Maserati Quattroporte Automatic first drive

Maserati GB rolled out the Quattroporte range, both the current DuoSelect and the new Automatic models, to the motoring media at the Millbrook Proving Ground last week.

The high speed oval and the various handling courses, including the notorious Hill Route, were all available but with much of the surface being of concrete, ride and comfort characteristics are not easy to judge.

I opted for driving the Quattrosport Automatic on public roads in the conditions we all experience everyday of our motoring lives. These include poor road surfaces, traffic congestion and A and B winding roads.

The Quattroporte is without question an elegant four-door sports saloon, stunning to look at and with a superbly equipped luxurious interior. It is a big and heavy car but it really doesn’t look its true size from the outside because of the elegant sports styling. It has huge road presence, you will be noticed.

Inside as I said it is luxurious and the exact specification any driver chooses just fine-tunes their purchase. The car is technically a five-seat saloon and at a pinch will take three adults in the rear.

The electronic adjustment of the rear seat does allow for increased legroom although it is not in the same league as the Mercedes, Audi or BMW equivalents. The quality and finish seems excellent, not Maserati of old where quality control was a serious issue.

The car is hushed on the inside and overall is an excellent package and good value for money, especially if the residual values can be improved with demand outstripping supply.

The 400bhp V8 petrol engine is a real joy, immense power, hugely responsive and gives this heavy car a real turn of speed. It also sounds fantastic under full power acceleration conditions.

Having the automatic transmission, which still has the option of tiptronic type manual gear changes, really is the best choice for this type of car in this sector. The software in the electronic transmission learns your driving style and adapts the response settings automatically.

Alternatively push the Sport button and instantly the car’s brain sharpens up the suspension, steering, throttle and gearshift patterns. In normal mode, the car rides flat and level with plenty of grip but the suspension feels a little too soft on anything other than motorways.

In Sports mode, whilst I enjoyed the better steering and throttle responses, the suspension was just that little bit less compliant and too hard resulting in a jittery and unsettled ride at higher speeds over normal road surfaces.

Overall the Quattroporte Automatic is highly desirable, it is not perfect, but it does have character and it is now a viable alternative in a sector dominated by German models.

Maserati Quattroporte Automatic

Price: From £77,090, main selling model the Sport GT at £83,290

Engine: 4.2-litre, V8 petrol, normally aspirated, 400hp, 460Nm of torque at 4,250rpm

Transmission: Six-speed ZF automatic, front mounted, rear wheel drive

Performance: 167mph, 0-62mpg 5.6 seconds, 19.2mpg, CO2 345g/km, VED Band G £300 this year £400 next year

For: Elegant saloon with sporting looks, well equipped, seemingly good value for money, having an automatic transmission option, fantastic engine.

Against: High running costs, jittery ride over some surfaces, reliability and long term quality yet to be proven