Dong Che Hui

2026-11-09 22:56

The long-rumored tripartite cooperation between Maserati, Huawei and JAC has finally made substantial progress.

According to China Business News, the cooperation project between Maserati and Zunjie has been officially named "Maserati Design". The exterior design of the new car has been frozen, and it is planned to enter the mass production stage in the fourth quarter of 2027.

In this cross-border cooperation, Stellantis Group, Huawei and JAC Motors have a clear division of labor.

Since Maserati does not have independent passenger car production qualifications in China, the new car will be manufactured by the Zunjie Super Factory in Hefei, Anhui. Huawei provides the Hongmeng cockpit, Qiankun ADS high-end smart driving and three-electric system, while Maserati leads the styling design and exports to overseas sales networks.

The model planning has also been finalized. Future Car Daily reported in September that the project initially planned two vehicles: a medium and large pure electric SUV, and a large pure electric GT.

▲ Rendering from Weibo @SugarDesign

Among them, the pure electric SUV is intended to expand the market with the existing Grecale Folgore, while the large pure electric GT is responsible for continuing the sports car genes of the GranTurismo series. In order to stabilize the brand's sporty tone, Maserati currently prefers to have the large pure electric GT be launched first.

In terms of channels and bidding, new cars will adopt two sets of plans at home and abroad.

In the domestic market, the new car will be classified under the Zunjie brand and enter Hongmeng Intelligent Travel channels, where it will be sold as an ultra-luxury series. In overseas markets, it will carry the Maserati Trident logo and be sold through its original global dealer network.

Although Maserati has a limited domestic presence, it still has considerable say in overseas channels. Currently, the Middle East, Italy, France and Germany have been listed as the first key markets.

In order to balance manufacturing costs and brand recognition among European users, the three parties chose a compromise transnational assembly solution in the production process:

After the unpainted body-in-white and Sanden chassis roll off the production line at Hefei Zunjie Factory, they will be shipped to Italy in the form of semi-knocked-down parts. Subsequent processes such as paint spraying and interior assembly will be completed by Maserati's factories in Modena or Cassino.

In this way, it can not only control costs with the help of China's mature supply chain, but also help Stellantis Group revitalize idle production capacity in Italy, while maintaining the "local manufacturing" status valued by European users.

The direct reason why Stellantis Group is willing to make concessions on manufacturing and technology is Maserati's extremely poor financial performance.

For the whole of 2025, Maserati's global sales were less than 8,000 vehicles, a drop of more than 80% from the high point in 2017, setting the lowest record in more than a decade.

The collapse in sales was directly transmitted to the financial report. For the whole of last year, Maserati's adjusted operating loss amounted to 198 million euros, and its operating profit margin fell to -27.3% - equivalent to a loss of 27.3 euros for every 100 euros of revenue.

Currently, the Stellantis Group reserves the vast majority of its R&D budget to mainstream brands with high volume. Maserati is simply unable to raise tens of billions of funds to develop pure electric platforms and smart cockpits from scratch.

In June this year, Stellantis Group CEO Antonio Filosa publicly stated that the group would not sell Maserati, but it must find an industrial partner for it.

Introducing Huawei and JAC through joint investment and joint development has become the cheapest and fastest way for Maserati to make up for its shortcomings in electrification. Huawei and JAC, which have already established a foothold in the million-level market with the Zunjie S800, can also take advantage of Maserati's overseas channels to bring smart driving and three-electric technology to the global market.

At the same time that Maserati was finalizing Huawei's plan, another rumor about the acquisition of Maserati by a Chinese car company was denied by relevant executives.

On November 8, at the U9 Xtreme top speed record celebration held in Abu Dhabi, BYD Executive Vice President Li Ke responded positively to the acquisition rumors.

Just two days before the event, U9 Xtreme ran a top speed of 503.17km/h in Abu Dhabi, breaking the record of 496.22km/h it set last year. With this achievement, this car has received dual certifications from the FIA ​​and Guinness World Records, becoming the world's first mass-produced model to break through 500km/h.

As early as May last year, there were rumors that BYD was interested in acquiring Maserati. But in fact, the real purpose of BYD's contact with Stellantis at that time was to evaluate the acquisition of the latter's idle factories, not to buy the Maserati brand.

Faced with the media's questioning this time, Li Ke said bluntly: A few years ago, BYD might have been interested in this type of cross-border acquisition, but now it has gone its own way. What's more, the fastest car in the world is now made by BYD. In her opinion, relying on own technology to build a high-end brand is more convenient and can maximize the value of technology.

Zunjie and Yangwang, these two self-owned million-level luxury brands that have attracted much attention, exactly represent the two strategies of Chinese car companies to attack the ultra-luxury market.

Huawei and JAC chose to stand behind the scenes and serve as underlying technology suppliers and OEMs. They exported three-electronics and intelligent technologies and went global with the shells of old European luxury cars. BYD gave up the idea of ​​acquiring overseas car brands and established its own high-end label by developing its own three-electronics and breaking top speed records time and time again.

No matter which path they take, the era of Chinese car companies going overseas to buy brands to show off their products is over.

Li Hua

car editor

Anyone with wheels is interested and welcome to communicate. Email: [email protected]

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