07 Quattroporte to come with a choice of transmissions | FerrariChat
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07 Quattroporte to come with a choice of transmissions

Discussion in 'Maserati' started by tfazio, Mar 27, 2006.

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  1. tfazio

    tfazio Formula 3
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    #1 tfazio, Mar 27, 2006
    There were all types of rumors that said that the 07 Quattroporte would only be available with a conventional automatic. It looks like buyers will have the option of either a conventional auto box or the current transmission. That is great news for people who love the F1 style transmission. The following was taken form Automotive News.

    Quattroporte to get a true automatic
    Critics say paddle-shift semiautomatic is balky and turns off potential buyers

    Rick Kranz | | Automotive News / March 27, 2006 - 6:00 am

    CEO Karl-Heinz Kalbfell expects Maserati sales to rise 15 percent in North America this year.


    MODENA, Italy - Maserati will offer a conventional automatic transmission in response to complaints about the jerky shifting of the Quattroporte sedan's semiautomatic gearbox.

    The automatic will be offered next year, along with the current transmission. Rivals of the $108,350 base Quattroporte sedan, such as the BMW 7 series and Mercedes-Benz S class, have a smooth-shifting transmission.

    Maserati S.p.A. CEO Karl-Heinz Kalbfell said the current transmission has hurt the Quattroporte's sales.

    "It is to some extent a limiting factor for those who want an easy operation," said Kalbfell, who was interviewed at a Maserati event in Modena, Italy. "You cannot just put a car like a Maserati down and say, 'Here is the key.' "

    Last year, 1,550 Quattroportes were sold in North America, out of about 3,500 worldwide.

    Salesperson is key

    The key to selling the car is the salesperson's description of the transmission, said Kalbfell: "If the salesman explains the gearshift (operation), suddenly the customer understands the technology and is satisfied."

    The Quattroporte's six-speed, electrohydraulic transmission essentially is a manual transmission without a clutch pedal. The transmission was developed and engineered by Ferrari. Gears are switched by manually pressing paddle shifters on either side of the steering wheel.

    Drivers also can select the automatic mode, which shifts gears without driver input. But some car-enthusiast publications and Quattroporte owners have complained that the transmission in automatic mode lurches and jerks on each shift.

    Cauley Ferrari-Maserati in West Bloomfield, Mich., sold 23 Quattroportes last year. Sales would have been higher if a conventional automatic transmission was offered, said Dan Cable, general manager.

    It was an issue "especially with people who were a little bit older who were coming to us out of Mercedes. They really liked the car, liked the styling, liked the performance, but would prefer a standard automatic transmission," said Cable.

    Don't say 'automatic'

    Jeff DiSandro, general manager of Continental Autosports in Hinsdale, Ill., said the key is to make sure shoppers view the transmission as a manual.

    "When selling the car, you have to make people understand it is manual transmission with a computer controlled clutch. It is not an automatic," DiSandro said." Don't ever use the word 'automatic.' "

    Kalbfell believes that despite the transmission issue, Maserati's North American sales will increase about 15 percent this year to near 2,500 units. Last year 2,114 Maserati vehicles were sold, including the brand's Coupe and Spyder models.

    He says the Maserati brand will not be harmed by the fact that it no longer is controlled by Ferrari. Until last June, Ferrari operated Maserati.

    Ferrari currently assembles the 400-hp 4.2-liter V-8 engine, based on Maserati specifications. Both brands, along with Alfa Romeo, are owned by Fiat S.p.A.

    Today Maserati is a separate business unit that has product development ties to Alfa Romeo. As new vehicles are developed, Alfa and Maserati will share components.

    In the past, Maserati components came from Ferrari. Kalbfell offered no timetable when the first Maserati and Alfa Romeo vehicles will share components.

    Despite the change, he is confident the vehicle development strategy will not harm the Maserati brand.

    "Even if the sporty character of Alfa and Maserati is similar, the customers are different. It is a different culture," so the vehicles will be different, said Kalbfell.

    "Look at Porsche and Volkswagen - they are working together but they are still are Porsches and Volkswagens," said Kalbfell. "That is what we mean when we talk about this kind of relationship."
     
  2. Z0RR0

    Z0RR0 F1 Rookie

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    #2 Z0RR0, Mar 27, 2006
    So ... it will have a torque converter auto and an F1? That's kind of a choice between uber-crap and crap.
    Why not just a standard manual to go along with the conventional auto?

    It will probably sell, though.

    I want to see someone putting an F430 engine and trans in a QP. :)
     
  3. lukek

    lukek Formula 3

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    #3 lukek, Mar 27, 2006
    ?
    The QPorte and the Coupe currently come with the same block as the 430. Top end and electronics are different, but the casting is the same in the Ferrari and Maserati.

     
  4. Z0RR0

    Z0RR0 F1 Rookie

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    #4 Z0RR0, Mar 27, 2006
    Still 100hp short, as well as all the fancy controls over the improved transmission ...
     
  5. absent

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    #5 absent, Mar 28, 2006
    Just a regular manual would really improve that car for now.
    The torque converter will just kill the already marginal performance it has ,that's a really bad marriage in this case.
     
  6. tx246

    tx246 F1 Veteran
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    #6 tx246, Mar 28, 2006
    we saw the auto trans version in modena in feb. we were told it had an 4.7 liter motor to offset the power loss. we were lso told the f1 version would remain the same engine size.
     
  7. Derek at FoD

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    #7 Derek at FoD, Mar 28, 2006

    Any indication as to the bump in hp?
     
