Maserati pulled a swifty at the recent Geneva Motor Show,
rolling out a near production-ready concept to celebrate the firm’s centenary.
All around Geneva’s Palexpo, brands paid tribute to their past; McLaren parked
an M7C F1 car on its stage, Honda displayed its equally gorgeous RA271 while
Alfa Romeo gave centre stage to the 1923 RL Targa Florio racer. Maserati also
dug out something worth savouring...a bottle of century-old Balsamic vinegar.
The shade of used engine oil, it’s not quite liquid gold, but at over $1,000
for 100ml it’s getting up there. The key point for Maserati was that, like the
carmaker, it comes from Modena, and has taken ten decades to reach its current
level of refinement.
2014 Maserati
Alfieri Concept
We doubt the vinegar has had quite as rough a ride as
Maserati has at various times over the last 100 years, but the car maker is
back firing and the Alfieri 2+2 is a curvy new contender that hints at a new
entry-level coupe rather than a replacement for the Gran Turismo. This was all
but confirmed by Maserati chief executive, Harald Wester, who said “Alfieri is
not a GT. It is a perfect sized 2+2 sports car that could complete the line-up
at Maserati.”
That would see Maserati take its fight to the likes of the
Jaguar F-Type Coupe and Porsche Carrera S, while helping ramp up production
numbers further. Thanks to the new four-door models released last year,
Maserati sales increased by 150 per cent to 15,400 cars.
The concept was “conceived, designed and created in an
approach aimed at 100 per cent realism” according to design head, Lorenzo Ramaciotti,
who also commented; “The Alfieri is a transition point between 100 glorious
years of history and the future before us. I can’t honestly say that we’ll see
this car in production in the next two years, but I’m certain we’ll see
something very similar.”
Maserati Looks To
Future With Alfieri 2+2 Concept, Rear View
However, Fiat Chrysler Automobile boss, Sergio Marchionne,
has been reported as saying this new car could be in the showroom within 24-28
months’ time. The production car would use the same platform as the Ghibli and
Quattro Porte along with the firm’s new V6 engines, which would reduce development
time significantly.
The introduction of the Alfieri is likely to be some time
after the new Levante SUV, which is expected in 2015. This is later than
initially projected as the company is still re-developing the Mirafiori plant to
produce the big truck that will take Maserati’s production numbers to new
levels and load the coffers with fat SUV profits. The Alfieri therefore would
likely be introduced in 2016.
The Alfieri concept, named after one of the founding Maserati
brothers, uses the same bones as the Gran Turismo MC Stradale, but rides on a
wheelbase shortened by 240mm. It has an overall length of 4,590mm and the
muscular sport car’s proportions are delivered via its wide 1,930mm girth and
low lying 1,280mm height. Designed as a “realistic and 100 per cent functional
prototype”, it also borrows the MC’s mechanicals with the atmo 343kW/520Nm
4.7-litre V8 living under its curvy hood and the six-speed, automated manual
arranged on a transaxle. The concept’s wheels, measuring 20 inches on the front
and 21 on the rear, are forged from a single piece of aluminum. Weight
management would be key for the new car, with around 1,400kg mooted and you can
expect multiple variants and probably a convertible version further down the
track.
2014 Maserati
Alfieri Concept - Interior
