LEADERSHIP QUOTE OF THE DAY (23 May 2012): You gain STRENGTH| COURAGE AND CONFIDENCE by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do. - Eleanor Roosevelt
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Maserati GranTurismo
A year after its Geneva International Motor Show unveiling, New Zealand finally gets to see a bit of GranTurismo action. The Pininfarina-styled, performance-inspired vehicle takes its rightful place as the Italian carmaker’s range-topping model, sitting above the exisiting Maserati GranSport and Spyder sports cars and the luxurious Maserati Quattroporte performance sedan.
Overseas, the GranTurismo has already proven to be somewhat of a success for Maserati, becoming their fastest selling model of all time. And even though Australian and New Zealand deliveries have just started, they’re fulfilling an order book that is larger than Maserati’s entire sales in 2007.
This was also in spite of a 96 percent increase in Maserati Quattroporte sales in 2007.
Under its aggressively chiselled outer shell lurks a 4.2-litre V8 engine, producing 405 bhp/303 kW, which is transmitted to the tyres via an automatic gearbox and equipped with an adaptive control system, which adjusts the gear-shifting to suit the conditions.
And while the GranTurismo was unveiled here, the 2008 Geneva International Motor Show was host to the unveiling of the GranTurismo S (shown here).
To justify the addition of an “S” Maserati added a new 440 hp V8 4.7 engine and the new electro-actuated gearbox with fast MC-Shift.
The GranTurismo S also features front brake discs made with dual-cast technology – a mix of cast iron and aluminium, paired with aluminium mono-bloc, six-piston brake callipers.
The GranTurismo S has also had a couple of sporty but subtle body modifications that still do justice to original GranTurismo sleekness.
The Maserati GranTurismo S will make its way to New Zealand in early 2009. Pricing will be confirmed.