The Maserati Quattroporte S Is A Sonorous Super Saloon That Thinks It's A Sports Car

Downsizing: like it or not, it’s an inevitability in a world of ever-more ridiculous fuel prices and tightening emissions regulations. At least, that’s what I kept telling myself as I approached the Maserati Quattroporte I was about to get in and drive, perhaps to stave off what I assumed would be the inevitable disappointment that followed.

You see, the Quattroporte is another ‘victim’ of the dreaded downsizing: once an all-V8 range, Maserati’s gigantic luxury saloon now only comes with a V8 if you get the range-topping GTS version. Go for the S that I was getting myself comfortable in, and you have a V6.

Now, I’ve nothing against V6s, but too often they can be rather boring. Just look at the dreary GM ‘High-Feature’ unit found in the Vauxhall Insignia VXR. To make matters worse, Maserati’s 3.0-litre V6 has a couple of exhaust note-sapping turbos added, further increasing the chance of a boring sound.

It’s an engine that sounds excited, and when you really put your foot down, it properly yells

But when I got the Maserati onto the road, I quickly found that I’d been worrying about nothing. This V6 fizzes and crackles. It pops and bangs with every shift from the ZF automatic gearbox, all while chucking out one of the best exhaust notes in the business. It’s an engine that sounds excited, and when you really put your foot down, it properly yells at you and the world outside.

And that’s because this is no ordinary V6. The Italian car maker hasn’t simply pinched the engine from another manufacturer, slapped ‘Maserati’ on the rocker cover and chucked it under the bonnet. This one shares many of its components with the 3.8-litre V8 found in the GTS, and let’s not forget, that same engine can be found in the Ferrari California.

It’s enormously quick, too; 404bhp and 407lb ft of torque are offered up from the bi-turbo unit, which sends this 1860kg chunk of metal and leather from 0-62mph in 5.1 seconds and on to a top speed of 177mph. No nannying electronic limits here; get your Quattroporte on the Autobahn or down to VMAX and you can go all the way.

When it came to the twistier stuff, both the car and I were in good shape. With all that weight and 5.2 metres of car to worry about - just look at the side-profile and you’ll get an idea of the sheer size - you’d be forgiven for expecting it to be a bit floppy. Not so. The super saloon is incredibly poised, and while there’s a little roll when you up the commitment level, it’s all quite tidy. It almost seems to relish being chucked around; something about the way it’s set up that eggs you on to drive like a bit of a hooligan.

It seems odd, then, that for all the Quattroporte’s sports car pretence, it lacks a set of paddle shifters for the auto ‘box as standard: they’re a £708 option. With the prevalence of paddle shifters on all manner of auto gearbox-equipped cars these days, the absence of them in a car like this seems baffling.

That’s not the only aggravating thing about the car. For something that costs a shade under £80,000, there are quite a few bits of the interior which don’t feel quite up to muster.

The surround for the sat-nav screen is pretty nasty, for instance, while the gear selector feels a tad cheap. Then there’s the ride, which, for what’s supposed to be a wafty, luxury saloon, can be particularly unsettled at times.

And you know what? None of that matters. It’s no Mercedes S-Class, but that’s exactly why you should want one. It’s an unruly riposte to serious Germanic luxury saloons that’s guaranteed to put a smile on your face at the end of a bad day. It’s also - to my eyes at least - stunning to look at. Every time you park up, you’ll be glancing back for a quick ogle.

Yes, one of the Germans would be a better all-round choice and potentially a more sensible car to go for, but trust me, going for the Italian will be an irrational decision you absolutely won’t regret.