The Maserati GranTurismo S Limited Edition isn’t the only exclusive Maserati that has come out this week. Joining the sports car in the fold is this luxurious Maserati GranCabrio Sport Poltrona Frau.
We understand your curiosity about the Poltrona Frau name because we’ve never heard of it either until now. Turns out, Poltrona Frau is an Italian interior and furniture design and leather upholstery company that has had a partnership with Maserati since 2001. To celebrate the 10th year anniversary of the two companies’ partnership, Poltrona Frau customized the GranCabrio Sport’s interior with a special leather treatment that touches on soft, luxurious comfort. As if the GranCabrio Sport needed any more luxurious touch-ups.
On top of the finely-dressed interior, the GranCabrio Sport also has a minor performance improvement from the standard version, courtesy of a faster and more fuel efficient MC Auto Shift transmission. As a result, the GranCabrio Sport’s 4.7-liter V8 engine now produces 450 horsepower, an increase of 10 ponies from the standard model. The result is 0-62 mph acceleration time of 5.2 seconds with a top speed of 177 mph.
We love Fiat’s partnership with Gucci and the resulting 500 by Gucci born from it. However, with all due respect to those two, the latest collaboration between Italian automaker and Italian fashion house is making us drool. The car is a Maserati GranCabrio. The fashion house is Fendi. The result is the GranCabrio Fendi, a car that has been described as "a masterpiece of technology and craftsmanship."
And that just might be an understatement.
To begin with, the GranCabrio has been finished with a special dark grey, three-layer body color with an iridescent golden finish on the surface. Then there are wood trims across the dashboard, doors, and gear lever, complemented by yellow painted brake calipers. The seats have been dressed with Fendi’s iconic ’double F’ logo with the headrests embroidered with yellow stitching featuring Maserati’s famous trident logo.
In addition, the special edition GranCabrio also features a silver oval plaque on the dashboard, displaying the Maserati trident, the Fendi logo, and the five-digit series number. There’s also a special black car cover and to top everything off, there’s also a Limited Edition Travel Set of Fendi luggage and accessories.
For all the changes done on the car’s looks, the powertrain and corresponding output remains the same. What this means is that you’ll still get the 4.7-liter V8 engine with 433 horsepower and 362 lb/ft of torque with a top speed 180 mph.
Maserati has yet to release the financial damage this car will have on our accounts, but to be honest, we’d probably fork over whatever figure it sells for just because we’re completely smitten with it. The paint finish alone already caused our jaws to drop to the floor.
UPDATE 09/22/2011: Maserati has just released a video that provides a look behind the scenes of the GranCabrio Fendi. It’s a slow starter, complete with elevator music and a slow sketch of the Maserati, but it shows everything from the work on the body down to the stitching of the seats.
Sitting in the shadows of its more-esteemed sister - or in this case, brother - brand has long been one of Maserati’s shortcomings. It’s not a fair tag to put on the Italian brand, but the fact is, Ferrari’s larger-than-life status in the industry has made it frustratingly difficult for Maserati to step out of the enormous shadow of the Prancing Horse.
But to say that Maserati isn’t trying is likewise a slap in the face of the Italian automaker. And to be completely on the up-and-up, if there’s a car that can definitely make the world stand up and take notice, the brand’s new 2012 GranCabrio Convertible Sport is that car. Scheduled to be unveiled at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, the newest Maserati GranCabrio Convertible is nothing short of jaw-dropping.
The design of the car is stunning, the body color is resplendent, and the powertrain is by no means a slouch. All three things that are important to any supercar, Maserati hits right out of the park with the GranCabrio Convertible Sport.
Now we understand that a man’s taste is totally subjective, but in the case of the GranCabrio Convertible Sport, it makes the discussion completely moot.
UPDATE 08/02/11: After finding out just how much it will cost us to buy one of the babies, Maserati has now revealed an online configurator for the new model to tempt us even more with the growing number of options. Get your kicks by customizing the car’s exterior color, wheels, calipers, and the color of the soft top! In conjunction to the configurator, the company has also revealed the first presentation video for the new GranCabrio Sport. Enjoy!
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The current Maserati line-up includes the Quattroporte, the GranTurismo, and the GranCabrio, but things are about to get a little more populated with addition of a new sedan and a new SUV. The company has already begun developing these models and we should start see the fruits of their labor sometime in 2012, with the last model - the SUV - arriving in 2014. Before that, a new generation Quattroporte will be coming off of the production block, followed by a smaller model that will take on the likes of the BMW 5-Series.
Both sedans are being designed by Pininfarina and the Fiat Auto Centro Stile as we speak and they will be offered with either a 400-hp MultiAir-equipped, turbocharged version of the Pentastar V-6 or a 300 HP V6 turbo-diesel. The engines will be mated to a ZF eight-speed automatic gearbox that will help improve fuel consumption.
The new SUV arriving in 2014 - earlier said to be 2012 - will be the first one landing on the Maserati lineup and will be based on the Grand Cherokee platform. Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Chrysler Group and Fiat, has already confirmed that the new model will be fitted with a "rock and roll engine" from Ferrari, possibly in both V8 and V12 variants. The company has already invested $750 million for its production.
Maserati has revealed an impressive video that shows their entire line-up in action. The GranTurismo MC Stradale, the GranCabrio, the GranTurismo, and the Quattroporte are all presented showing off their stuff and tempting all of us to choose their favorite Maserati model. We couldn’t make that decision, so we’ll leave it up to you to decide which model would be the best for a perfect summer drive.
We’re big fans of Maserati anyway, but now that the company has brought the GranTurismo MC to the American market, we have many more reasons to appreciate it. We have to remind you that the MC will be the fastest model ever offered by Maserati over in the States, so if you want a pretty cool car in your garage this might be the perfect time to start saving. And save that cash fast, as we’d bet money the car will only be offered in limited numbers.
