Mahindra and Pininfarina are expected to formally announced the deal in a couple of weeks with the former taking over the controlling stake of the company.
Speculations about Mahindra buying out Pininfarina have been rife for a couple of months now and if recent reports are to be believed, the deal will finally come through very soon. The Italian design house stated that the negotiations between its current controlling stakeholder Pincar, creditor banks and Mahindra never broke off and the company is likely to sign the papers soon which will put the Indian auto giant in charge of the loss making venture.
Despite an illustrious history of over 85 years, Pininfarina has been loss making for years with the debt amounting to a hefty €86 million (approx. Rs. 608 crores). The company delayed in announcing the deal because creditors weren’t particularly happy as the buyout entitled omitting half of the debt value. With automaker recruiting design teams in-house, Pininfarina lost a lot of significance in recent years with only a handful of projects to its credit. For the first half of 2015, the company’s net debt stood at €52.7 million (approx. Rs. 374 crores).
Nevertheless, Mahindra’s intervention could mean a new light for the famed Italian car designer that will help retain its iconic stance. The deal though seems to be a win-win for everyone as one can expect more input from Pininfarina coming into the Indian automaker’s future models. Mahindra’ design team has been under scrutiny time and again for some oddball choices and that just might change with an experienced hand designing those curves.
A legend in the automotive industry, Pininfarina was founded in 1930 and is most famously known to churn out masterpieces for Ferrari and its sister concern Maserati over the years. Some of Pininfarina’s most notable works are icons including the likes of the Ferrari 250 GT, 458 Italia, F40, 599 GTB Fiorano and 612 Scaglietti; FF and the iconic Enzo. The Maserati Quattroporte, Alfa Romeo Brera and Spider were also Pininfarina’s creations.
