+++ Mercedes – AMG already has a 12-month queue for the most potent version of its flagship GT sportscar line-up, the GT R Coupe. Customers who ordered a GT R now might expect delivery about 12 months from now. He said high global demand for the GT flagship had stretched the AMG factory to its limits. +++
+++ FERRARI reported a jump in second-quarter profit as the Italian manufacturer sold more of its luxury sports cars and boosted revenue from the engines its sells to Maserati. Net profit for the 3 months to June rose to 136 million euros from 97 million euros in the comparable period of 2016. Revenue advanced 14% to 920 million euros, as the company shipped 2,332 cars in the quarter, a 5% increase on the second quarter of 2016. Ferrari maintained its 2017 financial targets, surprising many analysts who were expecting the company to increase them after a strong first half of 2017. Ferrari is expecting to ship about 8,400 cars in 2017, 4.8% more than in 2016. Adjusted gross operating profit, which strips out one-time items, is seen advancing about 7.9% to at least 950 million euros. Sales of engines to Maserati, the Italian luxury car maker, rose 42% to 101 million euros. Maserati is owned by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, which also owned Ferrari until the beginning of 2016. +++
+++ FIAT CHRYSLER Automobiles (FCA) says factory ‘cultural revolution’ is improving quality. FCA’s head of quality claims the company is in a “far better place” than it was 7 years ago. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles claims its quality reforms are finally beginning to bear fruit. The company has developed a reputation for its most of its brands’ consistent presence among the bottom ranks of quality surveys from firms such as JD Power and Consumer Reports. The company replaced its quality chief in 2014 after federal regulators raised concerns over recall practices. Trouble with the NHTSA escalated in 2015 with 2 fines worth tens of millions of dollars. Further executive replacements and appointments in 2016 named new leaders for both quality and safety, reinforcing distinct chains of command responsible for reducing customer complaints and addressing potentially dangerous engineering defects. “Today we’re in a far better place than where we were seven years ago, when very few people were betting we would make it”, FCA’s current head of quality, Scott Garberding, said at a recent seminar. Aimed at customers that may be more focused on such concerns, the new Chrysler Pacifica was among the first models to pass ‘unprecedented’ quality checks throughout the development process. The redesigned model topped all other minivans in JD Power’s latest Initial Quality Study, though the segment does not have much new competition. Garberding says the shift has required a “cultural revolution” on the factory floor, requiring more communication between management, assembly line workers and customers to quickly identify and resolve any problems early in the production process. With lengthy development cycles for new models, such initiatives could require years of commitment before all FCA’s brands can break above the industry average in future quality surveys. +++
+++ MASERATI is set for electrification from 2019, starting with a plug-in hybrid version of the Levante, and the production version of the Alfieri concept. Sergio Marchionne, CEO for parent company Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), said in a conference call with investors the move is part of the group’s push to have more than half of its range using some form of electric power by 2022. Maserati will shift almost all of its investment in future powertrains to electric once it “completes the development of its next 2 models”. The Italian marque is set to hybridise several of its current models in the coming years, including the Levante, which Marchionne said should offer a plug-in hybrid option from 2019. Sometime around 2020, the company’s first all-new electrified model will be an electric sports car based on the Alfieri concept, which first made its debut in 2014. When asked why the company has only decided to properly invest in electric power now, Marchionne said: “We (FCA) have been reluctant to embrace that avenue until we saw a clearer path forward”. Indeed, Marchionne had even once hoped people would not buy the electrified 500 offered to satisfy emissions regulations in the US, due to the cost the company incurred in producing it. +++
+++ MAZDA posted a 24 percent drop in its first-quarter profit, hurt by a slump in sedan sales in the United States where consumers continue to opt for SUVs and other larger models. Operating profit at Japan’s sixth-largest automaker came in at 39.9 billion yen ($360.24 million) for the April-June quarter, versus 52.4 billion yen a year ago. However, this was higher than an average forecast of 33.76 billion yen from seven analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Sales in China, the world’s top auto market followed by the United States, was a bright spot for Mazda, rising 20 percent to 71,000 units, lifting the automaker’s global sales by 1 percent. Sales in North America, Mazda’s largest market, slipped 6 percent to 106,000 units, with solid sales of its newly launched CX-5 doing little to offset sluggish sales of its Mazda 3 and Mazda 6 models. A slowdown in overall demand in the U.S. auto market, after years of growth following the global financial crisis, is delivering a knock to Mazda and many other global automakers. Mazda reiterated its forecast for a 19 percent rise in operating profit in the year to March, as it expects a pick-up in sales of its larger models. +++
