EVO

SEARCH

News:

Maserati Prepares New Spyder

The current isasue of evo contains exclusive spy images of Maserati's make-or-break replacement for the Spyder. It's expected to arrive in showrooms late next year, with the new Coupe following up in 2006.

03rd June 2004

Both cars are based on a shortened version of the Quattroporte chassis and are expected to share many of the same components. From the mag's images it looks as if the cars will share styling themes with the Quattroporte, with voluptuous wings and a trademark 'hip' over the rear wheels. The prototype has also borrowed headlamps from the saloon. Some sources say the car will get a folding hardtop in place of the current fabric roof. There are high hopes for the car's handling abilities thanks to the front-mid-engined layout and rear-mounted transaxle gearbox.

Under the bonnet the Spyder and Coupe are expected to be powered by a new 5-litre version of the familiar V8 which should be good for 470bhp (the current 4.2-litre unit produces 390bhp). The result will be near-supercar performance.

One source told us that the conventional manual gearbox will be dropped when these models are launched, leaving the Cambiocorsa automated manual unit as the only option.

These new cars can't come soon enough for the Italian company, which has failed to see its sales take off despite massive investment from parent company Ferrari. According to the latest figures Ferrari-Maserati lost €47m (΂£31.6m) in the first three months of the year, despite sales of €336m (΂£226m). The losses were thought to have been run up by the investment in the Quattroporte.

The current Coupe range will be boosted in the autumn with the launch of a more hardcore GranSport model, as revealed in evo 067. Power is increased from 390 to 400bhp.