2016 Maserati Quattroporte

2016 Maserati Quattroporte Review: A Maserati first, a luxury sedan second

We live in a time where luxury sedans have become common and often sport a limousine or a yellow plate. It has transitioned from a car that symbolized your status to a mere chauffeur-operated limo. There is this notion that there is no way to own a luxury car and call it rare. Maserati aims to overcome this notion. Their luxury sedan is an example of what it means to be unique without compromising.

The Maserati DNA

It has only been a short while since Maserati forayed into the luxury sedan segment, however, their offering has been nothing short of spectacular. The Quattroporte name means “four-doors” in Italian. Simple, yet elegant. This is exactly how the Italians do things and the Quattroporte is no different. It is not the most luxurious, or the most spacious, or the most powerful even, but it is a blend of all these elements. The 2016 Maserati Quattroporte is a fine example of what you get when you do things differently.

Entering its sixth generation, the Quattroporte line of cars has kept the same feature set that makes it uniquely, Maserati. A powerful Ferrari engine combined with a beautiful exhaust system, a flowing design, and interiors that can please even the most stubborn of owners. It refuses to play by the rules and the result is a car that can excite and delight. So, what is new this year? What has changed? And what does the Maserati offer that other don’t? Let’s find out.

2016 Maserati Quattroporte

A fun element

The Maserati is a car that does not aim to provide you with the plushest of interiors or give you the maximum possible horsepower, and neither does it want to. Instead, it wants to give you the thrill and let you experience the pleasure of driving, by yourself. It is a car that encourages you to be in the driving seat. But what is new for the 2016 Maserati Quattroporte?

For starters, a slightly redesigned nose makes its way into the Quattroporte. For the GTS there is a drag-reducing electric gate mechanism behind the grille. The engine options remain the same. There is the introduction of a new diesel V6 engine. Maserati also offers a slew of trims, including the GranSport and The GranLusso.

The biggest changes, however, comes in the form of driver assistance upgrades. Maserati has updated their driver technology and is finally within a touching distance of the market leaders. While it will probably not win any prizes for being feature-rich, it is the driving pleasure and the scream of the Italian engine that gives the Quattroporte a fun element.

Blistering performance in a small package

In one word, rapid. The Maserati is simply rapid. Pick any engine and you will be thrilled. There is no denying that the Italians are masters of the craft, nobody makes better engines than they can. There are two configurations, we shall look into each one in detail.

The V6

Designed by Ferrari, this 3-liter V6 is twin-turbocharged and you get a surprising amount of punch out of such a small engine. Yes, as absurd as it might seem a 3-liter V6 is smaller than many of the offerings in this segment. Despite its size, there is absolutely no lack of power. The engine delivers a crunching 404 brake horsepower and gives you 406 lb-ft of torque. It does zero to sixty in a smidge over 4.5 seconds. It has a top speed of 171 mph, far more than the electronically limited top speed of its rivals.

In the S Q4 version, which gets an all-wheel-drive setup, the engine churns out 410 brake horsepower. The added power combined with the distribution helps the car really take off and attack corners better than ever before. You will not be disappointed with the 2016 Maserati Quattroporte’s V6s.

The V8

This engine is only available on the GTS trim and it is a powerhouse. This 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged V8 was also developed in collaboration with Ferrari. The GTS model is where you can truly see the effort Maserati has poured into masking this barbarous engine inside a luxury vehicle. The engine produces a thunderous 523 brake horsepower and 524 lb-ft of torque. Maserati claims it can do zero to sixty in under 4.5 seconds and has a top speed of 191 mph.

2016 Maserati Quattroporte

These numbers help the 2016 Maserati Quattroporte get into the 500 hp club, but believe us, it certainly is not about those figures. The car is blisteringly fast, whether you are accelerating off in a straight line or throwing the car in the corners. We shall dive deeper into how it handles on the road in a later segment.

A fierce design

Perhaps the most discerning feature of the 2016 Maserati Quattroporte is neither the engine nor the interiors but is the design. The Quattroporte has always been a striking car and there is no doubt it can still turn heads. The 2016 version comes with a very slight aesthetic and functional modification, a new grille.

While the old one was slightly convex and had a crowded vertical arrangement, the new one comes with a concave setup and is spaced out. The grille does a fantastic job of elevating the already mean and bold design of the 2016 Maserati Quattroporte. There are still the same crisp and angular creases that interplay with sharp lines.

The grille stands out, carrying the trident insignia with pomp. As the design flows from the curved hood into the sculpted body and the roof, it tapers right into the back. The smooth lines help hide the sheer size of the car.

The base model S comes with a 19-inch wheel setup, which is plenty. The big wheels lend the car a lot of character and the best part, you can get bigger wheels. In fact, you can add choose from various decals and trims to give your car a little more character. Choose the GranSport trim and you get 21-inch wheels, red brake calipers, and a more aggressive design for the front and rear bumpers.

Bold interiors

Leather can be found everywhere. The Quattroporte is a car that distinctly wants to remind you of the fact that you are sitting inside an Italian car. It comes with plush interiors that go well with the wooden trim. However, you will also find cheap switchgear harvested directly from Fiat, the parent company. It is a contrasting tale, where bespoke luxury tries to mesh with mass-manufactured cheaper bits. The technology inside the Maserati feels a little outdated, with a lot of the new additions already present on standard cars.

Here the Maserati asks you an important question, whether you want to have the latest in tech or do you want to own a rare car, one whose very presence demands attention. We think the answer is pretty clear.

2016 Maserati Quattroporte

GranLusso

There are already a few versions of the Quattroporte, so what’s new that Maserati has delivered here? A GranLusso package that is aimed at those that want more luxury. The leather is finer and the wood trims are more pronounced. There are also bits of chrome on the outside as well as inside. The car also gets 20-inch wheels with chrome alloys.

GranSport

For those that want to unleash the sportier nature of the Quattroporte, the GranSport package is what you want to pick up. It gives you much wider 21-inch wheels paired with red brake calipers. There is carbon fiber everywhere, especially on the inside. The seats are sportier and you also get a slightly more aggressive body kit. This package goes exceptionally well with the GTS version, thus giving you the best possible performance out of the Quattroporte.

How does it feel on the road?

There is something distinctive about the way Italian cars sound. The very workings of the engine and the warble from the exhaust tell you a story. It is almost like tuning into a symphony and the 2016 Maserati Quattroporte is nothing less than a masterpiece. The Ferrari-built engine means that when you start the car, you will feel its presence immediately.

2016 Maserati Quattroporte

Take it out on the roads and it is as if you are whisked away into a different world. The Quattroporte is an absolute pleasure to drive. The engine revs to the redline quite smoothly and you can hear the musical feedback from the exhaust. The eight-speed ZF transmission system means you do not skip a beat every time you floor it.

The car might be bulky, but the adaptive Skyhook suspension and the steering combine well to give you a very nuanced feel of the road. The latter in particular feels like a lost art, the steering is so good you immediately feel more confident. It gives you an innate awareness of your speed and of the sheer weight of the car, without surprising you. No other sedan in this category can give you the performance or the driving pleasure, this is a fact.

The verdict

There is no denying that the Maserati is not the best-in-class sedan on offer. However, we tend to forget that the 2016 Maserati Quattroporte does not want to be. It is a car for those that want to own something unique. It is a car for those that wish to drive more often rather than lounge in the back seat. The Quattroporte is a Maserati first and a luxury sedan second.

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