1956 Porsche 550 Rs Spyder Vintage Spyder Silver Over Red Webers Collector Owned on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Maserati ditches hydraulic steering to add semi-autonomous driver aids

Related: We obsessively covered the Frankfurt Motor Show — here's our complete coverage FRANKFURT, Germany — One of the distinctive aspects of modern Maseratis has been the continued use of hydraulic-assisted power steering. The company used it on the entire lineup from the Ghibli sedan to the GranTurismo sports coupe, touting in press releases that in comparison to now-common electric power steering, it "prevents unpleasantly artificial assistance when the driver turns the wheel quickly." Priorities appear to have changed, though, as the 2018 Ghibli, Quattroporte and Levante are all going with electric steering. Those priorities would be adding a gaggle of semi-autonomous driving assists, which as Maserati CEO Reid Bigland confirmed, require electric power steering to fully implement. Specifically, the highway lane-centering, lane-keeping assist and blind-spot assist functions that can steer for you if necessary. Other new semi-autonomous functions include sign recognition, automatic emergency braking and adaptive cruise control. This may come as a disappointment to die-hard Maserati fans, but at the very least, the GranTurismo and GranCabrio sports cars still retain the classic hydraulic steering system. They also don't get the semi-autonomous features, but let's face it, those cars are ones you want to always be driving. As for the rest of the lineup, Bigland insisted the steering is still good. Of course you wouldn't expect anything less from the company's CEO. We'll reserve judgement until driving a 2018 Maserati ( that isn't a GranTurismo) to see if the new steering avoids being "unpleasantly artificial." Related Video:

2018 Maserati Ghibli gets new lights and grille

It's been nearly four years since Maserati introduced the 2014 Ghibli, and it's soldiered on largely unchanged. Finally, Maserati is prepping a respectable facelift front and rear. The changes seem to be concentrated on headlights and grilles. The lights now appear to have a chrome or aluminum highlight that curves upward, dividing the LED running lights from the rest of the lighting. This is a distinct difference from the current highlight that curves downward. Also, the grille now looks to have a more rounded shape, closer to the oval grilles of early- and mid-2000s Maseratis. The lower grille also seems to have smaller inlets at each corner. At the back, the rear bumper has clearly been reworked. Unfortunately, the giant black diaper covering it reveals absolutely nothing. Aside from these changes, the rest of the new Ghibli looks the same. Because this is clearly a mid-cycle refresh, we expect to see the car fully revealed by the end of the year, with vehicles hitting the lots early next year. Related Video:

Maserati rapidly expanding dealer network

With the new Quattroporte and Ghibli sedans out on the market, and the new Levante crossover and Alfieri coupe on their way, Maserati is making serious headway towards revitalizing its lineup. Now all it needs in order to reach its ambitious sales targets is to expand the network of dealers where they're to be sold. And according to Maserati chief Harald Wester in speaking to Automotive News at the Paris Motor Show, that's exactly what it has in store.
At the end of last year, Maserati had 79 dealerships across the United States. It has already boosted that number to 100 so far this year, but before 2014 is over, it plans to open another 20 to bring the total up to (carry the two, divide by the square-root of Pi)... 120 showrooms.
Globally speaking, Maserati reportedly closed 2012 with around 220-230 dealers around the world, and currently has about 355, but aims to close 2015 with a worldwide network of 450 dealers, representing a doubling of its network in two years' time. Having more than a quarter of those in the US alone is testament to how seriously Maserati takes the American market.