Maserati CEO Leach to Leave Fiat Group

Maserati Chief Executive Martin Leach is due to leave the Fiat-owned sportscar maker and will not take up any other post at the Italian industrial group, industrial sources said on Friday.

Fiat and Maserati declined to comment.

Leach's departure would be Fiat's second top management change in quick succession after Herbert Demel resigned as the chief executive of mass market car unit Fiat Auto on Thursday.

Demel was replaced by group CEO Sergio Marchionne, who is throwing his weight in Fiat's core carmaking activity, having dissolved an alliance with General Motors, which he said was holding back Fiat Auto's restructuring, to return to profit.

Earlier this week, Fiat split Maserati out of its top-end Ferrari unit and said it would work more closely with Alfa Romeo, which is part of Fiat Auto. Friday's Financial Times Deutschland reported that Leach was unhappy with the decision and planned to resign.

Marchionne's predecessor Giuseppe Morchio tried to hire Leach to head up Fiat Auto in 2003 but was blocked by Ford, which insisted a non-compete clause prevented him from moving to another carmaker. A court later ruled against Ford.

Media had reported that Leach, highly respected in the car industry, would move to take over product development at Fiat Auto and could eventually replace Demel.