Maserati Quattroporte
The fourth generation of the Quattroporte (Tipo AM337) was manufactured from 1994 to 2001 and was the first car to be produced under the Fiat ownership after Alejandro de Tomaso sold his entire holding to the Italian marque in 1993. It was built on an evolved and stretched version of the Biturbo saloon's architecture, and used the twin-turbocharged V6 and later the new AM578 V8 engine from the Shamal flagship grand tourer. For this reason, the car retained very compact exterior dimensions, and is smaller than any of its predecessors and successors. As the designer's signature angular rear wheel arches gave away, the wedge-shaped aerodynamic (Cd=0.31) body was penned by Marcello Gandini.
The world première of the fourth generation of the Quattroporte took place at the April 1994 Turin Motor Show and the car went on sale towards the end of the year. Initially the Quattroporte was powered by the twin-turbocharged, 24-valve V6 engines from the Ghibli. For export markets there was a 2.8-litre unit, generating a maximum power output of 284 PS (209 kW; 280 hp) and allowing the car to attain a claimed top speed of 255 km/h (158 mph). As local taxation strongly penalised cars over two-litre in displacement, Italian buyers were offered a 2.0 L version, which developed a little more power (287 PS or 211 kW) but less torque than the 2.8-litre version; on the home market, the 2.8 was not offered until a year after its introduction. The cabin was fully upholstered in Connolly leather and trimmed in elm burl wood veneer. Weight was also reduced by at least 300 kg (661 lb) as compared to the Quattroporte III primarily due to the compact Biturbo underpinnings and by the use of a compact powerplant.
After having been displayed in December 1995 at the Bologna Motor Show, a 3.2-litre twin-turbocharged V8 Quattroporte was added to the range in 1996: the new AM578 engine, an evolution of the Shamal V8, generated a maximum power output of 335 PS (247 kW; 330 hp). The top speed was claimed to be 270 km/h (168 mph). At the same time, some minor updates were introduced on all models: new eight-spoke alloy wheels and aerodynamic wing mirrors, and seicilindri or ottocilindri (Italian for "six" and "eight-cylinders" respectively) badges on the front fenders, denoting which engine was under the bonnet.
As standard, all the three engines were mated to a Getrag 6-speed manual transmission, while 4-speed automatic transmissions were available on request with the 2.8 and 3.2 engines respectively - 4HP22 by ZF Friedrichshafen and a computer-controlled transmission supplied by an Australian firm BTR.
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