Maserati Quattroporte Sport GT - don't mention light clusters

There's a certain sort of European car aficianado that will forever blame the Americas for the excision of a rather distinctive set of rear light clusters. The clusters in question belonged to the Maserati Coupé and were a delicious boot-edge hugging boomerang, loved by reviewers on the EU side of the pond but, thanks to a poor showing in US popularity research, were replaced by frankly dull slabs of red tinted plastic. At the time, Maserati was reasonably apologetic about it, but the obvious lure of a spreading market dangled dollar signs in front of Italian eyes.

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Niche, you see, is cool but not especially lucrative – particularly when you're owned by Ferrari and are inevitably seen as the loss-leading mass market option. So it must be to accountants' dismay and enthusiasts delight that the Maserati Quattroporte is still a rare sight on roads anywhere.

A four-door behemoth, snouty and sleek, forced along the road by a 4.2l V8 inside which they've managed to squish 400 feisty horses, the Quattroporte offered an interesting alternative to the capable-but-bland Mercedes S-Class, "Best Buy on wheels" BMW 7 Series or any number of wannabe-luxury American SUV pretenders (memo to all: rouched leather does not a quality car make. Few plutocrats want to drive round inside of a petrol-powered labia). Come 2006 and they've fettled it a little further, shoeing it with fancy low-profile tyres and gluing on "Sport GT" badges.

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As Jeremy Clarkson and The Truth About Cars cannot help but remind you, the awkward paddle gearshift is still, well, awkward. Perhaps save off your $115k purchase until the new automatic version arrives. But please, let that be the only concession to populus opinion – leave the supercar handling in place, don't dare flood the restrained interior with gauche cupholders. Because there are a fair few people with memories of light clusters who are just waiting for an excuse to start complaining.

Maserati International Portal

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