The Maserati is back in India, hoping for a smoother ride this time!

Italian luxury car manufacturer Maserati, which suffered the brunt of a soured relationship with its Indian dealer Shreyans Group in 2008, has made a comeback in the Indian market this week, reported the Economic Times.

The Italian car maker has appointed three new partners this time after a troubled stint. The auto major will now sell models priced between Rs 1.1 crore and Rs 2.5 crore.

According to Umberto Cini, managing director for Middle East, India and Africa markets, the soured relationship with Shreyans caused damage to the brand as well as the business. "We sold less than 20 units in India in the three years of partnership with the earlier dealer," Cini tells ET Panache.

Because of strategic differences with the partner, Maserati terminated the contract two years ago. "It was a lost opportunity for us. Our customers were facing issues," he says.

The company faced problem due to the deal as it had to fly in customer support teams from Italy to handle complaints. "Our technical teams used to come from Italy to assist the customers," he says, adding: "Till now we have been flying people in to service the cars."

Cini insists the company is not going to repeat past mistakes for the send time. "It took us a long time to come back, but we wanted to do it properly," he says.

Maserati hopes to sell in double digits every year. "We have not given ourselves any targets, but we want to sell in double digits. It could be 99 and it could be 10 also. I wish for the right number," he says.

According to Cini, there is a lot of demand for Maserati cars in India.

"There is a wealthy population here. For now, you probably see fewer Indians driving this car in India, but we see more Indians driving it outside India," says Cini.

(Image: Reuters)