I was slipping quickly through a series of tight S-curves, dropping gears and enjoying the wail of the turbocharged V6, when I realized how much I had come to love this car in the short time I’d had it. I’ve had the pleasure of driving the Trofeo (top of the line) versions of Maserati’s Quattroporte, Levante, and Ghibli and while I thoroughly enjoyed them, the Modena version of the new GranTurismo blows them all away. I’m so impressed with it that I can’t wait to experience the GranTurismo Trofeo version someday soon.
Why do I like it so much? For starters, just look at it. It’s flipping GORGEOUS. The design is wonderfully balanced. It has curves in all the right places and those curves are perfectly stamped in sheetmetal. The fender vents are the sexiest of any Maserati’s. The front valence is aggressive and contemporary but still…classic. The front fenders have better curves than most supermodels. The rear fenders blend perfectly into the rear greenhouse and the rear valence. The last GranTurismo was exciting; the new GranTurismo is a work of art.
Under the hood lies Maserati’s powerful new biturbo V6 – the Nettuno. First unveiled in the MC20, this version is detuned down to a “mere” 438 hp and 361 lb-ft of torque but you’d never know. Tromp on the throttle and the GranTurismo rockets away like an F22 on full afterburners, literally leaving every other car around you in it’s wake. The eight-speed paddle-shift transmission adds some participatory excitement to the process and the AWD ensures that ALL of the power is converted into speed.
The Modena model has three drive modes: Comfort, GT, and Sport. Comfort is exactly what it sounds like, a softly-suspended ride and relaxed responses to inputs. GT steps things up, keeping the ride comfortable but with a little more sporting influence. Sport firms things up and quickens the cars reflexes. GT is the default setting and it’s a good everyday setting. In fact, that is the overall sense of the car’s mission. You come away from the GranTurismo with the realization that it’s an everyday supercar – built to drive around town casually but with phenomenal performance waiting to be used when the roads become fun.
The brakes are enormous discs and enormous calipers. They do a superb job of bringing the car down to reasonable speeds when called upon. They’re a little grabby at low speeds but it just serves to remind you that it’s designed for much more aggressive braking and it’s not difficult to adjust to it. The wheels they hide behind are amazing pieces of art. They’re some of the most intricate wheels I’ve ever seen. They’re wrapped in Pirelli’s finest PZero tires that help it stick like glue no matter how hard you push it through a sweeping curve.
The steering feels really spot-on and intuitive. There’s no dead spots in the steering and it goes where you think it. It seems to sense your intentions and steers accordingly. For my money, the wheel could be a bit thicker but it should be acceptable for both men and women.
Swing the long doors open and you can almost hear the interior beckon you inside. And that’s about all you’ll hear because the GranTurismo is remarkably quiet while driving. You don’t hear any tire noise and very little wind noise. Only the winding out of the engine brings any remarkable sound. The seats are trimmed in a beautiful and rich leather. The design on the seat bottoms somewhat mirrors the design in the wheels outside, which is a nice touch. They’re heated and ventilated as you’d expect, with subtle bolsters that don’t hinder egress/ingress but do a great job of holding your torso in place during spirited driving. Once you’re ensconced in the driver’s seat, you won’t want to get back out. At least until you get one more spirited drive before you do. Legroom and headroom for front seats passengers is generous. The back seats, however…are an afterthought. With an average height American driver in the front seats, about an inch of legroom is available for backseat passengers. The rear seats are more likely to be used for bags, coats, or a pair of corgis.
Most of the controls are contained in the two-screen center stack infotainment system. Any change is just a few finger taps away. Behind the steering wheel are Maserati’s gorgeous cast aluminum paddle shifters and they shift the transmission with a race car-like immediacy that makes it fun to run up and down through the gears as you slip through traffic. Or hold it at a rev level that allows the Nettuno engine to make the most exquisitely gorgeous Italian car sounds you’ve ever experienced. It’s much more enjoyable to drive like that than it is to leave in automatic mode and listen to the obnoxious bass wails as it tries to push the highest gear possible in the name of “economy.”
Speaking of economy, the GranTurismo is rated at 18 mpg in the city and 27 mpg on the freeway. I have no idea if that’s accurate or not because, frankly, I was too busy dipping into the throttle for selfish pleasures and uncontrolled giggling.
The GranTurismo starts around $150,000. Our test car stickered at $200,000. Totally worth it. It’s a complete and competent package.
If you’re looking for a beautiful luxury car that makes a fantastic everyday driver and that offers serious driving performance, look no further than the GranTurismo. It does everything well and looks fantastic doing it.
Performance: 9
Handling: 9
Design: 10
Interior: 9
Infotainment: 9
Sound: 9
Fun: 10
Overall: 9
