Ferrari Chairman Reportedly Preparing to Step Down

Ferrari could be losing its leader of over 20 years.

According to a recent report, Ferrari chief Luca di Montezemolo is close to stepping down from his position at the Italian automaker due to a clash of strategy with the brand’s parent company Fiat.

Though an agreement on a severance package or timetable for his leaving have not been made, it is believed that he may step down later this year. Montezemolo has been in charge of Ferrari since 1991 and wants to maintain the automaker’s autonomous status while limiting sales to about 7,000 cars a year. Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne wants to use Ferrari to bolster a shift by the group into more upscale cars as part of the new merger with the Chrysler Group.

It is being reported that Montezemolo recently told close associates that “Ferrari is now American,” and that it is “the end of an era.” Most recently, Marchionne criticized the performance of Ferrari’s Formula One team calling it “unacceptable” and iterated that “nobody is indispensable.”