Review: The Maserati Levante GTS has the soul and heart of a Ferrari

When the Maserati brothers built their first race car in 1914, the world of automobiles was very different. The coupes were for shopping, cars for transporting people and trucks for transporting vegetables. It is hard to imagine what the Maserati would have thought of today, more than a hundred years later, facing the Michigan M1 Concourse while a squadron of Maserati Levante GTS SUV rumbled in a grinding of tires and a rumble of exhausts.

The Maserati brothers, six in all, made a name for themselves by winning just about every major motorsport race, delaying the construction of their first pbadenger car until the late 1940s. Since the company built many more sedans and coupes in the decades that followed, Maserati has always been a brand dedicated above all to performance. Times are changing, and even the most fervent racing car brands such as Ferrari and Lamborghini are putting their mark in an SUV, Maserati is following suit. The new Levante GTS is not meant to be just another luxury SUV, though. It is intended to be a vehicle that speed-loving Maseratis would be proud to sport their name.

With its all-wheel drive and 550-horsepower hand-crafted by Ferrari, the Levante GTS is designed to be as comfortable on the slopes as anything that carries the Maserati trident emblem over the years. decades. With its luxurious leather-wrapped interior, illuminated door sills and a choice of two high-end sound systems, it is also intended to make a statement on the valet stand. Coquetted as "The SUV Maserati", the Levante GTS addresses the segment's leaders such as the Porsche Cayenne Turbo and the Range Rover Sport Supercharged.

"The Levante is essential for the brand," says Tim Kuniskis, global brand manager for Maserati and Alfa Romeo. "The Maserati customer in general is looking for something completely different, everyone offers an SUV, but not everyone offers a Maserati." The brand, he says, represents hand-made luxury, racy performance and Italian design, all things that the Levante GTS offers in abundance.

As global SUV sales continue to climb, Maserati added the Levante to its lineup of coupes and sedans in 2016, which explains the vast majority of sales of the brand, followed earlier this year by Levante Trofeo, a 300 km / h monster with a price close to $ 200,000 and a 0/100 km / h in less than four seconds. $ 137,500, the Levante GTS is designed to fit perfectly between these two models, attracting buyers looking for a luxury SUV that is both powerful and individualized.

The Levante GTS confirms it above all with its engine whose provenance at Ferrar headquarters i in Maranello provides both bragging rights and euphoria. The V-8 Levante GTS is more than proven in a race around the M1 Concourse, where it gobbles straight lines and embraces turns. Stomp the gas a little too hard in a bend and he responds happily, sliding his back just enough to put a smile on your face before regaining his composure and rocket forward.

A long list of attractive features sweetens the deal for potential buyers, including standard adjustable air suspension, sport pedals and a 14-speaker Harmon Kardon sound system (Bowers & Wilkins is available in upgraded version) ). All seats are heated, as is the steering wheel, and the interior surfaces are dressed in premium leathers.

The Maserati brothers would probably be skeptical at first sight of this bestial machine, whose main resemblance to their iconic creations is its badge. However, after a few laps, they would surely agree that their name is worthy of the name