[RQ]

Ok, so got a chance to spend close to 45 minutes with a new Vantage today, by myself, salesperson stayed in the showroon.

Nice sunny day, drove in a variety of traffic conditions. This is an impressive car, no doubt.

Things I liked:
* Great shifter, and fairly communicative clutch.
* Very good steering feel, better than the GS (which can be somewhat ambiguous at times).
* A tighter and sportier ride than I expected.
* The sound is incredible, something happens at ~4k that is really satisying.
* The looks - this thing is just gorgeous from the outside.
* Interior is very nice but lacks the edge of the Maser for some reason.

Things that weren't great:
* Lack of torque at the low end. Reminds me of the GS before the ECU mod. Just takes away from the experience. This was my only real gripe.
* While the seats are great I wasn't all that comfortable by the end of the ride. 99% chance that this would go away with more time to tweak the seat position - pedal position seemed fine although its cramped down there.
* Couldn't find a way to moderate the wind inside the cabin over 50... I know it sounds trivial but I like to ride with at least the driver's window down, and I just couldn't find a way to balance it out. The Maser is great in this respect.

Anyway, driving it was a real treat, I really liked the car - so I ordered one, still deciding on colors and options.

I know it won't be here for quite a few months, but when it does it will be difficult to decide whether to keep the GS or not. Although I thought they were redundant at first, they are a very different driving experience (not sure why). I want them both!

It'll be good if I can pull that off (garaging issues,but maybe I can solve that).

Thought I'd share.

 

[demoe]

a trivial response...

I only know this because the female in the HH watches this show...but the character from Desparate Housewives traded in her Maser and now has an Aston Martin...was busy on my computer and Sunday and heard a nice rumble coming from the tube, was Eva Longoria hitting the gas on her AM....

enjoy it, thanks for sharing!

 

[RQ]

Funny you mention that, I've had the most comments from folks recognizing the Maserati brand from one of 3 shows: Desperate Housewives, Sopranos and Entourage (sp?).

Oh, and one more: the CNBC contest for traders to win a new GS, that reaches a good targeted audience.

One would hope that hype helps resale value, Maser North America must be doing something right!

But, between us girls, never admit to knowing anything about that show in male company... <g>

 

[Vincent]

RQ - u should keep both... i am going through the similar dilemma... i am battling whether I should keep my C4S cab - my decision is that I will hang on to her until the warranty runs out... when it does, i will start doing some sums and see whetehr she is worth keeping... silver jesse (yes i have names for all my cars) is relatively cheap to maintain... but if stuff starts to fall out of it, i will be forced to sell her.

Demoe - i watched that episode as well... funny how branding goes, this season u r in, next season u r out... i wonder whetehr they will change teh QP for entourage season 3...

 

[bundas]

part 2

thank's for am report is the car lighter than maserati?

 

[RQ]

Not sure if these figures are correct - Edmunds has the GS at CW 3,696 lbs, the AM materials have the Vantage at 3,461 - which actually puts the AM at a slightly better power to weight ratio but insignificant.

The GS feels lighter and less serious though (in a good way), and some of it (weird as it sounds) could be related to having more glass and therefore light inside the car.

 

[bundas]

compare

my 02cc spyder gives no edge warning! my trip was circles thru the grass on track day. nose heavy, i was warned. 145 thru bank curve at pocono was a wobble experience at apex. not really a track car off show room. but a wonderful car for highway trips, sure beats a chevy

 

[RQ]

Hi bundas,

Although I take most of my cars to the track no real plans to take the GS or the AM at this stage.

The GS steering scares me a bit in that context, doesn't tell me enough about what is going on - ok on the street as one trusts the suspension but on a track I don't know.

Having said that I might sign up for the Atlanta Maser track days, could be fun (with someone else's car). Plus I'm sure those cars have a cage or at least a good rollbar so that makes it a different story.