1986 Maserati Zagato Spyder 2.5litre Biturbo on 2040-cars

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Car designer Frank Stephenson wants to show you something ... smaller

Influential car designer Frank Stephenson has often thought small. Now he’s thinking smaller. Throughout the past three decades, he has shaped — literally — some of the most indelible designs in automotive history: the modern Mini, the Ferrari FXX track star, the Maserati Gran Sport, a range of stunning McLarens and down to the funky 21st-century version of the Fiat 500. Now heÂ’s turned his pen to fashioning watches. His Cosmos analog piece, made to mirror “a black hole in space” and detailed “with an orange pinstripe which simulates the supernova glow of a neutron star,” features a Japan-built quartz movement and was created in concert with the Time Concepts company. “ItÂ’s the age-old adage ‘car people are watch people,Â’ so it was a natural step for me to get creative with timepieces too,” Stephenson said in a statement. “The collection showcases the love I have for exceptional and emotionally charged design, just like what is required in designing world class cars.” While Stephenson, who is 64, may be best known publicly for his vision of “affordable style” with the Mini and the Fiat, his ethos also translated to the utilitarian. In the case of BMW in the mid-1990s, the company was hustling to market an SUV, and turned to him for inspiration. His team had six months to complete the project. The result was the high-end X5, which Stephenson sketched during a two-hour flight. In 2018, Stephenson established the independent design company, Frank Stephenson Design, based in London. Related video: Design/Style BMW Ferrari Fiat Maserati McLaren MINI Gadgets watch frank stephenson

Maserati GranTurismo Folgore design and key specifications revealed

The next-generation Maserati GranTurismo will spawn an electric, Folgore-badged variant with over 1,200 horsepower. While the coupe hasn't been fully unveiled yet, the Italian company published a video that shows it without camouflage and reveals key specifications. Shot on California's picturesque roads, the five-minute film provides a better look at the second-generation GranTurismo's shapely design. It's characterized by a long hood, a fastback-like roof line, and a relatively short trunk, while its front end borrows a handful of styling cues inaugurated by the MC20 and also seen on the Grecale. The model is instantly recognizable as a member of the Maserati portfolio. We already know that the first series-produced electric Maserati will ship with a three-motor drivetrain rated at about 1,200 horsepower. Design boss Klaus Busse (who is behind the wheel in the video) announced that the GranTurismo Folgore takes 2.6 seconds to reach 60 mph from a stop and reaches a top speed of over 200 mph. He added that the battery pack is housed in the transmission tunnel, a solution which allowed his team to give the car a relatively low profile, but details such as the unit's size and the driving range remain under wraps. Not interested in EVs? Maserati has you covered: it will position the Folgore at the top of the GranTurismo range but it will also offer at least one V6-powered version of the car. We're guessing that the engine will be related to the excellent 3.0-liter Nettuno V6 that powers the MC20. Maserati will release more details about the GranTurismo Folgore in the coming months, and the coupe's unveiling is scheduled for 2023. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Green Maserati Coupe Electric Luxury Performance

Rich kid uses puppy to polish Maserati as Internet howls

Update: The original Instagram video appears to have been removed, but the video can still be viewed at this link. One of the Rich Kids of Instagram may never attempt to perform manual labor again after the 2-3 seconds she spent using a puppy to "polish" a rare Maserati. She cast it as a joke, but the Internet wasn't laughing. Instagram user m666ya, who is said to be a young, beautiful, wealthy collector of supercars in London - or, she at least has enough access to photograph them and occasionally show herself behind the wheel of one - posted this clip of an extremely cute puppy detailing a limited-edition Maserati MC12, which sells for $1.5 million or $2 million (depending on who's doing the telling). It got picked up on the Rich Kids account two days ago: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The Maltese puppy is compliant and seems, well, maybe not in distress but probably not having the time of its life, either. And m66ya or whoever is doing the buffing keeps it exceedingly brief. Some of the reaction has been predictable. The New York Post tabloid called her "barking mad." And social-media reactions to the post were similar: "Not funny." "Animal abuse." "Disgusting." "This is just wrong." "Shame on you." "This is actually sickening." "Money can't buy you class and in your case, values." "Dogs are so loyal and only want to love and please their owner. You do not deserve any devotion of love from this innocent puppy." "Psychologists will tell you, simple abuse of animals often leads to abuse of humans in later life. Seek some help now." A few commenters defend the clip and suggest people lighten up. Some doubled down on the joke: "It's better to use a cat so you can hear your engine purr." A blogger joked you'd never actually use a dog to polish a $2 million car because dirt in its hair could scratch the paint. And one young philosopher of Instagram, whose spelling is too poor to quote him directly, makes the fair point that perhaps some people are less angry about the dog than they are jealous that these ne'er-do-wells are rich. A spokeswoman for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said: "We can understand why people are concerned about this video.