  8. Auraraptor

    Auraraptor F1 World Champ
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    #8 Auraraptor, Mar 30, 2006
    Or for that matter loss? (Some sources claim there will be dip in auto trany cars)
     
  9. Derek at FoD

    Derek at FoD Formula 3
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    #9 Derek at FoD, Mar 30, 2006

    I really doubt (hope) that if the engine size is increased .5 liter, we're not going to lose power:(
     
  10. staatsof

    staatsof Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    #10 staatsof, Mar 30, 2006
    Your not going to lose power. I think what was probably meant was the displacement was increased to offset the loss in performance due to the slush box versus a hard clutch. But that inevitably leads to the request:
    "Can I get the bigger engine with the F1?" Which will probably be available in the sport model or all of them.

    Bob S.
     
  11. tx246

    tx246 F1 Veteran
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    #11 tx246, Mar 30, 2006
    we were told that at this time the larger engine was only being offered in the automatic. the prototype was carrying the larger engine already.
     
  12. damcgee

    damcgee Formula 3

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    #12 damcgee, Mar 30, 2006
    It is possible they will be tuning the engine for increased torque, and hopefully equivalent hp
     
  13. dave_fonz_164

    dave_fonz_164 Formula 3

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    #13 dave_fonz_164, Mar 31, 2006
    www.4car.co.uk just reviewed the Sport GT and loved it, very focused drivers saloon, with the addition of the Automatic, it will only sell twice as much.
     
  14. jdonly

    jdonly Rookie

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    #14 jdonly, Nov 12, 2006
    wassup guyz....

    actually i just purchased an 07 QP sport in october and it will arrive early feb and there is no option for an automatic with a torque converter. To my knowledge they are only offering it with the same maserati duoselect transmission with the paddle shifters. The only difference in the 07 model that the dealer spoke of were few modifications fixing previous bugs with the car such as the electrical system and a/c compressors along with some others that i cant remember off the top of my head.

    -JD
     
  15. GCalo

    GCalo F1 Veteran

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    #15 GCalo, Nov 13, 2006
    It's a BMW 7 speed auto tranny.
     
  16. Derek at FoD

    Derek at FoD Formula 3
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    #16 Derek at FoD, Nov 13, 2006

    As far as I know, the auto is going to be a six-speed. The BMW seven-speed is the new SMG.
     
  17. italiafan

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    #17 italiafan, Nov 13, 2006
    If they don't believe sharing parts with Alfa, as opposed to Ferrari, won't hurt the brand they are absolutely naive. It will hurt Maserati. I love my GranSport, but if in the future there is too much Alfa about Maserati I'll be looking for a Ferrari.....
     
  18. GCalo

    GCalo F1 Veteran

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    #18 GCalo, Nov 13, 2006
    Just relaying what Maserati told me.
     
  19. parkerfe

    parkerfe F1 World Champ

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    #19 parkerfe, Nov 16, 2006
    Why? Alfa was winning races before Maserati even existed...and, remember, the first Scuderia Ferrari race car was an Alfa Romeo...
     
  20. classic308

    classic308 F1 Veteran

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    #20 classic308, Nov 17, 2006
    Every time I stare at my Milano, I ask myself how Alfa with its history, pedigree, etc. could produce such an ugly car...talk about losing the plot!!!

    Hopefully they've righted the ship...new cars are much better looking..an ugly Italian car is the ultimate sin...
     
  21. zjpj

    zjpj F1 Veteran

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    #21 zjpj, Nov 17, 2006
    I've got to agree. All it's competitors are faster and have more gadgets. The only reason to buy the Q-porte is for its style (which it has tons of).
     
  22. italiancars

    italiancars F1 Rookie

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    #22 italiancars, Nov 17, 2006

    Not to take anything away from the glorious history of Alfa Romeo, but the above statement is not true.

    Est. in 1910 A.L.F.A. Milano (It didn't become Alfa Romeo until 1915 when Nicole Romeo purchased the company) didn't win their 1st race until after WWl in 1920. Alfieri Maserati Incorporated his small shop in 1914.

    Joe
     
  23. parkerfe

    parkerfe F1 World Champ

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    #23 parkerfe, Nov 18, 2006
    IMHO, the problem with the slush-box QP option is it will attract non-enthusiast MB/Audi/Jag/Lexus type buyers who will not be as forgiving of Italian car service and repair requirements which could possibly again tarnish the Maserati reputation in the USA! So, if Maserati offers the slush-box QP, the entire car better be as relaible and low maintenace as the German and Japanese competition! Especially with as few dealers it will have as compared to those German and Japanese competitors. I know here in Georgia there is only one Maserati dealer in the entire state! Can you imagine the doctor/lawyer/dentist wife that buys the QP for style and is 300 miles from home on a girls beach weekend and the car breaks down and the nearest Maserati dealer is back home---300 miles away!
     
  24. DodgeViper01

    DodgeViper01 F1 Veteran

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    #24 DodgeViper01, Nov 18, 2006
    I wonder what the option is going to cost? If it is anything like the $30,000 cost in the Ferrari 456s, I think it might not increase sales dramatically but if it is a relatively moderately priced option, it could make QP sales soar.
     
  25. xs10shl

    xs10shl Formula 3

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    #25 xs10shl, Nov 18, 2006
    I certainly hope it's a reasonable cost option. The only thing keeping me from buying a QP is the lack of transmission choice. I'd take either a manual or a slushbox over F1.

    How hard could it be to offer a Manual box?
     
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