Maserati moves upmarket with GranTurismo

Newswheel staff :: 22 February 2007 :: Filed under Coupe, Maserati GranTurismo, Europe & UK, US

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Wither DB9?

Next month’s Geneva shindig is shaping up very nicely indeed. One of the stars of the show will surely be Maserati’s GranTurismo two-door cruiser, revealed for the first time in these official images. Striking panel work aside, the GranTurismo is notable for being larger, snazzier and no doubt more expensive than the outgoing Coupé…

Based on a shortened version of the Quattroporte platform, the new coupé is a big old beast weighing in at 1,880kg. Consequently, Maserati claims, there’s enough cabin space to accommodate four bipedal adults in something resembling comfort, unlike the current Coupé.

Looking good: Suddenly that Aston DB9 isn’t such an obvious choice

Power is delivered by Maser’s familiar 4.2-litre bent-eight in 399bhp trim and weight distribution is said to be 49:51 front/rear. Transmission-wise, the GranTurismo runs a conventional torque-converter autobox - there’s no mention of the company’s paddle shifting robot manual box.

Of course, motors like this are all about the threads and the GranTurismo really, really delivers. With Pininfarina’s help, Maserati has pinched many of the Quattroporte’s most successful styling cues and deftly reinterpreted them for the two-door format at the same time as adding a slightly edgier, more modern vibe. Granted, some of the detailing, including both the front and rear light clusters, are a little, er, challenging. But by comparison, the outgoing Coupé suddenly looks laughably bland, cheap, dated and unsophisticated - always a good sign for a new model. If not for existing Coupé owners…

Pricing and official launch details have yet to be fully fleshed out, but the GranTurismo will certainly be more expensive than the Coupé. So much so, rumour has it, Maserati is working on a cheaper coupé to slot in below.