The GranLusso is the very finest version of the 2018 Maserati Quattroporte, full of so many lovely soft-touch surfaces that you barely notice the switches out of the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles parts bin. Here are five interesting things we found in this $136,160 sedan.
(Full Disclosure: Maserati loaned Jalopnik this Quattroporte to drive and review.)
1. The Engine Has to Go to Two Countries to Be Assembled
The Quattroporte has two engine options: the S and SQ4 models come with a twin-turbocharged V6 with a healthy 424 horsepower. The sportier GTS model’s twin-turbo V8 is rated to make 523.
This car in question comes with the nice-sounding V6. Maserati says these engines are “built at the Ferrari factory in Maranello, Italy.” But not before the aluminum blocks are cast at Chrysler’s foundry in Kokomo, Ind. as Automotive News discovered around when this generation of the Quattroporte came out.
The rest of the car is put together at FCA’s factory in Grugliasco near Turin, Italy. Then it immigrates back to America and shows up at a dealership. So, at the end of the day, these Maserati engines travel more than I do, and reminds me that I need to get back to Italy. Italy has great food, especially delicious tomatoes.
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2. Luxurious Zegna Silk and Leather Interior
Stepping inside, immediately I thought: “Oh yes, this is what a Maserati feels like.” That sort of expensive that I would never be able to afford. Unlike the GranSport trim, which I am sure is still nice, but you know, less luxurious, this GranLusso comes with Zegna silk and leather upholstery all over the interior. Literally, coating it, which looks and feels glorious.
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Ermenegildo Zegna, in case you were curious, is a high-end company that makes clothing, shoes, and accessories for men. How high-end? $1,000 cashmere sweaters and $450 belts sort of high-end. The partnership with Maserati for a clothing line, as well as these stunning interiors, is almost too fitting. Who wouldn’t want leather Maserati driving shoes for a casual cruise in their Quattroporte?
It’s a good thing the surfaces are this nice, because you need to be reminded you’re in an expensive car when you catch a glimpse of a switch or button that you might recognize from a cheaper FCA product.
3. A Disguised ECO Mode Button
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Unlike most cars with multiple driving modes, which have a clearly labeled “ECO” mode button, or menu option, Maserati has “I.C.E.” which stands for, you guessed it, (did you? No, I doubt it) “Increased Control and Efficiency.”
Maserati claims that this mode makes the car shift gently, and save as much fuel as possible. For the small window of time that I didn’t drive the Quattroporte in Sport Mode,I rotated between Normal and I.C.E., and to be honest I couldn’t feel a significant difference.
4. Trunk Release Will Stump Everyone
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“Good luck [finding it],” my colleague Mike Ballaban said to me, as we pulled up to JFK airport and I had to let him access his luggage. After feeling around to the left side of the steering wheel for a good minute, yes, I was lovingly stroking the car’s leather, I looked up and there it was.
The ceiling has to be the strangest location I have seen for a trunk release button, especially in a sedan. Not exactly intuitive, and I am unsure if that reads as luxury but that’s where it is, a few mere centimeters away from the (small) sunroof adjustment buttons.
5. Leg Room Adjustment Buttons in the Rear
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As you are driven in your Maserati, it can be a hassle to speak to the plebs in front of you to ask them to kindly move their seat forward to give you more legroom.
There is a solution for this problem (provided you spring for the $3,990 rear center console option with individual climate controls including heated and cooled seats, as well as rear and side sunblinds) and it is right at your fingertips with the arrowed buttons in the side of the backseat’s center console.
These buttons allow you to move the seat in front of you further forward to really relax. (BMW also has had this feature it in its more premium model, the 7 series, but somehow that car makes it feel rude, whereas the Maserati makes it feel like luxury.)
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