Crashed 87%, Down 540,000! The Ultra-Luxury Car That Once Required a Premium to Purchase Can't Sell in China Anymore?

(Source: Chief Business Think Tank)

Author | Zeng Youwei

No one expected that the “Queen of Sports Cars,” once only available through price hikes, would now be “losing money to attract customers” in the Chinese market.

When mentioning traditional ultra-luxury car brands, many who have experienced China’s golden era of fuel vehicles will immediately name these: Porsche, Ferrari, Maserati.

At one point, these three brands were the top-tier ultra-luxury “Three Musketeers” above BBA. However, with the rise of domestic cars, their sales in China have already dimmed significantly.

Among them, Maserati, once a super-luxury brand that Chinese owners had to pay extra to buy, saw its monthly sales in China drop below a hundred units last year.

Latest sales data shows that Maserati’s gap within the “Three Musketeers” is widening. In 2025, Maserati sold only 11,127 cars.

Compared to its global sales of about 49,000 units in 2017, this is a decline of over 70%.

Looking vertically, Porsche sold 279,000 units in 2025. In comparison, Maserati’s global sales may not even match the sales of a single Porsche 911 model in the U.S.

Moreover, the 11,127 units are based on Maserati’s global sales in 2025, achieved despite some models in China undergoing “deep discounting.”

Even with discounts of hundreds of thousands, its global sales hit a new low in recent years. A century-old luxury brand that a few years ago Chinese owners had to pay extra to buy is now in such a state?

Luxury car giants in China face a massive discount of 540,000 yuan

Now, the “firefighters” are here

How serious is Maserati’s recent performance pressure?

As early as 2024, the then-CEO of Stellantis, Maserati’s parent company, publicly stated that the group could no longer afford unprofitable brands, and would intensify efforts to cut underperforming ones.

Following this, market speculation arose that Maserati might be sold by Stellantis.

Although this rumor was later officially denied by the parent company, stating that the group’s only ultra-luxury brand would not be sold, the rumors indicate that Maserati was under significant performance pressure at the time.

In recent years, China has been a major pressure point for Maserati. The brand has frequently changed leadership in China over the past few years.

In May 2023, Lang Boqing was appointed General Manager of Greater China, but by September 2024, Maserati announced another leadership change.

At that time, monthly sales in China had fallen to just 38 units, an 87% drop compared to the same period in 2023. In the first eight months of 2024, Maserati sold only 840 cars in China.

Such leadership changes can be seen as measures to respond to performance pressures, but unexpectedly, less than half a year after the new GM took office, another leadership change occurred.

In March 2025, Julie, a woman with over 20 years of industry experience and a background in luxury car companies, temporarily took over as China General Manager.

The effect was quick: in the first nine months of 2025, Maserati’s imported cars in China totaled 1,023 units, only a 3% decline from the same period in 2024.

After the New Year, Maserati made a “big move” in China: recently, Maserati announced that Julie would become the head of the company’s Asia-Pacific region.

Previously, Maserati’s regional operations were managed separately, but this appointment indicates a move toward unified management across the entire Asia-Pacific region.

This comprehensive takeover also reveals Maserati’s anxiety over the ongoing market downturn.

While Julie stabilized sales in China last year, facing the surge of domestic electric vehicles and the challenge to traditional luxury brands, leading this century-old ultra-luxury brand to break through remains an unprecedented challenge for her.

Maserati’s 350,000 yuan models

To buy or not to buy?

In November 2025, Maserati made a groundbreaking decision that made many Chinese owners realize that the once-unattainable ultra-luxury cars are now getting closer.

At that time, many Maserati stores in China posted promotional posters online.

The pure electric SUV Grecale Folgore, with a guide price of 898,800 yuan, was discounted to as low as 358,800 yuan, a reduction of 540,000 yuan from the original price.

In mid-2025, this model’s price was still 388,000 yuan, but just a few months later, the price was further cut.

The 358,800 yuan price tag surprised many netizens: “A once-in-a-lifetime sighting! Who would have thought I’d see a Maserati at 350,000 yuan in my lifetime?”

When this model was first released, it attracted many Maserati enthusiasts in China. Without discounts, the final price was around 860,000 yuan.

Who would have thought that a few years later, the price would be cut in half?

Such a drastic discount shocked many longtime owners, as a century-old ultra-luxury brand’s terminal price became so fragile.

While old owners were stunned, this “deep discount” to clear inventory also highlights a critical issue: the lag in electric transformation.

As more people in China buy electric vehicles, Maserati’s new energy cars in China remain limited to only the Grecale.

In terms of official pricing and performance, the Grecale offers little advantage over domestic comparable models in the same price range. Its range is only about 500 km, yet it is priced over 800,000 yuan.

Additionally, Maserati’s product updates are slow. Compared to the rapid iteration of new energy vehicles in China, Maserati’s models seem to have “remained unchanged for a decade.”

In the past, Maserati’s lineup included flagship models like Quattroporte, Ghibli, Levante, etc.

But after starting the transition, the Quattroporte and Ghibli were discontinued in 2023, and Levante was also phased out. No new main models appeared in time.

Currently, Maserati only has nine models on sale. The new generation Levante may not be launched until 2027, and the new Quattroporte until 2028.

In a market where domestic new energy vehicles are changing every half year, how many owners are willing to pay for such “slow craftsmanship”?

Net loss of €22.3 billion in one year

The big boss behind Maserati is also struggling

While Maserati faces market pressure, its parent company’s situation is also deteriorating. This “mother-subsidiary” relationship, where fortunes rise and fall together, has impacted Maserati’s development.

Stellantis, founded in 2021, is a young automotive giant formed by a consortium of over a dozen brands. It has attracted industry attention from its inception.

In 2023, Stellantis posted a net profit of €18.6 billion, making it the most profitable car group in Europe.

Since its founding, Stellantis has maintained a global sales volume ranking around fourth place.

However, by 2024, internal conflicts within Stellantis began to surface, and during this period, Maserati’s performance in China continued to suffer.

Earlier this year, Stellantis announced shocking results: a net loss of €22.3 billion in 2025, the first loss in the company’s history.

In this context, Stellantis’ new CEO reversed the previous strategy of blindly betting on pure electric vehicles, halting hydrogen fuel cell R&D.

While shrinking its electric vehicle projects, Stellantis also restarted several combustion engine programs. This shift away from pure electric projects may have affected Maserati’s strategic planning.

Stellantis now has fewer chances for trial and error. Its free cash flow forecast has shifted from a negative €5 billion in 2024 to a negative €10 billion in 2025.

With almost zeroing out many electric projects and posting such a huge annual loss, how Stellantis can support Maserati to break through the market remains uncertain.

The former CEO of Stellantis even predicted that the company, only five years old, might face a split due to internal shareholder conflicts.

During the split, some brands under Stellantis could be acquired by Chinese automakers.

In this challenging environment, whether Maserati can turn the tide with new models, and whether Julie can succeed in “firefighting” and lead Maserati to a comeback in China, remains to be seen.

Final thoughts

Maserati’s performance pressure in China is not an isolated case but a reflection of the broader imported luxury car industry’s difficulties.

In recent years, domestic new energy luxury cars have continuously challenged traditional luxury brands. In response, giants like BBA have accelerated localization and pushed forward electrification and intelligentization.

Now, with Julie becoming the head of Maserati’s Asia-Pacific region, it marks an important move in the ongoing transformation of imported traditional luxury cars.

As 2027 and 2028 approach rapidly, whether Maserati’s new models can create product miracles and help the company regain market share in China remains to be seen!