The Scarlet Massacre

"Groagun" (groagun) 09/10/2014 at 16:02 • Filed to: Ferrari Montezemolo

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As the news floods the 'interwebs' of the resigning, firing, of Luca di Montezemolo, a moment of reflection and analysis is warranted.

I have been a critic of Mr. di Montezemolo at times over the last few years and with I believe, real and hard evidence of practices and idealism that I simply don't agree with or plainly dislike. Article such as this !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

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In that piece I'm questioning the reason(s) as to why di Montezemolo said the things he did about electric and hybrid cars knowing full well what was on tap for the future. Is he just playing to the base and fighting change? That's easy enough given the make up of traditional Ferrari buyers.

Ferrari buyers simply, on mass, do not care about the fuel consumption of their cars. If you can afford to own and operate any Ferrari, you simply do not care about how much fuel costs or how much you use.

I'm sure many of us have a picture in our heads of a typical Ferrari owner: best to keep that to yourself. Preaching to these people about the potential 'evil's' of brand tradition and tampering with it when it comes to electric or hybrid power is a 'no brainer'.

I think that is what he was doing and well, ok, I get it. I still think it's stupid but understandable.

di Montezemolo simply did not deserve what he got today. For months and I suspect years now with Marchionne at the lead of this, a plot to over throw di Montezemolo has been in the works.

You my think di Montezemolo more politician than 'car guy' and even a bit slippery or slimy, but there is no denying his success at Ferrari and the clear path to profitability he created. !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

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The bull shit over the struggles of the F1 team are laughable. True they are not winning and as a race fan, things seem dismal at best and dire at worst. The truth is that they aren't losing a single penny over this. They're still selling as many shirts, hats, flags, buttons, shoes,,,,,,,,,,,,the list goes on and on.

Even with the struggles and really because of them, they are getting huge amounts of press daily. Step back and look at the overall picture of this Goliath of a company and you can thank Luca di Montezemolo for all of it. No, he did not do it single handed but it was his vision and ability to steer this company in the right direction to realize the success and profitability we can revel or hate in today.

Now, I can't tell you what Sergio Marchionne is gong to do but change is certainly on the horizon. Unfortunately I think it will be change for the worst and to the direct detriment of Ferrari.

Normally I like change, I'm weird like that. I think things should be changed and shaken up now and then to keep things fresh and new. di Montezemolo did that with his new strategy of less is more. Ferrari was clearly on the opposite path and he reversed it to many cries of foul at first. Now the only problem is telling people no, you can't have one, there aren't any more, which in turns drives the desire to own one of the few only higher: Brilliant!

I remember Chrysler's of the 70's and 80's. They were FUCKING TERRIBLE! That perception has never left me and I have always seen them as the last choice in the Big 3. Now, potentially mixing FCA with Ferrari, more than it already is, fills me with dread.

I simply do not like and do not trust Marchionne. Talk about swelled heads and a slimy or slippery politician, he is the very definition. I wrote about it here !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

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The massacre, well I think that is yet to happen. It's a good/great thing that Ferrari is on an island all to itself, independent of all others. Changing that will forever change the company and not for the better. When that happens, and now it will, that will be the massacre. Today was just the first shot, in the back, the first knife twist and spilling of blood.

I always leave room for the possibility that I'm wrong and time will prove it out either way. Change is happening and change will happen. Just make sure you make the right changes and give yourself the best options and opportunities for the future.

lone_liberal > Groagun 09/10/2014 at 16:16

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Do you really think that the Chrysler products of the 70s and 80s really have any impact on the products that Ferrari are going to produce? I'd say that the imperial attitude of Montezemolo toward FIAT and his customers was just not going to work in this era. You can't refuse to sell your product to somebody who wants to buy it because they don't seem like the right sort anymore. You also can't try to manage, and cheat on, all testing of your product when every blogger is just dying to put that message out. I think he represented the old way of running a luxury brand and couldn't, or wouldn't, adapt.

Groagun > lone_liberal 09/10/2014 at 16:43

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It's not actually about the products of the 70's and 80's. It was about my perception of the company. Perception is what counts. The most obvious outlook is that both you and I cannot afford a Ferrari of any kind and that doesn't just piss us off, it makes us envious and want one even more.

I did not go into the 'massaging' of press cars as that is another story altogether but a valid point that you make and one of the aspects of di Motezemolo I didn't like.

"You can't refuse to sell your product to somebody who wants to buy it because they don't seem like the right sort anymore." Yes you can and Ferrari does to great success. It's anti democratic but it's business and it works for the likes of Ferrari and you should understand that.

Also, if you think di Montezemolo has/had an imperial attitude, you aint see nothing yet, wait for the 'show' to begin with Marchionne.

lone_liberal > Groagun 09/10/2014 at 16:54

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Believe me, I'm no big fan of Marchionne either. In fact I think the main reason that Montezemolo was canned was because two huge egos like that can't coexist for very long. I disagree about the antidemocratic aspects of Ferrari being able to sustain itself. I think it did work before, but I don't think that being known for being snobbish pricks is going to be a positive in the years to come. As for not being able to afford one, I've made peace with that a long time ago. At this point I'm just happy that such fine machines are still built.