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The four-seat grand tourer Maserati GranTurismo will stop onlookers in their tracks
Searching for the most stylish new car of 2007? Then look no further than Italy. The country has already given us Fiat's fresh 500, but at the other end of the market, Maserati designers have penned a supercar that's just as much of a visual delight.
Maserati's GranTurismo is without doubt one of the most beautiful offerings ever to leave the firm's factory gates
Maserati's GranTurismo is without doubt one of the most beautiful offerings ever to leave the firm's factory gates. Every line and detail has been crafted out of real passion, resulting in a shape that's totally unforgettable.
When the Maserati was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year, what turned most heads, apart from the stunning design, was its size. Measuring 4,881mm in length, the new model is 500mm longer than the firm's old Coupé, and only 184mm shorter than Mercedes' CL.
This has allowed stylists to be creative with the bodywork, and also made the Maserati surprisingly spacious inside. Slide into the leather- lined cabin and the high transmission tunnel makes you fully aware that you are in a true supercar, but the two-door is far from cramped.
There's easily enough room for two adults in the back, which makes the GranTurismo a more practical prop-osition than Porsche's 911. Headroom is tight, but against that, the seats are beautifully trimmed. However, some of the switchgear is disappointingly plasticky to look at and touch.
Yet there's a real sense of occasion when you get behind the wheel. The V8 powerplant bursts into life like a race engine, before hushing to a quiet idle. Pull the conventional gear selector into drive, and the drama begins.
Engineers have squeezed 399bhp out of the 4.2-litre unit. With peak power not arriving until 7,100rpm, and maximum 460Nm torque coming in at 4,750rpm, this is no lazy cruiser. At almost any speed, the thunderous acceleration on tap is impressive. The sprint from 0-62mph takes 5.2 seconds, and the Maserati easily has more than enough pace to match all but the most extreme AMG-tuned Mercedes.
In keeping with its grand touring ethos, the GranTurismo is only available with an automatic transmission. Drivers who want to take manual control can do so via the steering wheel paddleshifters, but the gearbox works best when left to its own devices.
If you need to make the shifts a bit quicker, then there's a Sport button, which also increases the responsiveness of the accelerator and adjusts the Maserati Stability Program.
However, the two-door can't quite match the breadth of abilities offered by some rivals. Over longer distances, the taut set-up makes the coupé feel a little unrefined, but pays dividends when you turn off on to a twisty road.
Despite its size, the four-seater has superb agility. The rear-wheel-drive chassis never feels short of grip, and it turns into bends with sports car-like precision. It's only the speed-sensitive power-steering which lacks the accuracy and feedback of a Porsche, and is vague around the straight ahead.
Ride and handling can be improved even further by electronically variable active damping, which costs an extra £1,721. And that's on top of the hefty £78,500 list price. Indeed, it's not at all hard to make your Maserati even more expensive. Highlights from the options list include 20-inch Birdcage design alloy wheels, costing £3,079, and pearlescent paint at £4,583.
No one could pretend that this car's a bargain, but the lucky few who can afford a GranTurismo will hold the keys to a truly special Italian beauty.
Maserati GranTurismo | First Drives | Car Reviews | Auto Express
I don't think I've ever seen a car so color sensitive. It looks great here, especially the interior. If there was a car I have to see in person to really see how it "looks" this is it.
M
