Wednesday 7th February 2018

Maserati Quattroporte: Spotted

A reminder of a time when Maserati wasn't focused on diesel SUVs...

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It feels like quite a long time since Maserati released a car worth getting excited about. The Ghibli was a missed opportunity and the Levante can only be judged a success in PH books if it brings in the money to build new 'proper' cars. There haven't been any of those for a while though.

This sees us casting our minds further back, to Maserati's re-emergence as a manufacturer of desirable sporting saloons, and to the fifth generation of Quattroporte. First produced in 2004, it boasted svelte Italian styling and a sumptuous, naturally aspirated, 4.2-litre V8, putting out 406hp and 339lb ft - and bestowing it with a 170mph top speed.

Today's Spotted seems a very nice example, too. First off, and most importantly, the original owner correctly specced it with the six-speed ZF automatic 'box, rather than the ruinous - mechanically and financially - DuoSelect automated manual which earlier cars were lumped with. Then there's the equipment list, which seems to include, well, almost everything that you could put in a car a decade ago. And finally, there's the appearance, with a nice subtle spec and everything - bar a little wear on the seats - appearing to be in tip top condition. For a shade under £16,000 it'd be hard to imagine getting much more Maserati for your money.

As our Buying Guide points out though, even in its best form, running a Quattroporte is not for the faint of heart. Maintenance costs can run into the thousands, while fuel economy can rarely be expected to rise out of the teens. This may no longer be the £70,000-plus car it once was, but it will certainly have retained the running costs of the automotive echelon to which it is accustomed. What the sleepless nights worrying about that rattle you think you heard, and newfound familiarity with your local petrol stations will earn you, though, is a fantastic example of what Maserati can do when it puts its mind to it. A magnificent engine, a spine tingling soundtrack accompanying you on every drive, and a level of style and sophistication that none of the German equivalents can hope to match.

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SPECIFICATION - MASERATI QUATTROPORTE

Engine: 4,244cc, V8
Transmission: 6-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 406@7,000rpm
Torque (lb ft): 339@4,500rpm
MPG: 19.2 (NEDC combined)
CO2: 340g/km
First registered: 2007
Recorded mileage: 51,000
Price new: £80,220
Price now: £15,990

See the full ad here.

[Turbobanana]

Love it, and a lot of car for the money.

Can't help but think that Maserati should go back to doing what they originally did - building sports / supercars. A decent rival to the likes of McLaren, Pagani, Lamborghini etc, plus an SUV cash cow, should prove popular, no?

Plenty of history to reference back to...

[Never you mind]

Turbobanana said:

Love it, and a lot of car for the money.

Can't help but think that Maserati should go back to doing what they originally did - building sports / supercars. A decent rival to the likes of McLaren, Pagani, Lamborghini etc, plus an SUV cash cow, should prove popular, no?

Plenty of history to reference back to...

They have an SUV cash cow, it looks terrible.

[greggy50]

Is it possible to purchase a decent aftermarket warranty on one of these?

Even if it was say £3k a year it would still probably be good value and provide some piece of mind...

[Turbobanana]

Never you mind said:

Turbobanana said:

Love it, and a lot of car for the money.

Can't help but think that Maserati should go back to doing what they originally did - building sports / supercars. A decent rival to the likes of McLaren, Pagani, Lamborghini etc, plus an SUV cash cow, should prove popular, no?

Plenty of history to reference back to...

They have an SUV cash cow, it looks terrible.

Agreed - should have said "an attractive SUV cash cow".

Although Porsche seem to have done OK with the Cayenne, which has all the visual appeal of a dustbin.

[warrench]

greggy50 said:

Is it possible to purchase a decent aftermarket warranty on one of these?

Even if it was say £3k a year it would still probably be good value and provide some piece of mind...

With these, and any masser new or old, that is what you'd want to budget annually for maintenance plus a bit on the side in a sinking fund for the bigger 2-3 year jobs, so not sure how much value you'd get out of that kind of warranty IMHO. They aren't wrong in the article when they say even if it's mondeo money for an Italian exotic, the operating costs are still the same and you have to expect/budget for that.

It's worth it though - after the sleepless nights and staring down the barrel of impending financial ruin, you do just fall in love with these and they drive your soul!

[Dr Nookie]

Turbobanana said:

Agreed - should have said "an attractive SUV cash cow".

Although Porsche seem to have done OK with the Cayenne, which has all the visual appeal of a dustbin.

The Cayenne works in the same way as Uggs. They look ridiculous but they cost enough money to make people think they're a good way to prove you've got some money. If Uggs were 20 quid everyone would laugh at them as the joke they are.

