Sports car makers
always are on a mission to launch a high performance car that is better
than its competition. Now the game has shifted to who can make a better
convertible high performance car. Read on to know more about the latest
offering from Maserati
First things first, the new red colour introduced on the GranCabrio
Sport is a tribute to the championship winning Maserati racing cars of
the 1950s. The car should live up to its ‘Sport’ badge then.
The Sport gets 10 horsepower more than the standard. That is enough
to catapult the car from 0 – 100 km/h in 5.2 seconds which is 0.1 second
faster than the standard GranCabrio. Given a stretch the car will hit a
top speed of 285 km/h which is 2 km/h faster than the standard car. Not
much to shout about then.
But the car does shouts louder than the standard GranCabrio because
it has new exhaust tips that enhance the sound when the bypass valves
open at 2500 rpm in Auto-sport. Do not worry though, as the valves can
be left permanently open by selecting Manual-sport mode. It’s not all
show and no go however. The new exhaust system helps to improve. The
Sport gets 30 more torques, which is a lot.
The gearbox of the GranCabrio Sport gets the MC Auto Shift a feature
that has been developed from the system on the Quattroporte GT S. The
new system gets launch control which can be used in both Manual Sport
and Automatic Sport modes.
The engine gets Maserati’s Friction Reduction Programme. This
‘programme’ includes a revised oil sump a super finished camshaft. The
Friction Reduction Programme is more oriented towards bringing the
mileage down which it does by 6% over the standard engine.
The chassis is where there is a major difference is. The Sport has
bigger anti-roll bars and while the springs have been upgraded. The
Sky-hook active-suspension system has been upgraded to analyse road
condition, driving style and instantly regulate the dampers to provide
sharper handling along with better grip and balance. The front
suspension gets aluminium wishbones, dampers and springs. At the back
there is an added radius bar in each wheel to reduce toe-in.
The brakes are ventilated drilled-cast disc brakes all around with
grooves. The grooves are designed to avoid dust build up, which
increases braking distance.
The standard GranCabrio looks absolutely stunning. Playing with it
perfection does not always yield results, it has for Maserati this time
though. The Sport looks more aggressive and hunkered down with new
corner splitters and side skirts. The grille receives a black treatment
and the Maserati Trident receives red inserts, a Maserati tradition
reserved for the fastest model of a car. The car also gets new black
alloy wheels and black oval exhaust tips. The headlights are finished
with a black look with white reflectors.
The most important feat for any convertible sports car is to look
absolutely stunning and be nothing like any other car, job done by
Maserati then.
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