2005 Maserati Quattroporte Overview

The hood is long, with tasteful sculpting between the grille and front fenders, helping to give the appearance of a classic

A trio of engine vents allows trapped air to escape the engine bay while simultaneously offering a distinctive styling detail. (Photo: Maserati)

separation. Its long and low design endows it with feline athleticism, especially apparent from profile view. From this angle a trio of engine vents allows trapped air to escape the engine bay while simultaneously offering a distinctive styling detail that will be appreciated by fans of early Maseratis.

The greenhouse is long and narrow, adding to the Quattroporte's sporting demeanor, finalizing in a trademark Maserati C-pillar, complete with chromed Trident badge at its centre - another classic cue.

From the rear, the Quattroporte is unique in its elegantly simple angles and curves, with smallish taillight clusters and a tapered decklid; the Italians at least realizing that petit derrieres are preferable by most standards.

So does it drive as elegantly as it looks, or does the new Maserati pay tribute to its rich racing heritage? The answer is

The Quattroporte is unique in its elegantly simple angles and curves. (Photo: Maserati)

reportedly both. After all, the Trident brand has a forty+ year history of producing luxury 4-doors with supercar performance, and this latest version is quite capable of carrying the torch forward.

Under that long hood lies nothing less than the same Ferrari derived V8 that motivates Maserati's 4200 GT Coupe and Spider (convertible) models. Producing 400-hp at a lofty 7,000 rpm and 333 lb-ft of torque at 4,500 rpm, the Ferrari derived 4.2-litre 90-degree V8 is capable of pushing the big sedan forward with enough gusto to leave most 4-door peers well behind, achieving zero to 100 km/h in merely 5.3 seconds.