MASERATI GHIBLI DIESEL – TEST DRIVE – Passion and Reason

By Fabrizio Ferrari

As so often, I find myself in the small yard in front of Maserati showroom in Viale Ciro Menotti and She is there in front of me, glittering in her pearly white coat and pleasantly curvy, with her sleek and slender silhouette, as well as her powerful and almost threatening line, especially the front.

But one question whirls in my mind: how can it ever be a diesel Maserati? As everybody knows, in its history of over one hundred years, Maserati has never produced cars of this kind, and, in fact, many of the long-time fans have turned their noses up to the news of diesel models in the new Maserati range!!!

GHIBLI IS THE FIRST MASERATI OF ITS SEGMENT AND, OF COURSE, IN THE PREMIUM CLASS: THIS VERSION IS ALSO DIESEL!

She is the Ghibli, the “baby” of the family, much sportier and more dynamic, at least compared to the royal and even more comfortable and exclusive Quattroporte; but, in this case, it is the version with the 3.0 litre V6 turbo-diesel engine. Defining the Ghibli a “baby” is obviously an understatement. However, at least for Maserati, the Ghibli is the first car with the Trident logo on the hood to enter the classic E segment of executive luxury premium sedans!

It is now time to find out what really this Ghibli diesel offers and, in particular, if the fears of Maserati purists are justified or not! I open the door and sit on the comfortable seat upholstered in soft leather, in typical Maserati style. Already at a first glance, the interior gives an impression of luxury and accuracy. Closing the door and starting first to better observe and then fiddling with the controls, the sense of solidity and quality in particular tends to increase nicely… Yes! Really the impression is fantastic and, from the initial examination, it seems really a well built car, with a great selection of materials, with high quality finishes, and the assembly is really studied in detail: just like a true Maserati has to be! Luxurious, classy and well taken care of!

AN ABSOLUTELY UNEXPECTED AND INCREDIBLE “SOUND”

Of course now the fateful time has come: starting the engine! I am certainly very curious and, to its first awakening, the V6 produced by VM in Cento (Ferrara – Italy) and specifically re-designed by Maserati and Ferrari engineers, turns out to be surprisingly noiseless! As Maserati press officer at my side is explaining, soundproofing of the passenger compartment was particularly accurate in designing the car and, in fact, the typical unpleasant noises of diesel engines are so well muffled that they are almost unnoticeable from inside! Incredible! First surprise! But, as a lover of Maserati cars, I wonder if this is really the sound of the engine passengers hear … (as everybody knows, Maserati cars have one of the best ever “sound” for several years, in terms of engine roar,  in the world automotive sector…)

Maserati press officer sees amazement and disbelief on my face and immediately hastens to explain that the diesel version also has the traditional “sport” button, which excludes a portion of the final catalysts and “spices up” the management of the engine and transmission and, in this specific case, also starts a real “sound-maker” which, believe it or not, enhances and amplifies all the pleasant tones of the large V6 turbo-diesel engine. As soon as the button is pressed, the tone of tailpipes immediately becomes more acute and powerful and, at this point … the first doubts begin to arise… Is this engine really a diesel? …

The various controls are in all respects similar to that of the older sister Quattroporte (that I tested a year ago – test drive on MdM No. 18), as well as the transmission and trim management. Transmission is always eight-speed automatic. Especially in this case, it is essential for perfect management, even in heavy traffic, of the 275 hp of the V6 turbo-diesel engine.

ABSOLUTELY DOCILE AND MANAGEABLE EVEN IN CITY TRAFFIC; YOU ONLY NEED TO QUICKLY GET USED TO ITS DIMENSIONS, ESPECIALLY IN WIDTH

I start slowly with automatic transmission (base start-up option): the guardian raises the entrance bar, I greet him. I leave the company premises, and immediately join the city traffic of Modena. I am trying to get a feel, but the Ghibli, especially in this mode, is incredibly manageable and I need to get used quickly to the considerable dimensions of the car, especially with regard to its width!

In fact, not surprisingly, Maserati engineers worked on optimal weight distribution, obtained mainly by placing the fuel tank in the back, but under the rear seat (which allowed not only to get a huge space for the boot, even with the rear seatback folding, but mainly to significantly lower the centre of gravity).

All this, together with the special study of the suspension kinematics (double superimposed wishbone in the front and multilink in the rear) and especially a radically wider track (at least compared to the old Quattroporte and GranTurismo), allowed to substantially increase the footprint of the car on the ground, while lowering the roll centre, for a dynamic behaviour and road holding of a true sports car!!!

