of.
Being adamantly against full electrification seems more like a death warrant than a marketing plan. The world is slowly becoming more interested in electric vehicles. Some US states are even requiring them in the near-ish future. It seems like a weird decision to make when on their emergency legs.
