Though Maserati and Ferrari are no longer as close as they once were, they continue to be commercial partners. Maserati certainly shares more than just the engineering of its 4.2-liter V8 with Ferrari, as it is following the same general marketing strategy as Ferrari, expanding its brand carefully. Last year Maserati sold 2,500 cars in the U.S., a point at which a premium car brand reaches critical mass. And now that word is getting out that it's possible to have a Maserati with a true automatic transmission instead of an automated manual transmission, the grand old company from Modena should begin find the wider audience it has sought since it returned to the U.S. in 2002.
2009 Maserati GranTurismo: Introduced to some fanfare in 2007, the GranTurismo is a traditional European grand touring car, something between the Quattroporte sedan upon which it's based and the Ferrari 599. The GranTurismo features a 430-horsepower 4.7-liter V8 matched with a ZF six-speed automatic transmission, and Maserati's active suspension is now optional. The GranTurismo S was introduced this summer as a 2009 model, and it's distinguished not only by an aggressive suspension tune, bigger brakes and 20-inch wheels and tires, but also by a dual-clutch automated manual transmission.
2009 Maserati Quattroporte: A revised Quattroporte now shares the same front-end look as the GranTurismo, a way of celebrating the acquisition of a more powerful version of its Ferrari-engineered V8. The gorgeous lines of this Pininfarina-styled sedan remain, but now the front grille and bumper resemble that of the GranTurismo coupe, while the rear of the car has a sharper, more aggressive look. LEDs have been integrated into the lights in front and rear as well. As part of this more serious look, the Maserati sedan gets serious under the hood with a 430-hp 4.7-liter V8, which replaces the former 400-hp, 4.2-liter iteration.
There is also a higher-performance model called the Quattroporte Sport GT S. Both models share the conventional ZF-built six-speed automatic transmission adopted for the standard Quattroporte model last year, as Maserati has finally realized that the single-clutch automated manual that had been a part of this package since the car's introduction didn't have enough refinement for the company's luxury clientele. Meanwhile, the Quattroporte Sport GT S will offer aggressive suspension tune from a conventional suspension (not the standard car's active suspension), bigger brakes and 20-inch wheels and tires.
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