Maserati Ghibli

The first “popular” Modenese brand on the catwalk at the Shanghai Show. And it’s diesel powered. There’s a certain breeze running through the Trident that smells of revolution – the goal is to double sales in three years.

The name sounds like it’s from as far away as it gets. The Maserati Ghibli was, in fact, a sleek two-seater that (from 1967 to 73) gave the Ferrari Daytona and Lamborghini Miura – icons of the time – a run for their money.

In the present day, its ambitions are to go far – very far. The new sedan measures less than 5 meters (4.97 to be exact), and should provide a substantial contribution to the rather ambitious objective of reaching annual sales of 50,000 units before 2015. This is why Sergio Marchionne has defined it as a “historical jump.” To reach this goal, in addition to the sixth generation Quattroporte flagship, Maserati intends to do some repositioning of the brand – the protagonists of which are the yet-to-be-released Levante SUV and the Ghibli. The latter was presented at the Shanghai Show because China is already the second biggest market for the Modenese maker (after the US), and the one with the most growth potential.

But it’s not a baby Quattroporte

Built on an adapted platform of the Quattroporte, the Ghibli is 30 centimeters shorter than the flagship but a handful of centimeters longer than the competition (those sedans that speak primarily, if not exclusively, German). There is some resemblance with its older sister, but it has its own definitive character. The front has been revised, particularly the headlights and the grille.  The rear lights are similar, but not identical, and the rear end styling is much softer. The change in the interior design is even more marked – the dashboard of the Quattroporte has been developed completely horizontally, while in the Ghibli it’s more vertical and thicker.

No to eight cylinders

And obviously the engines are different. The 3.0 V6 – available in two variants, 330 and 410bhp – is a Maserati project developed in collaboration with Ferrari, and is assembled at Ferrari (the Ghibli, like the Quattroporte, will be assembled in the Bertone di Grugliasco plant). The combustion chambers, the phase variations, the direct injection, and the electronic control of the variable geometry turbochargers are, however, borrowed from the V8. For the most powerful version, the manufacturer proclaims a max speed of 285km/h and a 0 to 100km/h acceleration time of 4.8 seconds.

But the real revolution under the hood of the car is the 275bhp and the 600Nm torque of the VM motors-supplied turbo-diesel engine. This V6 is exceptional in a number of ways – a geometrically variable VGT turbocharger to reduce internal friction and, consequently, turbo lag; high-efficiency fuel injectors coupled with a 2,000 bar injection system to optimize combustion and geometrically variable intake manifolds for flawless delivery at all engine speeds.

All told, the Ghilbi will certainly have a lot riding on its shoulders when it hits the market in the near future.

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