Maserati Quattroporte

Maserati Quattroporte Overview

Established in 1914 in Bologna, Italy, Maserati S.p.A. is one of the oldest luxury vehicle manufacturers in the world. The iconic trident emblem first made its appearance on Maserati’s racing cars back in the 1920s before their dramatic withdrawal from competitive racing in the 1957 Mille Miglia tragedy.

When Ferrari took over control of Maserati in 1997, one of the main objectives was to radically improve the quality of the vehicles. While Maseratis are renowned for their exceptional driving qualities, the Quattroporte suffered from reliability issue since its inception back in 1963. The result was a revised and improved 1998 fourth generation Maserati Quattroporte Evoluzione.

Quattroporte simply means ‘four doors’ in Italian. It was the marque’s first ever luxury sports sedan and is the fastest sedan in the world at the time. Fast forward to the present-day, the Maserati Quattropote is now in its sixth generation. Despite sharing the same underpinnings as the Maserati Ghibli, it is considerably larger in overall size.

The 2019 model is offered in three variants featuring Ferrari-built V6 and V8 petrol engine options- the base Quattroporte (V6), Quattroporte S (V6) and the full-blown Quattroporte GTS (V8). The two optional trim levels, the luxurious GranLusso or the more aggressively styled GranSport is offered as standard on the GTS variant.

Maserati Quattroporte Exterior

The Maserati Quattroporte is essentially an elongated Maserati GranTurismo with two extra doors. Designed under the supervision of ex-Pininfarina designer, Lorenzo Ramaciotti who had his hands on many Italian icons like the Ferarri 360 Modenna, the four-door layout design manages to maintain a balanced and dynamic appearance despite its hefty size.

The ‘shark nose’ front grille features vertical chrome slats on a black background with the chromed Trident badged displayed in the middle. Maserati’s signature three fender air vents design pays homage to the Maserati A6 1500, the first production road car from the Italian manufacturer.

Frameless doors coupled with the slopping roofline and the subtly integrated rear spoiler gives the sedan the appearance of a sleek coupé. In GranLusso trim, the car features elegantly styled front bumper with chrome elements on the side air intakes, body coloured rear bumper, a chrome-plated oval quad-tailpipe and complete with a set of 20-inch Mercurio alloy rims with black brake calipers.

The GranSport on the other hand features a more aggressive front end with gloss-black accented side air vents while the rear is fitted with a piano black diffuser element featuring chrome plated trapezoidal quad-tailpipe. Blue element highlights the front Trident badge, the side Saetta logo as well as the badge on the larger 21-inch Titano rims.

The sixth-generation model is considerably larger than any of its predecessor, making it a proper 4-door 5-seater sports sedan, unlike the less practical Aston Martin Rapide’s 2+2 layout. It is positioned above the Maserati Ghibli in terms of size and sits on the same M156 platform.

Maserati Quattroporte Interior

The GranSport on the other hand features a more sculpted seats, suited for a more spirited driving. Gloss piano-black inserts is used across the dashboard and centre console. The optional Carbon Pack gets you carbon fibre trims on the dashboard, door handles, wing mirrors as well as on the B-pillars.

As you would expect from an Italian luxury sportscar, high quality leather with contrast stitching is used extensively across the cabin. The centre console design adopts a slightly more contemporary approach while retaining certain Maserati’s tradition, by incorporating a large landscape-oriented touchscreen control with minimal buttons alongside the classic egg-shaped analog clock right in the middle of the dash

All the storage compartments are beautifully finished and dampened with ambient lighting. While space at the back is certainly not an issue for ferrying adults in long distance journey, you probably wouldn’t want to carry a third passenger for too long due to the bulky transmission tunnel in the middle. Further at the back is a generously sized 530 litre boot space, matching the cargo space available in the Mercedes-Benz S450 L.

Maserati Quattroporte Features

Its highly distinctive engine sound is further exemplified by an exhaust system that includes a special air valve set-up. The valves remain closed during normal driving, keeping the engine noise discreet and understated. That is until the Sport button is pressed and the bypass valves open, unleashing that glorious Ferrari-powered engine note.

Standard equipment on the inside includes the 8.4-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, hooked up to a 10-speaker Harman Kardon sound system. Physical controls for the climate control make a welcoming return on the latest iteration of the interior. Paddle shifters behind the steering wheel are aluminium while the foot pedals are made out of stainless steel.

Advanced Driver Assistance Systems are available as optional extra. Included in the package are cruise control with Stop&Go, lane departure warning, forward collision warning with advanced brake assist, and automated emergency braking.

Standard safety equipment includes 6-airbags with dual stage activation system, parking lights, Maserati Stability Program (MSP) that includes Acceleration Slip Regulation (ASR), ABS with EBD and Maserati Drag Torque Control (MSR) among other things.

Maserati Quattroporte Powertrain Performance

0-100 km/h is completed in 5.5 seconds with a top speed of 270 km/h for the base variant while the S manages a century sprint time of 5.1 seconds and a top speed of 286 km/h. The full blown Quattroporte GTS variant is powered by the Glorious 3.8 litre twin turbocharged V8 (based on Ferrari’s F154 modular engine), pushing out 538 PS and 710 NM of torque. 0-100 km/h is achieved in 4.7 seconds and up to a top speed of 310 km/h.

Both the V6 and V8 petrol engine variant utilizes parallel-mounted, low-inertia, twin-scroll turbines which help minimize turbo lag and ensures swifter accelerator reaction, along with better responsiveness across the board. Both engines are hand assembled by Ferrari at its Maranello plant.

Power is sent to the rear wheels via an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission. It is assisted by auto-adaptive software that is able to recognize individual driving style and modify the shifting pattern accordingly for different drivers.
Five driving modes available are selected using the buttons near the gear lever: Auto Normal, Auto Sport, Manual Normal, Manual Sport, and Increased Control & Efficiency (I.C.E). Upshifts are all automatic unless a manual mode is selected.

Maserati Quattroporte Fuel Consumption

Maserati Quattroporte Ride Comfort

Particular attention has been put on weight reduction too. Majority of the components in the suspension system are made of lightweight aluminium, and the front stabiliser bar is hollow. The sports sedan also benefits from Skyhook suspension, featuring shock absorbers with continuous damping variation. The system uses sensors to monitor movements of each wheel and the car’s body to determine the prevailing road conditions and adjust the setting of each damper accordingly.

Maserati Quattroporte Conclusion