Why You Should Stop Hating On Maserati #blogpost

I’ve really been quite depressed at just how much hate Maserati is receiving these days. It makes me sad reading and listening to what the younger generation really think of one of the greatest names in automotive history.

I don’t want to be judgemental, but I’ve got a feeling that most Maserati haters don’t even have knowledge about the brand’s history and past models. I can certainly tell that if behind the screen, there is some 12 year old arguing that Mercedes’ interiors are better. Those types of people tick me off.

ANYWAY! Time for my reasoning-

A Little Overview

Maserati was founded in 1914, but it wasn’t until 1926 when their first in-house car was produced. The brand took part in Grand Prix racing throughout the 1930s, but didn’t quite make the cut while up against the highly advanced Auto Union and Mercedes silver arrow cars.

It wasn’t until way after the Second World War when Maserati started to make a big name for themselves. They took part in Le Mans with rudimentary endurance cars like the 300S. And while Maser didn’t have any glorious victories at Le Mans, they certainly put up a good fight!

It was in other areas where Maserati were crowned the victors of some gruelling Motorsports, in 1957 the 250F piloted by Fangio won the F1 world championship.

It wasn’t just Fangio that liked racing for Maserati either, Sir Stirling Moss was keen of the brand. And showed this by piloting the Tipo 61 Birdcage, most notably at the Cuban Grand Prix races up until 1960.
Not to mention coming second in a 300S at the 1957 Sebring 12 hours endurance.

Maserati it seemed, was for the best drivers.

Racing in the 1950s is how Maserati made it’s name. It’s what most people who bought the road cars at the time, would remember them by.

So, let’s explore what Maserati could sell you in the sixties and seventies.

What About The Road Cars?

If the fifties was Maserati’s golden decade on the track, then the sixties was their golden decade on the road.

What we had, was a line up of breathtakingly beautiful cars named after the world’s winds. Sebring, Mistral, Mexico, Quattroporte, and of course, Ghibli. Even cars of the late fifties and early seventies made the average petrolhead get lost in dreams.

I only need to reference the sharp Khamsin, Bora or the Touring bodied 3500GT to get the picture across.

In short: Maserati to a petrolhead, especially back in times like these, was just the business!

If you’re reading this article up to here, I appreciate your patience. Because it’s time to move on to why you should stop hating on Maserati in 2018.

Things Were FAR Worse In The '80s and '90s

Despite being owned by Citroen from 1968, Maserati still managed to churn out some seriously stunning cars throughout the 1970s. But when the Biturbo came along, it all started to go seriously wrong…

Granted, it was the first car to feature a twin turbo setup in a production engine. But it’s fair to say that the Biturbo lost the glamour and the poise of older Masers.

From today’s perspective, I do very much like the ‘80s Quattroporte and the DeTomaso-derived Kyalami. But they were dynamically a bit off compared to other cars of the time. But there was worse. MUCH worse!

Behold...

One of the most overarching reasons why people hate modern Maseratis is because they use various buttons and switch-gear, which can also be found in a much cheaper Chrysler.

But if you are a hater, I think you ought to be thankful that just tiny little switches are shared. Because believe it or not, there was a whole Chrysler, which was actually made by Maserati!

The TC went on sale in 1988, and it didn’t even use a soulful Maserati engine. Oh no, it had a wheezy 2.2 litre 4 cylinder designed by engineers of Detroit. It even sat on a Dodge Daytona platform…. made by Maserati!

Honestly, there was no way there could’ve been a worse partnership agreement. Maybe apart from the Alfa Romeo Arna.

Throughout the 1990s, Maserati changed ownership twice. First being acquired by Fiat in 1993 as a 50% stake from DeTomaso, and proceeded to make an array of disappointing cars. The 4th gen Quattroporte may as well have been styled by a man with hands made from soap. It’s lazy, it’s ugly and it was an incredibly disappointing effort from such a great brand.

In 1997 however, DeTomaso’s 50% stake ended up in Ferrari’s hands! They collaborated to make cars like the MC12, the 5th Quattroporte and the Coupe.

I need not to explain about the Ferrari/Alfa-engineered cars of the 2000s, because we all know how great they are. I do however, need to finally make my point on the current Maseratis.

These Days: Maseratis Are Gorgeous!

Now that I’ve gone over why Maserati was stagnating in the ‘80s and ‘90s, I think it’s fair to make a judgement on where they are now.

The fact of the matter is this: Maserati styles their cars to look drop dead beautiful these days. The feminine lines combined with butch, masculine details add to the Italian mafia theme of modern Masers. Starring at one makes me dribble in galore.

The other thing that Maserati benefits from these days is some really soothing engineering partnerships. Obviously, the diesel Masers are rubbish, feel free to hate on those. But the petrol engines are simply wonderful.

Why? Because they’re made by Ferrari, produce healthy amounts of power and sound lovely! Even the 424bhp 3.0 twin turbocharged V6 in the Ghibli S is something to die for.

Also, I’ve heard complaints about the Quattroporte GTS’ 3.8 litre V8 not sounding like the old naturally aspirated 4.7. Well, you have to accept that Maserati can’t keep using old technology. Besides, that V8 sounds awesome and churns out a whopping 530bhp!

And yes, the 4.7 did sound better. But they did need to keep up with the times and make the Quattroporte more modern and faster! Car and Driver magazine got one from 0-60 in just 4.2 seconds!

The Modern Ghibli S Is Awesome

Perhaps unlike some of the young teenage Maserati haters on YouTube, I’ve actually had some first hand experience with a couple of Maseratis.

One of which was a diesel Ghibli, which my friend’s cousin owned who took me and my mates to prom. (some time ago).

I can confirm a couple of things with the Ghibli’s widely controversial interior. First of all, everything you touched (yes, that does include the switch-gear) felt like a true quality product. The chrome pieces on the electric window switches added prestige, nothing felt cheap and nothing felt like it came from the cheap side of the monopoly board.

Alongside that, the interior itself is SUCH a nice place to be. The smell and feel of the Italian leather reminds you of a luscious 5 star hotel in Rome. And the trim felt like it belonged on a car worth at least 100k more than the Ghibli. It was lovely!

Granted, with the diesel engine, it was a sluggish, slow barge of a thing. But if you combined the lavish quality with the Ferrari V6, it’s irresistible over a German alternative. (in my opinion)

Thanks For Reading

Well, that was a long write up. I very much hope you enjoyed reading why I think people should stop hating on Maserati.

In summary - they’re at a far better stage now than they once were. And every petrolhead should appreciate that! Not just nit-pick over a few bits of shared switch-gear.

And buying a new example of this Italian panache brand means 2 things:

1. You chose the car with your heart rather than your head.

2. You own a Maserati. And that to a petrolhead, means a lot.