Buongiorno, South Orange County!
A Maserati-Fiat combo dealership is set to open in April in Mission Viejo, with a third franchise from the “Fiat family of brands” expected to follow by summer, according to Patrick Lustig, operating partner of the South County Auto Group.
“The hardships that have happened in Greece and Italy during the economic downturn are forcing the survival of the company to move their operations to America,” said Lustig, who is spearheading the effort with partner Larry Van Tuyl, who holds a majority stake in South County Auto Group and its South County Lexus dealership.
Construction crews are putting the final touches on the Maserati-Fiat dealership, located next-door to the Lexus franchise on Marguerite Parkway.
“We feel that the premium luxury market is going to expand as (the) economy expands, especially as new homes get developed in the area,” Lustig said.
“There is some massive growth going on in South Orange County,” he said, pointing to nearby developments ranging from Rancho Mission Viejo LLC’s ongoing residential project near San Juan Capistrano and the luxury homes and lots at the Strand in Dana Point, plus the prospect of more growth on the 195.5-acre Marblehead property in San Clemente that’s expected to be sold to a homebuilder this month.
“We looked at other opportunities with other brands, and the Italian collection came about,” Lustig said. “It basically [made] sense with what we got going on.”
Fiat owns the Ferrari, Alfa Romeo and Lancia brands. The automaker’s full merger with Chrysler Group added the Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge marques to its roster in January, and it now operates as Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV.
Lustig, a former market president for AutoNation Inc.’s Southern California group of dealerships, said the third Fiat brand for South County Auto Group will be “premium luxury.”
His hint, along with an industry rule that requires at least 10 miles between any brand’s dealerships, eliminates Chrysler, Jeep or Dodge, since the Orange Coast Chrysler Jeep Dodge of Capistrano dealership is in nearby San Juan Capistrano. Lancia, meanwhile, has no plans for sales in the U.S.
That leaves Alfa Romeo or Ferrari as options, and the former appears more likely, given a recent report by the Detroit News that Fiat Chrysler is bringing Alfa Romeo back to the U.S. after an absence of 19 years.
The automaker will allow a select number of “the best-performing” Maserati and Fiat dealers to offer the Alfa Romeo 4C model, which is scheduled to hit showrooms in June.
Lustig is likely counting on the sort of growth his Lexus dealership has had to win one of the Alfa Romeo slots.
Growth
“We’ve grown our business from a little over 100 cars a month to 300 cars a month in three years,” he said, adding that he and Van Tuyl purchased the dealership in October 2010 from Park Place Group in Dallas, Texas “at the rock-bottom of the market.”
The sales growth led to the investment in the new brands. The partners have spent close to $3 million on remodeling the building that will house three showrooms for the “Italians,” Lustig said, along with $12 million to $15 million for an inventory of 150 new vehicles.
Fiat models will include the Fiat 500, Fiat 500 electric and Fiat 500L four-door.
“We think we’ll do really well with the Fiat with the (Saddleback) college in the community,” he said. “It’s a big opportunity.”
The Maserati showroom will feature the Maserati Ghibli, Maserati Quattroporte, Maserati Granturismo, and a soon-to-come SUV model.
“It’s a unique car, and it’s become much more affordable,” Lustig said, referring to the $66,900 base price of the Maserati Ghibli. “The cheapest one you could touch before was well over $100,000.”
Staffing
New operations would require a slight increase in staffing levels—which are currently at 180—as the majority of the staff is integrated into the Lexus dealership and will be elevated into those positions at the new dealership.
“With this new expansion, we will probably go just a hair over 200,” he said.
Lustig’s “grand scheme” is to “synergize dealerships together” by combining back-office work and operations on the lot, such as car washing, transportation and employee parking.
A Lexus dealership expansion is also in the works, mostly in the service area.
