Maserati Quattroporte to Get a True Automatic Gearbox
If Maserati’s Quattroporte has an Achilles heal, it isn’t styling, or its sumptuous interior, phenomenal active suspension system or glorious Ferrari-derived V8 engine. No, only its F1-inspired, paddle-shift actuated, six-speed sequential-manual transmission, also sourced from Ferrari, has received criticism.
While ideal for the prancing horse brand’s mid-engine F430 supercar or Maserati’s GT Coupe and Spyder Grand Sport models, the Cambiocorsa electrohydraulic gearbox, reconfigured from its Ferrari roots for smoother shifts, is nevertheless considered by some to be too course and balky for a luxury car.
To quell critics and deliver more refined power delivery, the conventional automatic will be available on 2007 model year Quattroporte sedans. Even Maserati S.p.A. CEO Karl-Heinz Kalbfell is on record saying the current transmission has hampered Quattroporte sales.
“It is to some extent a limiting factor for those who want an easy operation,” commented Kalbfell, taking question at a Maserati event in Modena, Italy. “You cannot just put a car like a Maserati down and say, ‘Here is the key.’ ”
No information is available as to where Maserati will source its upcoming automatic, the first conventional auto to be used since a previous-generation Quattroporte. It is possible that the Italian brand will look to Volkswagen Group and its ultra-smooth six-speed with manual-shift mode with paddle-shift actuation, due to a working relationship in component sharing, but VW owns Bentley, its new Continental Flying Spur more expensive, but nevertheless a direct competitor to the Quattroporte.