2000 Maserati 3200 Reviews

Peter Anderson road tests and reviews the Maserati Quattroporte GTS with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

Ferrari doesn't want more customers, or at least not many. It doesn't want to cash in on the SUV boom.

Maserati's emblem depicts a weapon, which is now turned threateningly in the direction of Porsche and Range Rover.The new Levante, the latest model from the boutique Italian brand with the trident badge, aims to challenge well-established luxury SUV rivals built elsewhere in Europe.Maserati chief Harald Wester told the crowd at the Levante’s Geneva unveiling that it was “a truly unique alternative to the rest”.The German-born engineer cites the Maserati’s technical advantages. The big, tall and broad SUV has a lower centre of gravity than competitors and ideal 50-50 weight distribution front and rear. It’s been designed to handle well on normal roads, in other words.Wester claims the Levante can match the best in class all-round capability, meaning it’s been engineered to cope with snow and sand, mud and rocks.An SUV was always part of Maserati’s brand-revival master plan, he says.The Levante shares many mechanical parts and much of its structure with the successful Ghibli and Quattroporte sedans. Both started production years before Levante but the SUV was taken into account at the design stage.Road testing will establish whether the Levante can do all Wester says it can. In the case of Australia, that is some way off.Levante production is under way in Turin but Europe, the US and other large markets head the queue for deliveries.Maserati Australasia boss Glen Sealey expects the first Levante shipment to reach Australia at the end of the year.They will all be diesel powered, he says, with the same 202kW 3.0-litre turbo diesel V6 used in the Ghibli and Quattroporte. “That is the most important drivetrain,” Sealey says, noting the dominance of diesels in the luxury SUV market in Australia.Pricing is yet to be decided but Maserati’s cheapest current model is the $140,000 Ghibli diesel. Levantes will have an eight-speed automatic and Maserati’s Q4 all-wheel-drive. Petrol engine options will be 243kW and 301kW versions of the company’s twin-turbo 3.0-litre V6, produced by Ferrari.These engines are not confirmed for Australia but Sealey reckons the Levante will become the brand’s best-selling model here.

Peter Anderson road tests and reviews the Maserati Quattroporte 330BHP with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

Luxury car buyers will again be spoiled for choice this year, with a new arrival to suit every budget.

Peter Anderson road tests and reviews the Maserati GranTurismo MC Sport with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

While Australian new-car sales may be heading for another record and most Top 10 brands are up, the latest figures show prestige marques are outpacing the rest of the market.

Richard Blackburn road tests and reviews the Maserati Quattroporte S with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.

The race to build the world's costliest and most outrageous SUV just shifted into high gear.

The total of 105,054 registrations was one of the best ever and confirms an upswing in February, following a Reserve Bank interest rate cut.The figures, obtained by News Corp Australia ahead of their official release next Tuesday, show a broad-based rebound among private and business buyers and across all vehicle types.One in every three vehicles registered is now a high-rider.SUVs accounted for the bulk of the additional 7800 sales with demand up 15.3 per cent, led by Mazda's CX-5.One in every three vehicles registered is now a high-rider.However, the Toyota HiLux spearheaded a resurgence in light-commercial demand, with 2000 additional private buyers cancelling out a fall in business purchases. Rather than looking to utes, fleets bought an extra 1400 passenger cars over the same month last year in a rare boost for the traditional format.Toyota's Corolla, which was March best-seller with almost 4300 sales, and the company's locally built Camry, with deliveries up 11 per cent over last year, were two of the main beneficiaries.But Holden and Ford's Australian-made vehicles failed to fire, with the recently refreshed Falcon finding only 700 buyers and Commodore sales slipping 18 per cent.Ford's Melbourne-made Territory SUV also missed out on the sunshine, with sales down 15 per cent, while Holden's Adelaide-built small car, the Cruze, slumped 24 per cent.Most mainstream carmakers had a strong month but luxury brands were among the biggest winnersAs all three Australian makers prepare to halt production over the next two years, fewer than one in 12 vehicles sold is made locally.Most mainstream carmakers had a strong month but luxury brands were among the biggest winners, with Mercedes recording a 30 per cent increase and its second-highest number of registrations ever.The new Mercedes C-Class, which this week was awarded the World Car of the Year accolade during a ceremony in New York, is on a roll and outsold all other mid-size cars at any price except the Camry.Most premium makers outperformed the overall market, with demand for Lexus and BMW both up 14 per cent. Land Rover was up 19 per cent, Audi 22 per cent, Porsche 87 per cent and Maserati tripling its sales compared with March last year.