New Maserati Quattroporte Pics

[ExhaustNote]

http://www.a5.hu/images/0424maserati100.jpg
http://www.a5.hu/images/0424maserati2501.jpg http://www.a5.hu/images/0424maserati2502.jpg
Do sketches ever look bad?

Also on display at the Museum of Comtemporary Art (http://www.mot-art-museum.jp/) in Tokyo along side the Ferrari FX / F60 (http://forums.freshalloy.com/forum/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=17;t=000809) were these two design studies (pic 1&3, pic 2&4) of what may end up as Maserati's next Quattroporte sedan.

http://auto.ascii24.com/auto24/issue/2002/0426/npr_kt0426_06_21.jpg

http://auto.ascii24.com/auto24/issue/2002/0426/npr_kt0426_06_23.jpg

http://auto.ascii24.com/auto24/issue/2002/0426/npr_kt0426_06_22.jpg

http://auto.ascii24.com/auto24/issue/2002/0426/npr_kt0426_06_24.jpg

[ExhaustNote]

Here's an article from Auto Express (http://www.autoexpress.co.uk) :

Thursday 25th April 2002
New Maser-Piece Unveiled

Who said real sports cars can't have four doors? Not Maserati, that's for sure, as it prepares to pull the covers from its sensational new Quattroporte. Set for launch next year, these first official drawings of the stylish saloon show a car that's sure to set the pulses of fans racing.

However, they're also likely to strike fear into the heart of the likes of Jaguar, which is investing huge amounts of money in its conservative-looking new XJ. See separate news story.

To be unveiled at this week's 'Arte-dinamica: Ferrari and Maserati' event in Tokyo, few details of the new Quattro-porte have been announced. But we know the car is designed by Pinin-farina, powered by an evolution of the 4.3-litre engine fitted to the Maserati Spyder and Coupé, and will hit 170mph. Tuned to produce more torque than its sportier siblings, the newcomer will focus on refinement and comfort rather than all-out performance.

Adaptive suspension, such as that developed for the Maserati Coupé and recently launched Ferrari 575M, will also be fitted, allowing the car to offer a 'magic carpet' ride across rough roads without sacrificing handling. Most models are expected to be sold with automatic gearboxes, al-though a manual will be available, and there's also the option of the F1-style gearshift developed by parent company Ferrari. Prices have yet to be announced, but, it's believed that the Quattroporte will cost at least £70,000. That will make it considerably more expensive than some rivals. The BMW 7-Series, for example, sells for around £60,000, and has an advanced interior and hi-tech suspension. -Dan Strong

[ExhaustNote]

Higher Res sketches:

Sketch 1: 500 x 354 (http://img.seznam.cz/img_novinky/qua_p.jpg)

Sketch 2: 500 x 335 (http://img.seznam.cz/img_novinky/qua_p3.jpg)

Sketch 3: 500 x 352 (http://img.seznam.cz/img_novinky/qua_z.jpg)

[GroovinGTR]

I think it looks awesome, just the front needs to be a little more traditional. If I was in the mrket for an S55/760i/S8/XJR I'd defintely be psyched about this bad-boy. I wonder if Maserati does get a very positive reception in the US if they will trickle down and expand to compete w/ more luxury marques. An Italian BMW if you will.