[feef]

If I was re-doing my 'garage', I'd have a second hand Leaf for day to day, and one of these for everything else.

[acme]

It'll be interesting to hear from anyone who's run one of these for a reasonable amount of time and what the true implications are.

At 16k it looks superb, obviously as has been said you have to factor in that it's still got 70k car running costs, and you can guarantee the past couple of owners have bypassed some bigger jobs, even if only preventative maintenance ones.

[Davey S2]

My old man ran one of these for a few years. Sounded brilliant and handled very well for a massive 4 door saloon.

Don't think he had any big issues with it but could have just been lucky.

[vanman1936]

greggy50 said:

Is it possible to purchase a decent aftermarket warranty on one of these?

Even if it was say £3k a year it would still probably be good value and provide some piece of mind...

Warranty Direct are very good - about £1.3k on my Gran Turismo (excludes suspension parts)

[jet_noise]

Even "man-measuring" my garage won't make one fit

[Helicopter123]

That dash is horrific - its lit up like a Halfords special.

These are ruinous to run.

Still, all said, strangely quite fancy one...

[DevonPaul]

greggy50 said:

Is it possible to purchase a decent aftermarket warranty on one of these?

Even if it was say £3k a year it would still probably be good value and provide some piece of mind...

One of my neigbours pays that to lease a Kia Sportage. This came to light when he was asking how much my maser cost to run and over the last 5 years it has been well under £2k/year.

The expensive bill is the clutch, though not a problem on the ZF box fitted to this car, and Nareman (Nuvola) has a reputation for selling good examples

Personally I might go for one with a few less electronic options though

[Turbobanana]

Helicopter123 said:

That dash is horrific - its lit up like a Halfords special.

No it isn't. It's just not "German".

[Bustedmattress]

I have one. A 2009 on a private plate. I have had it for over 6 years. Budget 2-2.5k per year for servicing. Some years it costs nothing and others £4K. Budget well and all will be good.

The dash on mine is much nicer than that looks on the photo. It is raked nicely towards the driver. I am told modeled on a speedboat. Driving it is lovely. I have said this elsewhere - it is the only modern car I have ever owned which is still get excited about walking towards it today as the day I picked it up from Maserati all those years ago.

The noise is as good as it is billed. It is not the quickest thing on the road but plenty quick enough and the power is delivered in a smooth seemingly never ending flow - to the red line in each gear.

It is not the best screwed together car in the world. They had reliability issues. Mine has never broken down but the battery has to be kept conditioned.

This is a heart not head car. If you want total reliability it is not for you. If you love sound, shape, road presence and driving behind a ruddy great trident it could be.

As you can guess I love mine.

[mrbarnett]

Turbobanana said:

Helicopter123 said:

That dash is horrific - its lit up like a Halfords special.

No it isn't. It's just not "German".

I think it's the green lighting that ruins it for me. That said, in a world a quick filters that blow colours out of all proportion, I wonder if it'd look nicer in real life? A green hue that's more Jag and less Ford Orion?

[kambites]

Fabulous amount of car for the money, but unfortunately it's going to have the running costs of an £80k Italian car.

[BFleming]

Pistonheads said:

... the original owner correctly specced it with the six-speed ZF automatic 'box, rather than the ruinous - mechanically and financially - DuoSelect automated manual which earlier cars were lumped with

Let's start by giving this car its correct title - the Quattroporte Automatica. This gearbox option was launched in early 2007 alongside the DuoSelect. The DuoSelect had its gearbox in the rear, but the Automatica's went in the front. It seems blue cam covers are the giveaway, but seeing as the vendor didn't include any engine shots we will have to believe that they're there
The DuoSelect was binned when the Quattroporte was facelifted in mid 2008 (2009 model year), and this ZF transmission became the only choice from that point forward, irrespective whether you chose the 4.2 or the new 4.7.
As this Quattroporte is a one year only (well, 18 months) model, being pre-facelift but conventional auto, it's a bit of a rare beast, and not too badly priced either!

[jaisharma]

Ours is a 2008 ZF box QP and we've had it for six years. Echo most of the comments from Owners above - I am sure there are "better" cars but even now it is hard to think of anything with four doors that is more desirable.

Ours is used a lot and just crossed 100k miles. I'm not worried (too much) about an impending explosion.

[Equus]

BFleming said:

It seems blue cam covers are the giveaway

...well, that and the fact that the slushbox (ZF automatic) has a proper gearlever, whereas the Duoselect only has flappy paddles and a silly little metal toggle to select reverse.