German Car Zone

Maserati is going after the premium BMW, Jag and Porsche shopper by announcing today it will be offering certified pre-owned (CPO) vehicles. Combined with a new in-house finance service and the addition of an automatic transmission to the Quattroporte, the Trident Discoveries CPO program should help Maserati expand its customer base.

"We don't want to be an exception," said company spokesman Jeff Ehoodin at a press conference during the Chicago Auto Show. "We are not an exotic."

CPO programs have been a major marketing platform for other luxury brands, especially those trying to lure first-time owners. Last year, BMW sold just over 80,000 CPO vehicles while Mercedes-Benz and Lexus were around the 46,000 mark. Porsche and Land Rover were on the low end with 2006 sales of about 6,000 units each.

Maserati obviously doesn't have a product line that cross-shops with a C-class or 3-series and isn't expecting CPO numbers that high. However, the automaker does want to seduce a potential 7-Series or S-Class AMG buyer to consider a used but fully serviced and inspected Maserati.

"One hundred percent of our sales are conquests," said Ehoodin. "We want to present every opportunity for ourselves."

Qualifying Maseratis sold under the Trident Discoveries program are no more than five years old and have not logged more than 90,000 miles. The vehicle undergoes a 120-point inspection and is guaranteed not to have been in a serious accident. Roadside assistance and extended warranty plans are also available.

I don't know if Maser is ready to take on BMW/Benz/Audi. Just a few weeks ago we had an electronics system failure, but it was an intermittent problem. Then last week we needed to fix a hill-holder malfunction. Although the automatic QP will pull a lot more heart strings than the DuoSelect it's gonna be a tough sell to be mass-market. Maserati is still an acquired taste.