The idea that a brand can be translated into a location seems farfetched, but that truly was the case with Maserati, the place being Porto Cervo in Sardinia.
Imagine a Monaco-esque escape, with the beauty of Ravello and the Island beaches of the Maldives, and you’re getting pretty close. It was here that Maserati decided to make their home for the summer. Don’t get me wrong, there was Rolls-Royce parading their Wraith and new Dawn convertible, and a sporadic Audi occurrence but Maserati’s omnipresence across all areas of the region saw them reign as this summer’s ‘king’.
This was Maserati’s home. And why? Well for starters, the new Levante was the centre stage showpiece, brining to SUV category what Ronaldo (Brazilian) brought to football – elegant power, and speed with grace.
Not only land, but sea played its part in the Porto Cervo takeover as Maserati made this European paradise escape their own. On the sea, they saw a new vessel unveiled, the Maserati Multi70 Trimaran; faster and more modern than its predecessor and built with world record breaking in mind. That said, the Rolex Middle Sea Race isn’t until October and the RORC Transatlantic Race till November, so the main focus as of now was for Giovanni Soldini to train his crew the world record attempt in September, whilst aesthetically entertaining the Porto Cervo summer visitors, of which there are many.
“We are starting to discover Maserati Multi70’s potential. The passage from Lorient gave us our first taste: it was a positive and very enlightening experience. This craft’s innovative character is all down to her appendages.”
~ Giovanni Soldini
But back to the shore and Maserati’s pride and joy; their automotive division.
Before experiencing the new generation it was first necessary to reacquaint oneself with one of the brand’s staple vehicles, the Maserati Quattroporte. Elegant and assured, the Quattroporte has always been a model to turn heads since the first incarnation arrived in 1963. Designed by Pietro Frua the V8 powered Quattroporte was the fates the car of its time with a top speed of 240kmh. Fast forward to the present and it’s hard to believe that the sixth generation is already three years old, with the sleek domineering design, signed off with a convex trident grille looking as current as it does elegant.
Transitioning from the Quattroporte to this new model, if anything made the brand progression all the more clear, highlighting the journey to Levante.
The interior of the Levante is not dissimilar from the timelessly lavish interior of the Quattroporte, with its angular leather adorned lines and facia punctuated with wood in a design that wouldn’t look out of place on the super yachts for which the area is renown.
CLICK FOR 360 VIEW OF MASERATI LEVANTE INTERIOR
Unlike many SUV’s the Levante drive delivers the same aggression as its lower profiled counterparts, as the Maserati 3.0 litre V6 Turbo Diesel engine produces a signature symphonic growl when the accelerator is ‘encouraged’, synonymous with brand Maserati.
We will be doing full reviews of the Maserati family of cars in the near future, but as far as introductions to the Maserati range go – meeting new members of the family and reacquainting with current – Porto Cervo was perfect serving platter for the Michelin star dish(es).
MASERATI.co.uk
