2004 Maserati Coupe Cambiocorsa Coupe 2-door 4.2l on 2040-cars

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Maserati GranCabrio First Drive Review: Want an electric convertible? This is it

LAKE MAGGIORE, Italy — Driving the Maserati GranCabrio Folgore on its picturesque home turf, and studying MaseratiÂ’s press materials, IÂ’m convinced the Italian automaker has buried the lede. Especially when every auto journalist is questioning a pricing strategy that finds some GranTurismo coupes and GranCabrio convertibles brushing past $200,000. That gets into Cloud 9, Bentley-and-Aston-Martin territory.  To counter the whispers, hereÂ’s the part IÂ’d be shouting about: The GranCabrio Folgore is the worldÂ’s first and only luxury electric convertible. That alone might intrigue some free-spending, first-on-their-block buyers. Then, Exhibit B: Like the plug-in GranTurismo coupe, the convertible will out-accelerate any rival Bentley Continental GT or Aston DB12, a margin that grows positively yawning as speeds climb. A rocking 750 horsepower and rock-crushing 995 pound-feet of torque will do that. This Italian job is also noticeably more agile and connected to the road than the isolated Bentley droptop, and easily on par with AstonÂ’s best GTs. That includes a gasoline Trofeo version whose 4,316-pound curb weight undercuts a GT Speed convertible by more than 1,100 pounds; mated to 542 horses from its twin-turbo, 3.0-liter Nettuno V6, a detuned version of the engine in the MC20 supercar. This Italian sexpot is arguably a prettier car than the Bentley, and nearly as head-turning as the Aston, judging by public reaction to our convoy of beautifully painted models: Rose gold was a knockout specimen, along with a deep blue with metallic flake called Night Interaction, a burnt orange and a sizzling red. Anything but bright yellow, grazie. The Maserati also carves out more passenger space than the British duo. ItÂ’s a legitimate four-seater with room for two adults in back — after a bit of space-sharing from front-seaters — versus a Bentley or Aston whose back seats are glorified parcel shelves. Finally, the MaseratiÂ’s vividly realized electric powertrain advances the tech future, where Bentley and AstonÂ’s relatively pokey corporate V8s are rooted firmly in the past. So thatÂ’s four objective wins for the Maserati, in key areas I assumed auto journalists also cared about: Power and acceleration, sporty handling, interior space and technology. Honestly, the BentleyÂ’s only decisive win is its gorgeously wrought London library that doubles as a car interior. The AstonÂ’s cabin also tops the MaseratiÂ’s in materials and execution.

2024 Maserati GranTurismo First Drive Review: Striking balance

ROME — ItÂ’s easy to argue that the coupe is dead — especially big coupes with four seats. Never a huge segment to begin with, this slice of the market has shrunk in recent years as buyers flock to SUVs and carmakers allocate their development budget accordingly. In 2023, it makes more sense from a business point of view to slap the “coupe” label on a four-door crossover than to put it on a real coupe with two doors. Maserati isnÂ’t giving up. ItÂ’s not just business; itÂ’s also personal. ThereÂ’s a big chunk of its heritage built on four-seater coupes, so it completely reinvented the GranTurismo instead of throwing the nameplate into the darkest locker of automotive history. ItÂ’s still a coupe, and it still has four seats, but significant changes to the powertrain (including a smaller engine and all-wheel drive) aim to broaden its appeal. Maserati planted its flag on this turf in 1947 when it released its first road car, the Pininfarina-designed A6 1500 Gran Turismo, and it has never strayed far from it since. Its designers channeled this heritage into the second-generation GranTurismo without veering into retro territory or using a Xerox machine. “People often ask me, ‘Are you inspired by the past?Â’ WeÂ’re not copying elements, weÂ’re not copying styles necessarily, but we do allow ourselves to be inspired by the way we were constructing our cars back then,” Klaus Busse, the head of MaseratiÂ’s design department, told me. He cited the proportions as an example: sitting low to the ground, the GranTurismo features a long hood and a short trunk lid, which are shapes that have characterized dozens of cars positioned in the gran turismo segment for decades. Beyond the basic shape, the GranTurismo shares little with its predecessor — it illustrates what Busse meant in 2020 when he told me that the then-new MC20 would influence the rest of the range. ItÂ’s recognizable as a Maserati thanks in part to vertical headlights mounted above an oval grille, and of course it features the three fender-mounted vents that have become the Italian carmakerÂ’s signature. The coupe features a pure, fluid design with one exception: the fin-like protrusion on the roof. It houses a camera, and itÂ’s only fitted to GranTurismo models ordered with the digital rear-view mirror. I learned that integrating it into the trunk lid, like a rear-view camera, wouldnÂ’t have provided sufficient visibility.

Maserati Quattroporte Trofeo, GMC Yukon XL, Tesla earnings, Maine Mitsubishi Delicas | Autoblog Podcast #689

In this episode of the Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Road Test Editor Zac Palmer. They discuss recently driven cars: the GMC Yukon XL diesel, Maserati Quattroporte Trofeo and Acura TLX Type-S. After that comes recent Tesla news along with cancelled Mitsubishi Delica registrations in the state of Maine. Finally, the editors help a reader spend their money on an affordable crossover. Send us your questions for the Mailbag and Spend My Money at: Podcast@Autoblog.com. Autoblog Podcast #689 Get The Podcast Apple Podcasts – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes Spotify – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast on Spotify RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown What we're driving: 2021 GMC Yukon XL diesel 2021 Maserati Quattroporte Trofeo 2022 Acura TLX Type-S News: Tesla earnings and delays Mitsubishi Delica registrations in Maine Spend my money Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on Apple Podcasts Autoblog is now live on your smart speakers and voice assistants with the audio Autoblog Daily Digest. Say “Hey Google, play the news from Autoblog” or "Alexa, open Autoblog" to get your favorite car website in audio form every day. A narrator will take you through the biggest stories or break down one of our comprehensive test drives. Related video: