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Rolls-Royce Ghost vs Maserati Ghibli

What's the difference?

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Rolls-Royce Ghost
Rolls-Royce Ghost

2021 price

Maserati Ghibli
Maserati Ghibli

$119,990 - $208,880

2021 price

Summary

2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost
2021 Maserati Ghibli
Safety Rating

Engine Type
V12, 6.6L

S/C & T/C V8, 3.8L
Fuel Type
Premium Unleaded Petrol

Premium Unleaded Petrol
Fuel Efficiency
14.3L/100km (combined)

12.3L/100km (combined)
Seating
5

5
Dislikes
  • Numb steering
  • Thirsty
  • Vast turning circle

  • Seats lovely but a bit firm
  • Confused sense of identity
  • Expensive
2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost Summary

Rolls-Royce says its out-going Ghost is the most successful model in the company’s 116-year history. 

Not bad, when you consider the first ‘Goodwood’ Ghost has ‘only’ been around since 2009. And although the factory isn’t quoting specific numbers, that all-time best-seller claim means it’s surpassed the more than 30,000 Silver Shadows produced from 1965 all the way through to 1980.

Unlike the brand’s Phantom flagship, the Ghost is designed for owners who want to drive, as well as be driven. The aim is a less conspicuous, more engaging experience, and according to Rolls-Royce Motor Cars CEO, Torsten Müller-Ötvös, development of this new generation Ghost involved a lot of listening. 

He says a team of “Luxury Intelligence Specialists” connected with Ghost owners around the globe to gain a clearer understanding of their likes and dislikes. And the result is this car.

While its predecessor’s engineering DNA included more than a few strands of BMW 7 Series (BMW owns Rolls-Royce), this all-new car stands alone on an all-RR alloy platform also underpinning the Cullinan SUV and Phantom flagship.

The factory claims the only parts carried over from the prior model are the ’Spirit of Ecstasy’ ornament on the nose, and the umbrellas slipped into the doors (the holders for them are heated, by the way).

We were offered the opportunity to slip behind the wheel for a day, and the experience was a revelation.

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2021 Maserati Ghibli Summary

Maseratis make a certain amount of sense to a certain kind of person. As the folks who run the brand in Australia will tell you, its buyers are the kind of people who’ve driven German premium vehicles, but find themselves wanting something more. 

They are older, wiser and, most importantly, richer. 

While it’s easy to see the high-end lure of Maserati’s Italian sex appeal styling and luxuriously appointed interiors, they’ve always struck me as cruisers rather than bruisers. 

Again, they’re for the older, more generously padded buyer, which makes the Trofeo range something of an oddity. Maserati says its Trofeo badge - seen here on its mid-sized sedan, the Ghibli, which sits below the vast Quattroporte limousine (and side on to the other car in the range, the SUV Levante) - is all about the "Art of Fast". 

And it certainly is fast, with a whopping V8 driving the rear wheels. It’s also completely bonkers, a luxury car with the heart of a track-chomping monster. 

Which is why Maserati chose to launch it at the Sydney Motorsport Park complex, where we could see just how quick and crazy it is. 

The big question is, why? And perhaps who, because it’s hard to imagine who wants, or needs, a car with such severe schizophrenia. 

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Deep dive comparison

2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost 2021 Maserati Ghibli

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