Black Coffee’s R9m luxury vehicle dispute goes to court

Grammy Award-winning musician Black Coffee is locked in a legal battle with luxury car manufacturer Maserati SA over a customised luxury vehicle worth R9m.

The DJ, whose real name is Nkosinathi Maphumulo, says the dealership failed to meet the July 2025 delivery deadline agreed for a new MC20 Cielo, and he wants the deal cancelled and his R7m down payment refunded.

But Maserati denies ever agreeing to the deadline and claims Maphumulo never confirmed the customised specifications he wanted.

In his court documents filed this month in the Johannesburg high court through his company Soulistic Music, Maphumulo seeks a refund after the dealership allegedly failed to deliver a Maserati MC20 Cielo as agreed.

Maphumulo says he initially bought an MC20 Coupe from Maserati in 2022 for R7m. About two years later, he decided to buy an MC20 Cielo model from the same dealership for R9m.

He claims that as part of the quote, Maserati SA offered him a R7m trade-in for the old vehicle and that a “partly written, partly oral” purchase agreement was made. Maphumulo would pay the balance of R2m on delivery of the new car.

Despite the demand, to date [Maserati SA] has failed/neglected/refused to make payment

—  Nkosinathi Maphumulo, aka DJ Black Coffee

He lists 18 specifications for the vehicle including a Sonus faber high-premium sound system with 12 speakers, Maserati Blu Infinito colour, specific wheels with “glossy black diamond cut”, and full leather and Alcantara interiors with stitching and a chevron design.

But he says that on June 3 the dealership told him the car would only be sent for production in August, with no estimated time of delivery. He says this constituted a breach of the agreement and he told them to cancel the agreement and demanded repayment of the trade-in amount.

The following day he received an email saying: “We are pleased to announce that we have secured a production slot for your Fuoriserie order since you’re a globally recognised figure the factory has made a special exception for us. Your Fuoriserie order will be going into production in August, we will be able to confirm further details closer to the time."

But Maphumulo was not convinced and followed up a month later regarding his repayment. “Despite the demand, to date [Maserati SA] has failed/neglected/refused to make payment.”

In its plea, Maserati denies that the agreed delivery date was July 2025, adding that the production of a customised vehicle, such as the Cielo, takes a minimum of nine months from the date of confirmation of the specifications.

It said Maphumulo had selected custom colours for the exterior, interior, interior trimmings, seat belts and brake calipers which were not included in the quotation, and that he was “required to confirm these further customisations, following which these specifications would need to be approved by Maserati SA’s head office and an estimated date for delivery obtained (as each car is custom made)”.

The company is therefore not in breach of any agreement, it argues.

It also argues that without the purchase of the new vehicle, the trade-in value would not have been R7m.

Maphumulo, who reportedly bought a luxury mansion in Cape Town’s exclusive Nettleton Road for R157m last year, is also locked in a separate legal battle with social media commentator Nota Baloyi, who previously made allegations about the musician’s finances during Maphumulo’s divorce from television personality Enhle Mbali Mlotshwa.

In December the Johannesburg high court ordered Baloyi to apologise for his comments. Baloyi refused and Maphumulo filed a contempt of court application in January, arguing that Baloyi should be arrested for a period of 60 days.

Baloyi has filed a notice to oppose the contempt of court application, arguing it amounts to an abuse of process.

“Since early December, I have made no further publications or statements naming Maphumulo on any platform. He is fully aware of my compliance with the cease-and-desist aspects of the order and my appeal when this contempt application was launched,” read the notice.

He argued that the order in favour of Maphumulo was still subject to an appeal process that he lodged in December.

“In any event, contempt of court requiring committal is a criminal matter that must be proved beyond reasonable doubt. Maphumulo has failed to establish willful and mala fide disobedience on my part,” read the notice.