'Maserati Was Almost Bust; Now It Succeeds'

'Designing the new Ghibli was a quick but smooth process. The direction was clear from the begining. There was not much fussing around with alternative proposals and any issues with sizing and layout had already been resolved with the Quattroporte.

The Ghibli's a little lower than the Quattroporte, roughly the same width and 300mm less in length. The car has a very good stance because the bonnet length is more or less the same as the Quattroporte's but the back is much shorter.

We didn't want to make a Mercedes CLS, but a car that was sporty, smooth and flowing like a coupe. Most premium luxury makers today have two product lines in this segment, a standard saloon like an E-Class, 5-Series or A6 and a sports version like a CLS, Gran Coupe, or A7. With the Ghibli we tried to stay in the middle.

Our Levante [ 4x4 due 2014 ] is now signed off. The rear treatment of the Ghibli and the up-kick side feature of the Quattroporte will be significant to the Levante's design. It's much more of a crossover than an SUV, it's not really about going off-road.

The most ambitious brand plan within the at Group right now is Alfa's. Lancia more or less...well Alfa has a lot of potential. But to fix Alfa you need clear ideas and a good amount of money and time. Unfortunately if you rush, you risk doing things in a hurry and not the right things. We have a big chance with Alfa but we have to play it well as we don't have a second chance.

Maserati was very small at the beginning and nobody was betting a dollar on its success. The fact that in the years after the debut of the Quattroporte in 2003 we are now launching two cars in parallel with more cars to come - from a company that was almost bankrupt and disregarded - it's really a comeback that wasn't expected. But still, as the numbers were so small, if it hadn't been a success no-one would have complained that much. With Alfa, it's a much bigger affair.

If something goes wrong at work you really feel it, but I try to take a philosophical approach.  I don't have to do anything to be relaxed, I am at one with myself.'