2018 MASERATI GRANTURISMO COUPE AND CONVERTIBLE FIRST DRIVE REVIEW

One for the ages

Seven years ago, boss man Loh called in a favor at Maserati and got me a just-released GranCabrio for three days in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna province at the tail end of my honeymoon. My wife and I still talk about that blue-on-blue drop-top. It’s fair to say the car holds a special place in my heart.
Why shouldn’t it? The GranTurismo is the most beautiful production car to come out of the ‘00s and one of the best-looking cars of the last 10 years (not to mention the best-sounding). Maserati has mostly been clever enough not to mess with a good thing, though I haven’t cared for their tinkering with the front fascia over the years, adding big jowls to the front.

I’m far more pleased with the new nose on the 2018 Maserati GranTurismo. It replaces the oversized crescent-shaped scoops with triangular ones, which draw less attention. I’d be thrilled, even, if they were functional, but it’s a good step in the right direction. The grille itself is also reshaped, a rounded hexagon replacing an oval, its points complementing the triangular lower grilles.


As long as we’re on the subject of what’s new, we might as well finish it off. There’s a new infotainment system based on parent company Fiat Chrysler’s Uconnect technology. A new 8.4-inch touchscreen occupies most of the center stack with graphics suitably differentiated from other FCA products. It’s also home to a new rearview camera and can alternatively be controlled by a rotary knob next to the shifter. To accommodate the larger screen, the center stack and dash top have been altered slightly, and the analog clock has been updated. A Harmon-Kardon stereo is now standard.

Fully subscribed to the philosophy of not fixing what isn’t broken, Maserati has otherwise left the GranTurismo and its convertible variant, the GranCabrio (or GranTurismo Convertible as it’s called in the U.S.), alone. The model lineup has been simplified with each car coming in either Sport or MC (Maserati Corsa) trim levels, but the car remains as customizable as ever with 16 paint options, 13 interior colors, five interior trim options, 14 wheel options, and nine brake caliper colors.

Under the hood, the Ferrari-built 4.7-liter V-8 continues to produce 454 horsepower and 384 lb-ft of torque. The base 4.2-liter V-8 is gone, as is the optional six-speed automated-manual transmission. The only choice now is the six-speed automatic with paddle shifters the size of boomerangs. It drives a mechanical limited-slip differential, which drives the rear wheels only. At the corners, control arms with two-mode active dampers remain standard equipment, as do Brembo brakes supplemented by new Pirelli PZero tires. Maserati claims the new nose reduces drag and makes the underbody more aerodynamically efficient, though fuel economy remains unchanged at 13/21/16 mpg city/highway/ combined for the coupe and 13/20/15 for the convertible.