Category: Large Executive 
Price Range: No data available
Superb ride and handling; luxurious; stylish; great engine/gearbox combo.
Switchgear could be better; sat nav is unreliable and unintuitive; expensive, especially when you start adding options.
This new, more powerful and sportier Quattroporte is great to drive and has a real presence on the road.
The Quattroporte S is a cracking car to drive. The new 4.7-litre V8 engine, previously fitted in the GranTurismo S, generates 425bhp and 358lb-ft of torque, allowing the car to reach 62mph from a standing start in 5.4 seconds. Does it feel that powerful? Oh yes.
There's plenty of power on tap right throughout the rev range (82% of the torque is available at 2,500rpm), which makes overtaking a breeze. Of course, it's not sports-car quick, but when you consider that the Quattroporte is an executive saloon car, you get a whole new perspective. The engine is mated to a six-speed automatic gearbox that does justice to the engine: shifts are smooth and instantaneous, plus there's the option of changing gear manually using the paddleshifts behind the steering wheel.
Pressing the Sport button on the centre console not only adjusts the Skyhook suspension system but also affects the transmission, allowing it to hold on to gears for longer, shifting higher up the rev range.
The steering is also superb: the electro-hydraulic rack and pinion system is linear and progressive, meaning that the car turns in precisely in response to inputs. You therefore have complete confidence in its reactions on even the most challenging driving roads. The car is also perfectly balanced, with a 49/51% weight distribution front to rear, so it's perfectly composed at all times and in all conditions.
The dual-cast (made from cast iron and aluminium), six-pot Brembo brakes have excellent stopping power, although there's some travel in the pedal before they kick in. You soon get used to it, but it's a problem we previously encountered in the Sport GT S and it's a little disappointing that Maserati hasn't included it in the list of changes it has made in building the Quattroporte S.
