A PLAN TO TIE the ailing Fiat brand to its upmarket subsidiary Maserati is reportedly underway, as local importer Ateco Automotive scrambles to make the marque viable in Australia.
With Fiat’s Punto, Ritmo and 500 failing to gain traction in the Australian market, Ateco is apparently investigating cutting back part of Fiat’s dealer network and piggybacking the brand off Maserati.
The strategy would reduce costs associated with selling and maintaining the brand in Australia. Ateco’s Governing Director Neville Crichton reportedly believes it would generate a substantial synergy between Fiat and Maserati.
It is not without risk of course. Re-positioning Fiat as a more aspirational brand by selling it alongside the significantly upmarket Maserati range may not attract buyers who would not otherwise walk into a Fiat dealership.
And, with Maserati’s sales to August of this year down to 84 cars (compared to 162 cars the year before), showroom traffic may not be enough to get a meaningful turnaround of fortune for Fiat.
Ateco loses money on most Fiat vehicles that it imports, and is currently discussing with Fiat headquarters how to solve the brand’s profitability problem in Australia.
A Fiat/Maserati tie-up is just one option on the table. A decision on where to take Fiat in Australia is expected to be made by the end of this year.
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Maybe Ateco Automotive should stop & have a good think about jut how small the Australian market is….No doubt some of the new Fiat cars are good cars, but they’re quite expensive when compared to similar Japanese & Korean cars. Most buyers of cars this size are just after cheap reliable transport from A-B, therefore they’ll more than likely buy the cheaper ( and usually better quality) Japanese cars.
Australia just doesn’t have a big enough population for them to grab a decent slice of the market without them selling their cars much much cheaper.
Good luck, i think it will be a sales flop.
they are better off establishing the high performance models “abarth” and that will create a better image for the rest of the cars.
selling cars along side maserati wont make them anymore money. i think in the end it will another failed attempt by Fiat as it was decades ago.
The answer to Fiat’s sales lows is bring in more product. A 3-tier product lineup just isn’t going to work (especially as they’re all 3/5-door hatchbacks!) and putting Fiat as a premium brand won’t work as all the memories of the Fiats in the 80’s will come back (and then it certainly wasn’t a premium brand).
Sorry, but bring in more product! Start with the Abarths and the Panda. Stop being imported by the greedy-as Ateco tossers and THEN you might sell some!
Price it like a Yaris (inc. servicing and parts) and see those sales number soar … more presence on the roads, more brand recognition…
Rinse, repeat … why is it so hard to price a Euro hatch in Australia like Japanese/Korean hatches?
what a joke, fiat is rubbish anyways so there is no chance that anyone will pay more for the same unreliable crap, i’ve never considered one anyways and since neither has the majority of the population, this french brand will move no closer to better sales than if they did nothing at all.
“this french brand will move no closer to better sales than if they did nothing at all.” As far as I know FIAT is Italian, not French……
It could work if they do it right.
Keep the existing 500 range as it is, it will generate showroom traffic for the larger, more expensive models. Keep the petrol and diesel sport versions of the Punto (offer a 5dr version as well). Petrol and diesel sport versions of the Ritmo would also be retained.
Then release Abarth versions of the 500, Punto and Ritmo. Sponsor a one make racing series (either at the Australian Grand Prix or during the regular production car series) using the Abarth versions for publicity.
Finally, release the Panda in the sports version for $20, 000.
It might work then…
Atteco need to concetrate on the brand FIAT & consider ABARTH models bring more of a line up such as panda & be more competive with there pricing of cars & parts & more important of all their service because it all continues from there if they want to have repeat sales.
- “this french brand will move no closer to better sales than if they did nothing at all.” As far as I know FIAT is Italian, not French……
well matt, you got me there, but i’ll say this…it doesn’t change my point and since you’re pretty good at typing fiat in uppercase, i’d guess you’re a lot closer to the brand than 99.9% of the country, hence you’re biased feelings… good for you, fiat needs you.
FIAT NO NEED TO REPOSITION, Ateco Automotive need to put 110% in the brand FIAT. Starting from the showroom down to their service without this you cant go forward.Passion is the key word to success & what i have exprienced out there it is lacking, this unfortunately plays a big role in FIAT going forward in australia.What i have seen is there is not enough advertising people out there dont even know FIAT, what FIAT is or even if it is sold in oz the line up of new models is to small,new models should be released as soon as FIAT releases them pricing should be competitive + parts & road service should all be A1 with only these qualities you will succeed Ateco Automotive if you would like to contact me i have more to say.
This is all wrong on many fronts.
Backup -
Firstly, if Fiat Group are serious about Australia they would set up shop here directly and piss off ATECO who are frankly hopeless, they have to many brands and not doing any of them justice.
FIAT Group should NOT be involved with a Citroen and now GreatWall importer.
I believe this will happen regardless, because Chrysler is here on its own accord and no point doubling everything up, one will have to go, my beat it will be ATECO….hooray!
For mine, FIAT in Australia is currently being run by amatures..
Sales/Marketing-
Fiat, AlfaRomeo, Lancia, FiatProfessional [commercials] and Chrysler/Dodoge/Jeep should all be sold out of ONE mega dealership supporting 100% them 7 brands and no other.
In Melb they could perhaps have 5 mega-dealers N/S/E/W with ALL them brands being sold and get rid of all the other single dealerships dead-wood that are here now.
It might have to go the Ducati way due to the huge investment required and have these dealerships as factory owned operations, they need to show this professionalism to the market as VW/AUDI has, it is going down this path and they are perhaps Fiat Groups main competitor
Prices -
They are more expensive to make [have superior quality, engineering and technology] and have to travel further than Asian brands on a ship so of course they can never compete with Asian prices, the prices need to be around the same as VW Groups products, like i said, its the main competitor.
FIAT Cars-
The range is to small, and the models mix are all wrong, FORGET about trying to go upmarket, thats the job of Alfa and Lancia, FIAT need to import the UNO which is Made in S/Africa [= RHD] and that can be sold at around $14k, yes its a old car but its continued to be updated and over 6 million made well proven cheap to own and run.
FIAT is a everymans car in Europe its not a Luxo brand, not now, not ever, its why Fiat has failed EVERY time its tried to sell in Oz, selling cheap cars expensive wont work, the Asians are to well established and trusted.
The ONLY truth is that it CANNOT continue like now, so many brands doing so little, the irony is the BEST performer in the group is Iveco commerials and Agri products!
Something will happen soon, it has to.
Cheers
F-0
PS I like that other posters have passion about our Fiat Group!