Once out of the city traffic, I join the bypass road and, as I have started to feel comfortable with driving the Ghibli, I press the “sport” button (next to the gear lever), and now I find myself with a car with far more exciting reactions. I take the ramp, check the traffic from the large rear-view mirrors (which are very useful and well designed), and I press firmly on the accelerator pedal to quickly open up a gap in traffic… but the sudden deceleration on the ramp combined with the equally sudden acceleration produce a brief moment of … emptiness … then, the explosion of power is rather sudden and continuous and the Ghibli darts forward!!! Incredible: if this is a diesel … LONG LIVE THE DIESEL!!!

However, I was not fully convinced about that moment of hesitation, which still persists in other situations, indeed very special, such as entering a roundabout, where I am forced to brake a little abruptly; the engine revs fall to idle and, accelerating thereafter with decision (to speed up the entry into the roundabout), yet that moment of … emptiness, before the powerful and reassuring push forward!

THE REAL SURPRISE IS THE COMBINATION OF THE V6 TURBO-DIESEL ENGINE WITH AN AUTOMATIC 8-GEAR TRANSMISSION THAT, IF WELL MANAGED, PRODUCES ALMOST LIGHTNING SPRINTS, FOLLOWED BY VIGOROUS AND PROGRESSIVE THRUSTS

Later, travelling on the motorway to Milan, in the midst of the usual traffic of the A1 consisting mostly of heavy and bulky trucks, which very often occupy almost entirely the first two lanes (passing each other with a speed differential that is almost … ridiculous … but often creating a real danger …), I find myself often having to brake decisively in the second lane, because I am squeezed between a truck that suddenly moves to the left (from the first lane) and a row of fast cars that approach quickly from behind in the third lane.

So, almost instinctively, I decide to change my driving “strategy” and, immediately after the strong braking (resulting in a sudden drop in engine rpm), as soon as I see a free space behind in the mirrors, I flick on the left indicator, quick steering, changing down at the same time one or two gears with the left paddle, I press the accelerator and… BANG! The Ghibli springs instantly forward, with a determination and so quickly that it really seems almost a… petrol engine!!! Truly amazing and especially excellent!!!

If then, once in sprint, you have the foresight to quickly insert higher gears sequentially, pressing the right paddle in rapid succession, the torque and sprint of the diesel engine become really comparable in every way to those of a V6 petrol engine, even significantly more powerful!!! Really an excellent job, for which we should congratulate Maserati engineers who were able to combine so well the excellent ZF 8-speed automatic transmission with the 3.0 litre V6 turbo-diesel engine, which was developed in collaboration with VM engineers and the Powertrain department run together with Ferrari!

BUT THE MOST INCREDIBLE ASPECT OF THE GHIBLI DIESEL, IN ADDITION TO CONVENIENCE, COMFORT AND EASY DAILY USE, IS FUEL CONSUMPTION, WHICH IS INCREDIBLY LOW ON THIS TYPE OF CAR, OF COURSE

However, the surprises reserved to us by the Ghibli turbo-diesel are not over yet!

I return to my office and the next day I devote myself to a more thorough test, in various usage conditions and on different roads, where the Ghibli is always at ease. So every move is pleasant and fun at the same time, without ever requiring any effort (apart from the aforementioned dimensions in width, mainly because of the conditions of Italian roads, especially secondary roads…)

This is really a convenient, comfortable, and pleasantly sports car, where perceived quality is REALLY at a good level and offers a range of comfortable and practical accessories that, nowadays, cannot be missing on a premium car!

My attention at the beginning of the third day mainly focuses on an aspect which, as a rule, has always been secondary for a Maserati car. In this case, it could be instead more decisive. In fact, after two days of continued use (and quite a large number of kilometres covered, at different speeds), before going on the road again, I decide to fill the fuel tank, to check, actually, real consumption. Well, the amount of fuel required to fill the tank is so unexpectedly small that even my usual gas station attendant cannot believe it: surely less than my more modest Alfa Romeo Brera would have burnt! This, too, is truly amazing!

The conclusion? Much more than with any other Maserati tested in recent years, this Ghibli turbo-diesel surprises by its double soul: sporty, fast, with high performance, and luxury, as every Maserati can only be, but at the same time, also convenient, comfortable, rational, and extremely functional, like a true luxury executive sedan!

Ultimately, I can surely say that now there are no longer “excuses” to buy competitors’ cars (especially from Germany…) in the same segment, as the Ghibli guarantees everything competition has always offered, with regard to convenience, functionality, and rationality of use, but not without a number of typical Maserati features, such as driving pleasure, road-holding, design, and especially the exclusivity that only the Maserati brand (and few others in the world) can give!

At this point, the incredible success that Maserati, and in particular the Ghibli, is having in the markets around the world is clearly explained! This is a true icon and flag of the best “Made in Italy” and the particular ability to build unique cars, for which Italy has always been famous in the world!