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Maserati GranTurismo successor to be smaller, fight Porsche 911

The Chevrolet Corvette, Jaguar F-Type and Porsche 911 all belong to a club that shuns the Maserati GranTurismo as an outsider. You see, those three key sports cars all measure within an inch of one another in length - 176 to 177 inches and change - while the Maserati comes in at over 192 inches. Naturally, there's extra length between its wheels, as well.
While those extra inches would seemingly pay dividends in interior roominess and storage space, those are not exactly the most important attributes in the segment, which values proper proportions and proper driving feel over all else. All of this is why it comes as little surprise that Maserati is working on a smaller version of its two-door sports car platform when the next generation is ready in roughly three years.
According to Motor Trend and echoing rumors we've heard in the past, the smaller model will be known as the Gran Sport while a larger model will still be called GranTurismo in coupe form and GranCabrio in convertible guise. We're told, again, to expect Maserati's new 404-horsepower supercharged V6 engine as standard, while the V8 would still be a possible option.

Why Italians are no longer buying supercars

Italy is the wound that continues to drain blood from the body financial of Italian supercar and sports car makers. The wound was opened by the country's various financial police who decided to get serious about superyacht-owning and supercar-driving tax cheats a few years ago, by noting their registrations and checking their incomes. When it was found that a rather high percentage of exotic toy owners had claimed a rather low annual income - certain business owners were found to be declaring less income than their employees - the owners began dumping their cars and prospective buyers declined to buy.
Car and Driver has a piece on how the initiative is hitting the home market the hardest. Lamborghini sold 1,302 cars worldwide in 2010, 1,602 cars in 2011 and 2,083 cars in 2012 - an excellent surge in just two years. In Italy, however, it's all about the ebb: in 2010, the year that Italian police began scouring harbors, Lamborghini sold 96 cars in Italy, the next year it sold 72, last year it sold just 60. The declines for Maserati and Ferrari are even more pronounced.
Head over to CD for the full story and the numbers. What might be most incredible isn't the cause and effect, but where the blame is being placed. A year ago the chairman of Italy's Federauto accused the government of "terrorizing potential clients," this year Luca di Montezemolo says what's happening has created "a hostile environment for ­luxury goods." Life at the top, it ain't easy.

Maserati slashes prices for 2020, adds Edizione Ribelle special editions

Maserati is slashing prices for the Ghibli, Levante and Quattroporte for the 2020 model year. To which we say, huzzah! Cars almost never get cheaper, but when sales are as abysmal as Maserati sales have been, drastic changes must be made. The Italian car company only sold about 11,000 vehicles total in 2019, coming in even lower than 2018 overall sales numbers. In an effort to turn it around, the 2020 Ghibli is now $5,990 cheaper than the 2019 model. The Levante is $3,990 cheaper than before, and the Quattroporte is $8,490 less. With destination included, the new 2020 base prices are as follows: Ghibli: $70,985 Levante: $74,485 Quattroporte: $101,485 Basically, buy a 2020, not a 2019. Or at least start your pricing negotiations with the 2020 price. There’s more than just pricing news from Maserati today, though. We also got to see some new Edizione Ribelle special editions. All of the aforementioned models are available in this spec, but numbers are limited. WeÂ’ll get 100 Levantes, 100 Ghiblis and 25 Quattroportes total. All of them are based off the “S” trim, so theyÂ’re fairly well-equipped models. YouÂ’ll be able to tell them apart by the Nero Ribelle paintwork, black chrome trim throughout the exterior and 20-inch wheels framing red brake calipers. The inside will be covered in black and red leather thatÂ’s only available with this special edition car. There will be extra carbon fiber trim on various surfaces and a Harman Kardon audio system. Pricing for the Edizione Ribelle models is much higher than the base cars. The Ghibli is $93,285; the Levante is $98,485, and the Quattroporte costs $120,985. Those limited-production cars will be hitting dealer lots in March this year. 2020 Maserati GT Sport editions View 3 Photos The last scrap of news coming from Maserati today is the introduction of a GT Sport package. This package consists of a few extras to make the respective Maserati look a bit more aggressive. It applies a GranSport-unique front and rear fascia design, new wheels and your choice between black, red or blue brake calipers. Inside, it features high gloss piano black wood. Just like the Edizione Ribelle, thee GT Sport package will be available come March of this year.