http://www.autocarmagazine.com/News_Article.asp?NA_ID=213702
After digesting the news of the past week I am starting to see a much brighter future for Maserati. As long as they were in the Ferrari fold they would have always been kept a few steps behind Ferrari and not allowed to encroach into Ferrari type numbers. Now it seems Fiat intends to use the Maserati brand to lead instead of being a poor mans Ferrari
All was well until this: I know that diesels sell like hotcakes over there but... A VW ENGINE ACK OMG. It a neat plant, but in a MASERATI?
I am getting excited about the Spyder that is suppose to come out in early 2006 with 450HP and retractable hard top. Timing will work out great for me as I will get my usual two seasons in if I trade in this fall for a 2006 spring delivery.
Very, very interesting news. When I first came across a Q-Porte with the hood open, I though that there was an awful lot of room between the front of the engine to the front of the engine bay. I asked if there was a 12-cylinder in the plans, to which they said that there was nothing planned - of course! I also find it interesting that this announcement comes out right after they announce that Fiat has bought Maserati.
with the new V12 and autobox, it will be the reference and no more critiques..... except maybe, the lack of a third seat....lol
Do you know which V-12 they are going to use(I am guessing it won't be a Ferrari V-12- hopefully I am wrong) or will it be a W-12 engine from VW? If that is the case then HP won't be much different than the current V-8 Engine. Maybe they will use the twin-turbo W-12 engine from the Bentley Continental GT so it has more HP. Do any of you feel a V-12 will seriously effect the Q/P's handling due to the extra weight up front? The current Quattroporte's 47/53 weight distributions contributes to the cars great handling.
mini-van walt? No, I'll keep my M5 which has a much larger back seat that seats 3 comfortably, has a real stick and is faster!
"Power for the range-topping Quattroporte is said to come from a lightly reworked version of parent company Ferraris 5.7-litre V12 engine from the 612 Scaglietti. In the big Ferrari coupé, the 65-degree unit develops 540bhp at 7200rpm and 434lb ft of torque at 5250rpm. However, Maserati is rumoured to be tweaking the engine to bolster its low-end grunt and make it more suitable for the luxurious Quattroporte." From the link
They better price it below the Bentley Flying Spur if they want it to be a success. Bentley has stated that the FS will do 195 mph.
V12 from the 612! good stuff. Maserati can use their "Royale" badge. competition to the S600, A8L, 760iL is nice but buyers at that level is going to really want the LWB. Perhaps, a LWB version and a little tweeking to the handling for the V12 and LWB?
Very, very promising. I recently saw pics of the QP from the Chicago show and it was absolutely stunning, the most beautiful car there except for the 430. But the QP was beautiful, like sculpture, not like the race-car that the 430 is. A V-12 will make gold into platinum. Forza, Cavallini
my wife has 3772 miles on her QP now and absolutely adores it; she gets complements on the car daily from both genders. her only issue is some baulkiness in auto shifting. it's the perfect chick's sports sedan. exclusive and beautiful, no third rear seat to reduce its sex appeal and sophistication [that dreaded mini-van connation of the M5, tied with the lower class secretarial brand image and no reliability of BMW], and even runs hard for me when i have to drive it, much as i hate 4 seater cars. [the shifts in manual are hilariously slow compared to the Stradale]. she runs mountain roads and freeway every day and it does both very well. our service manager Gary at autogallery in LA is the best we have ever had, superbly handling our needs for both the QP and CS. An excellent ownership experience for her so far. She still misses her 98 XJR, the old slinky body style with the new reliability, her favourite car ever.... If i was writing the product positioning statement for the cars she drives: exclusivity critical [immediately eliminating BMW, MB, etc] beauty [eliminating same plus new XJR and 612] performance - enough for me to accept since i order her cars 4 doors it's the best option by far today. I have ordered her the Porsche sedan supposedly due in a couple of years but she hates Porsches, even though she drove many of mine [something about getting hassled by guys on the freeway]. i also ordered her an Aston Martin AM V8, but even though it looks lovely and quickish, she wants 4 doors.... so it probably won't fly. oh, and the QP sounds titz!!!! like a ferrari headed up the mountain when she takes off in the monring... Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Way Cool!, and the best part is that she won't have to rot in hell for driving something designed by bangle.
Or, he could start an insipid, whiny thread about it... Bwahahaahahaaha Image Unavailable, Please Login
