2002 Maserati Spyder Cambiocorsa on 2040-cars

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Maserati betting big on Levante SUV

In 2014, Maserati was booming thanks to a sales spike, and executives contemplated capping production. The company's fortunes, however, have changed quickly this year. Its sales dropped 13 percent globally to 8,281 cars in the second quarter, and earnings were down 30 percent, according to Automotive News. This performance has led the company to pin its future hopes on the launch of the Levante crossover. The Levante arrives in the first half of 2016. An official debut is scheduled for sometime this year, according to the company's five-year plan, though the unveiling might be pushed back until the 2016 Detroit auto show in January, Automotive News reports. The Levante shares a platform with the Ghibli and reportedly will use its V6 engines. The crossover also is expected to have all-wheel drive. Patent drawings suggest a look reminiscent of the earlier Kubang concept (pictured above). FCA explains some of Maserati's current weakness is due to problems in China. Deliveries were down 37 percent there in the second quarter, according to Automotive News, and the country's weak economy isn't expected to let up soon. Related Video:

Second 'No Time To Die' trailer drops with lots of crunching metal

The second trailer for the new James Bond film, "No Time To Die," was posted to social media Thursday morning, getting us thoroughly hyped for the forthcoming installment thanks to some spicy car content and lots of other ridiculous, big-budget action sequences.  Fair warning for the purists: This might contain plot- and character-related information from the trailer itself. Also, it appears that many Land Rover Defenders died in the making of this film, so the footage may not be for the faint of heart; don't say we didn't give you advance notice.  As is typical of Bond films, most of the automotive eye candy is of the European variety. The classic Aston Martin DB5 gadget car (which we saw doing some crazy machine-gun donuts in the first trailer) makes yet another appearance, as does what appears to be fourth-generation Maserati Quattroporte. There's even something which might be a car, but also appears to be both some sort of airplane and submersible. Never change, Bond. We love it.  And then there are the Defenders. We've got Defenders speeding down hillsides, Defenders crashing through forests, Defenders flying over Land Cruisers. Yeah, do you like Land Cruisers? There's a Land Cruiser. It even (spoiler alert!) survives relatively unscathed; the same cannot be said for most of the automotive shenanigans we get to see here.  "No Time To Die" was originally slated to debut back in April, but its original release date roughly coincided with the projected peak of early coronavirus infections. Given how important the Bond film franchise's continued success is to MGM (it's virtually the only thing the studio has had going for it for 30 years) and the producers (who only make Bond films), meager box office returns were not an option. The last film, Spectre, pulled in the worldwide gross of $880 million, including $200 million in the United States and $83.5 million in China. The wait is almost over. "No Time to Die" will hit theaters Nov. 25 in the United States.  Related Video:

2019 Maserati Levante GTS has a 550-hp Ferrari-derived V8

A V6-powered Maserati Levante just wasn't enough. At least that's what a group of engineers thought as they formed a sort of skunkworks and secretly set out to see if they could fit the Ferrari-derived V8 from the Quattroporte GTS into the Levante. Turns out they could, and after revealing their project to company honchos, were given the green light for not just one V8-powered Levante, but two. The first to be revealed was the Levante Trofeo shown at the New York Auto Show. Now we get this, the Levante GTS, which was revealed last month to journalists in Pontiac, Mich., and kept under wraps until now. It will debut in Europe at Goodwood. Although the GTS shares the same 3.8-liter V8 as the 590-horsepower Trofeo, it features a slightly less prodigious output of 550 hp with peak torque of 538 pound-feet available from 2,500 rpm to 5,000. Maserati says the GTS will hit 60 mph in 4 seconds with a top speed of 181 mph. View 8 Photos The chassis was tuned to better handle the extra power, and while the suspension shares the same components as the rest of the Levante line, the tuning was changed for the GTS and Trofeo. The Sport Skyhook adaptive damping system was also retuned, while the air springs feature six different height levels spanning a total of 3 inches from its lowest to highest position. A rear-biased all-wheel-drive system and a rear limited-slip differential are included. These mechanical updates are largely shared with the Trofeo, which differs visually and features extra luxury equipment. Outside, the GTS features a larger lower air dam, a special black-trimmed grille and 22-inch wheels. Inside, there's a full-leather interior package and carbon fiber trim. That includes the shift paddles, which are carbon fiber rather than metal. Maserati models also receive some updates for the new model year. The eight-speed ZF automatic gets a new electronic shifter. Similar in layout to BMW's (forward for R, rearward for D, push button for Park), it replaces the previous Chrysler-sourced PRND layout. It's similar to what you'd find in a current Alfa Romeo but the shifter itself is more luxurious and substantial in feel and appearance. The infotainment system has been refreshed, but remains a Chrysler Uconnect system in Italian clothing. There's also new optional "Pieno Fiore" leather for all three models, Levante, Ghibli and Quattroporte. It is available in red, black and tan.