Why the new Maserati GranTurismo is the best it's been in years

There are a few things I’ve always loved about Maserati. The fact it was founded by no fewer than five brothers, for a start – can you imagine the arguments? Or that the company began life making spark plugs, developing technology for the Italian government during the First World War. Then there’s the racing pedigree – the glorious Maserati 250F, which was driven by Juan Manuel Fangio and won the 1957 Formula One World Championship.

But my favourite fact is this: in 1947, Maserati essentially invented a new category with the A6 1500 GranTurismo – the first car built for both luxury and performance on real roads.

It created the grand tourer, still my favourite kind of car. A machine that delivers power without requiring a physiotherapist on retainer.

Maserati invented the grand tourer in the 1940s and has perfected the formula again with this generation. Photo: Maserati

The first generation of the modern GranTurismo arrived in 2007, around the same time I spent a couple of ill-fated years in the wealth management arm of a major Swiss bank.

While plotting my future millions – perfectly timed for the global meltdown of 2008 – I convinced myself success would look like me behind the wheel of a GranTurismo.

I then made the genius decision to leave finance for the famously stable world of media, so the Maserati-shaped gap in the garage endures. And, honestly, over the past few years, I’m not sure the desire would have stuck. The Maserati line-up was feeling a little fatigued.

Which is why this new GranTurismo feels like such a breath of fresh air. It is still recognisable thanks to its sensuous, ludicrously long bonnet and sinewy lines, yet updated enough to turn heads on Dubai’s supercar-congested streets in 2025.

The new Maserati GranTurismo retains its sensuous, long-bonnet silhouette while feeling fresh enough to stand out on Dubai’s supercar-crowded streets. Photo: Maserati

The interior is properly modern and the car feels responsive, tight and alive. Inside, you get a 12.2-inch digital dashboard and a 12.3-inch touchscreen handling most primary controls.

I often complain that we’ve reached peak screen in modern cars, but this one feels sensibly proportioned. My lone gripe? A hazard button should always be a physical button – something I can slam without scrolling through a user interface while doing 120kph.

And then there’s the engine – the part that matters once the novelty of the screens wears off. The Trofeo’s Nettuno V6 is a reminder that Maserati still knows how to make something with a pulse.

It’s quick in the way that feels usable rather than theatrical – plenty of low-end shove for city bursts, a satisfying surge once you open it up and enough exhaust drama to remind you you’re not in something sensible. What I liked most was the confidence it inspires. The car is powerful, of course, but never intimidating – it offers the sort of performance that flatters you rather than exposes your limits. A grown-up kind of fast.

The Trofeo’s Nettuno V6, adapted from the MC20, delivers a grown-up kind of fast – powerful and surprisingly usable for everyday drives. Photo: Maserati

It’s almost enough to make you forget the twin-turbo 3.0-litre masterpiece under its interminable bonnet is borrowed from the unhinged Maserati MC20 supercar, detuned to a civilised level of vehicular aggression: 542hp arranged not for shock, but for sensation.

But back to the only thing that really matters: how the car makes you feel. And across a weekend of zipping around town in the Trofeo edition – tuned for sharper performance – my overwhelming thought was, I could easily spend a lot of my life in this.

That’s the whole point of a grand tourer. It performs like a sports car, but more importantly, it welcomes you in. You don’t feel you need an engineering team in the passenger seat to extract its best. It just works. The Maserati GranTurismo is the kind of car you pop out to the shops in and think: what if I just switch my phone off, roll the windows down, blast some Tame Impala and keep driving? It’s definitely back on the vision board.