+++ MERCEDES will turn up the wick of its already red-hot A45 AMG 4Matic mega-hatch with a second-generation model that has been dubbed ‘the Predator’ by company insiders. Due on roads in 2019, the new all-wheel-drive five-door will have at least 400 hp and its own unique chassis developments, which could allow it to run in an ultra-low track mode – like the development car pictured in our gallery appears to be doing. The next-gen A45 is sitting with little more than an inch between its sump and the ground. The current car is renowned for its stiff adjustable set-up, so this development car could show that AMG wants even more body composure for track-day driving in its future model. Today’s 4-year-old 381 hp first-generation A45 is capable of 0-100 km/h in 4.2sec, but AMG is planning to ramp up straight-line performance further still. That’s a reflection of the threat from mega-hatch competition, which comes from the recently upgraded Audi RS3, plus the M2 CS being considered by BMW. The A45’s M133 turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol engine has been comprehensively reworked to give the second evolution of the four-cylinder unit the highest specific output of any AMG production car engine. It will have more than 200 hp per litre, trumping the 191 hp per litre of its predecessor. The engine changes will enable the new A45 to outpunch the RS3 (which has 400 hp) and M2 (which outputs 370 hp) in terms of outright power. The updates will also establish the new AMG model as the most powerful series-production hatchback that Mercedes has created so far. The basis for the changes to the M133 unit comes from Mercedes’ new M260 four-cylinder engine. This is derived from the older M270 motor used by today’s A-Class, but has a new crankcase and cylinder head. Initially, the reworked M133 will feature a traditional exhaust gas-driven twinscroll turbocharger. However, AMG is also developing a more advanced variant of its new engine that uses a 48V electrical system and runs both an electric-driven turbocharger and electric motor in a hybrid set-up that promises an even greater ramp-up in performance. AMG is also looking to endow its new hatchback model with an extra 27 Nm; a move that, insiders have told, will provide it with at least 500 Nm and allow it to crack the 4.0 seconds mark for the 0-100 km/h sprint. The changes to the A45’s driveline extend to its gearbox and multi-plate clutch four-wheel-drive system. Both have been extensively redesigned to handle the higher torque loadings of the new model. In line with developments further down the new A-Class line-up, AMG’s new flagship hatchback model is set to adopt a new 9-speed DCT (dual-clutch transmission), together with a faster-reacting four-wheel-drive system that offers greater variability in the drive split between the front and rear wheels, plus a torque vectoring function for added on-the-limit handling delicacy. The new A45 won’t be the only AMG model in the line-up for the new A-Class, which is codenamed W177. AMG has confirmed plans for a second model line to be positioned beneath today’s A45 successor in a move that will challenge the likes of the Volkswagen Golf R and Ford Focus RS. The second performance hatchback model is set to adopt one of AMG’s traditional model designations (insiders talk of the prospect of either the A32 4Matic or A36 4Matic name being used) and it is expected to receive a fettled version of the M260 engine, developing over 300 hp. “We’ve identified a market for a milder AMG model positioned below the A45 4Matic”, AMG boss Tobias Moers told. “The strategy is going to be similar to that seen further up the line-up, where our various ‘43’ models support the ‘63’ models”. The new A45 builds on the developments of the fourth-generation A-Class, which is due in 2018. The model is the first of up to eight new compact cars, which include replacements for today’s B-Class, CLA and CLA Shooting Brake, as well as the GLA. There will also be an A-Class Saloon (and its own 400 hp A45 AMG variant), a GLB and a possible new 7-seat version of the GLB. The new A-Class will be 10mm longer than today’s car and adopt a new floorpan and body structure that are claimed to provide significant increases in rigidity. This, in turn, is claimed to provide the new rival to the Audi A3 and BMW 1 Series with vastly improved refinement. The new A45 will also get a significantly wider front track and receive its own unique wheel carriers in a bid to reduce unsprung mass. It will roll on standard 18 inch wheels, but 19 inch rims will be an option. The A45’s styling takes a whole new direction with the adoption of Mercedes’ so-called ‘predator face’, as revealed on the Concept A Saloon at the recent Shanghai motor show. Insiders at AMG’s Affalterbach headquarters say customer feedback has encouraged them to provide the new model with a more extreme look. The front is dominated by a gaping grille, housing a series of vertically stacked louvres, a deep bumper with large cooling ducts and a prominent splitter element, as well as angular headlights that incorporate new LED graphics and extend back into the front wings. Further back, the new AMG model eschews the heavily structured look of today’s model for a smoother appearance, with largely unadorned flanks. +++
+++ PORSCHE is gearing up for an SUV product offensive with an all-new Cayenne due by the end of the year, while spy shots also reveal that a coupe-styled Cayenne is currently under consideration. However, these brand new spy shots reveal that Porsche’s smaller offering, the Macan, won’t be left out. It’s 3 years old, and is due a facelift. The Macan has become a core part of Porsche’s line-up since launching in 2014, rapidly rising to become the brand’s bestseller. In 2016 Porsche delivered 237,778 cars globally; 95,642 of those were accounted for by the Macan. With 40 per cent of its sales now coming from its smallest SUV, it’s important that Porsche keeps the Macan fresh against newer rivals, such as the Jaguar F-Pace and Alfa Romeo Stelvio. However, the Macan’s impending facelift will be a light one. At the front, new headlights are on the way, while a wider grille is also planned. Porsche is also plotting a makeover for the rear of its smaller SUV. Porsche is likely plotting to introduce a revised rear end with a single LED strip running the width of the tailgate. It’s a design feature introduced on the latest Panamera, and will be rolled out across the brand’s entire portfolio as a new trademark rear lighting signature. +++