Three Quattroportes, Two Styles of Driving
One Automotive Icon

The introduction of the new Maserati Quattroporte Automatic this month provides a good opportunity to review the sport sedan’s three variants and their incredible impact on the North American market since being introduced in 2003. The Quattroporte Automatic further broadens the appeal of the incredibly successful Italian sport sedan, already the most desirable and exclusive such car in the market.

The current Quattroporte, depending on your perspective, is a niche buster or a niche definer. Developed as an authentically sporting alternative to putatively performance-oriented variants of the Mercedes S-Class, BMW 7-Series, Audi A8 and Jaguar XJ, Maserati’s four-door exceeded expectations and took ownership of its focused segment, rapidly becoming the sales leader. Given that the car’s initial offering to North America, 60 Neiman Marcus edition automobiles for the 2003 Christmas Book, sold out in only three minutes, competitors cannot have been surprised. They were, after all, merely squatting in the space first defined by Maserati forty years earlier.

The Maserati Quattroporte invented its genre when it was created as the first true sports sedan in 1963. The latest models, which comprise the fifth major development of the Quattroporte, raised the game, as each of their forebears had done before. With curvaceous Pininfarina styling that has been described as positively sinful, the Quattroporte broke the dull mold of ersatz aerodynamic styling prevalent in the market. Engineered to place its drivetrain within the wheelbase, providing a low polar moment of inertia and a distinct rear weight balance in the manner of all great sports cars, the Quattroporte has proven to be the only real choice for the discerning enthusiast. A further enticement to the cognoscenti is the incomparable and compact Ferrari-derived 4.2ℓ V8 engine that produces 400bhp, over 333lb-ft of torque, a 0-60 time around five seconds and top speeds well in excess of 165mph in both manual and automatic form, and a tuned exhaust note that snaps the hair on one’s neck to attention. In combination with the Italian high design and craftsmanship of the cabin, and the extensive personalization possible to complement the raft of standard features, the Quattroporte stands alone.

In fact, the Quattroporte bests excellent cars that are outside its segment. It has proven to outpace BMW’s V10 M5, sometimes supposed to be the most sporting sedan, and the Quattroporte offers both far greater luxury and an automatic transmission.¹ The Quattroporte has the braking efficiency and capability of a Ferrari Enzo, although that supercar is vastly lighter and employs carbon ceramic brakes.² This means that a Quattroporte can out-brake almost any car on the road, which contributes mightily to its performance capabilities. The Quattroporte has also demonstrated its superior value and exclusivity in comparison to the staid and heavy Bentley Flying Spur.

Maserati, however, does not rest on its laurels. In 2006 two more Quattroporte models were introduced to great acclaim. The Executive GT honed in on luxury without affecting performance, providing opulent perforated natural leather, almost infinitely adjustable climate controlled seats, and elegant touches such as an Alcantara headliner and subtly polished 19” wheels. The Sport GT focused on further enhancing Quattroporte’s performance edge without compromising its superb balance and understated luxury. With carbon fiber interior trim, aggressive 20” wheels and tires, cross-drilled rotors and steel braided brake lines, and a sport tuned exhaust, gearbox and suspension, the Sport GT has succeeded admirably. The Sport GT was named Robb Report’s Best of the Best Sedan in 2006, an unprecedented repeat of the Quattroporte’s 2004 victory in this category.

With the introduction of the ZF-sourced 6-speed automatic transmission, available in all Quattroporte models, Maserati now further broadens the appeal of its ultra-sedan while still catering fully to the various desires and driving styles of owners and enthusiasts. Those who wish can still enjoy the superb DuoSelect manual gearbox. Others can opt for the magnificently engineered automatic, designed to completely maintain the Quattroporte’s sports sedan balance and complement the efficiently powerful V8 engine, a demonstration of Maserati’s attention to customers and detail, and its drive for excellence through passion. As one popular media outlet has said: “The Maserati Quattroporte doesn't leave much to gripe about. Beautiful, devastatingly quick and with four luxurious seats, it does just about everything, and does it well….So Maserati's decision to equip the Quattroporte with a proper six-speed auto 'box is good news. The all-new transmission system promises to smooth up gear changes and, thanks to a torque converter, boost low-rev pick-up without limiting power.”³

Your authorized Maserati dealer will introduce you to the enhanced 2007 Quattroporte Automatic and DuoSelect at your convenience. You supply the driving style; Maserati supplies the automotive icon.

1 evo
2 Road & Track
3 Top Gear