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- Maserati has revived the Ghibli name, but this time it appears not on a two-door GT car but a four-door BMW 5 Series rival.
- The company celebrates its 100th birthday this year, and despite having a plethora of beautiful models with romantic-sounding names and the 1957 Formula One World Championship trophy in its trophy cabinet, the Maserati badge has traditionally been for discerning types who like to go their own way.
The Ghibli is the Italian sports car brand's BMW 5 Series rival – an E-Segment car that's designed to take the Maserati brand into environments its never really been before, namely the corporate world full of men wearing non-iron shirts and machine washable suits.
- While the 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged petrol is jolly nice in either the 325bhp Ghibli or the 404bhp Ghibli S, it's the 271bhp 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged diesel which will take up 70 per cent of UK sales.
- While the Ghibli has corporate world drudgery in its sights, the car's interior is pleasingly interesting.
- A fidgety ride was only made more unbearable in Sport mode and the steering system was endowed with hardly any feel whatsoever.
It's by no means bad – it's just that cars like the BMW 535d are virtually faultless.
But while it many not excel in any one area, being able to say 'Let's take the Maser' even when you're on your way to a strategy meeting in Basingstoke, is enough to capture anyone's heart.