Sports Motors Company, the official Maserati importer for Qatar, has unveiled the new Maserati Quattroporte Automatic, a cutting edge addition to the Quattroporte Trident range which has been at the core of Maserati worldwide success over the past few years. The unveiling took place at the Doha Golf Club during a press briefing attended by Sports Motors Company most prominent Maserati clientele.

For over 60 years, Maserati has been true to its guiding principle of “Excellence through Passion”, and it is today synonymous with the ultimate in high performance, hand-crafted, prestige automobiles. Maserati has produced the finest examples of automotive art with stunning creations that have won over 30 major international awards over the recent years. Today, the Quattroporte family  includes in addition to its state-of-the-art DuoSelect Gearbox line, the Maserati Automatic range encompassing the Quattroporte Automatic, the Quattroporte Automatic Executive GT and the Quattroporte Automatic Sport GT.

Maserati Quattroporte Automatic launch was held at Doha Golf Club and was followed by a live test drive of the car by local press and Sports Motors Company clients and prospects. Speaking at the event was Mr. Omar Alfardan, President of Alfardan Group who commented saying: “The success of Sports Motors Company has been constantly fostered by our commitment and willingness to bring our clients in Qatar the latest and the best of each of our product range. Maserati Quattroporte Automatic is a culmination of Maserati’s line of elegance and excellence in driving performance and comfort.”

The two highly individual versions of Maserati Quattroporte differ markedly in character. The Automatic offers a comfortable and effortless drive, whilst the DuoSelect allows for a sportier and more involving experience. In line with its role as a luxurious grand automobile, the Automatic offers six-speed automatic transmission, with smooth gear changing that’s barely discernable to passengers onboard. The Automatic allows, also, for a more sporty driving style with the option of a sequential shifting by engaging Sport mode. The Sport GT Automatic, for instance, provides the driver with even more involvement in the gear changing process via paddles located behind the steering wheel. Maserati Automatic hydraulic 6-speed transmission, a result of Maserati and ZF collaboration ensures a sleek, fluid gear change and allows rapid shifting and seamless driving comfort. The lay-out of the transmission system emphasizes the progressive power delivery of Maserati Automatic V8 engine particularly at low engine speed without limiting its power.

As with every Maserati ever built, Maserati Automatic boasts of excellent road holding and handling thanks to its largely unique weight distribution. The V8 engine, located behind the front axle transfer more weight to the centre of the car making its balance, with 49% of the weight at the front and 51% at the back, ideal and unique amongst its competitors. Mr. Mohammed Kandeel, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Sports Motors Company said: “Maserati Quattroporte Automatic is here to set another new benchmark in the world of luxury, sports sedans. It is here to define and introduce a new era in the world of comfort, luxury, elegance and power.
 

Following the introduction of Quattroporte DuoSelect in 2006, we are presenting today to the Qatari market a unique driving journey into a world of pure luxury, ultimate safety, and premium performance. With its immense character, Maserati Automatic embodies the definition of comfort while keeping the spirit of the Italian Trident flagship.”

Safety has always been an integral part of each Maserati invention and with Maserati Automatic it is reinforced with its Brembo braking system and Maserati stability program (MSP) including an anti-lock braking system (ABS) and electronically controlled braking distributor (EBD). Its rigid steel body is designed to absorb impact forces, in the event of a collision, turning the car into a highly resistant survival cell, especially with its inertial switch which acts on the fuel pumps to prevent fire in case of a violent accident. Maserati Automatic features also an anti-dive and anti-squat suspension system along with a damping control system Skyhook, which was developed in collaboration with racing engineers, Masmann-Sachs. An enveloping comfort is a unique trademark of Maserati Automatic with its faultless design, craftsmanship and quality, especially with its luxury Tanganyika wood detailing and its leather upholstery. This new range is also enriched with two new colours, Granite Grey and Ocean Blue.
 
Mr. Umberto Cini, Area Manager of Middle East and Africa Importers added: “I am very proud to be part of an international brand such as Maserati and am very excited to be here in Doha at the launch of our latest Pininfarina designed product. I anticipate a substantial sales growth for Maserati in Qatar with this latest model of fine Italian engineering.”

The Quattroporte has immediately grabbed the attention of car enthusiasts due to its sophisticated and elegant design and performance-enhancing technology. The car has created a new segment for luxury sports sedan and is now being explored by other worldwide car brand names. The well- reputed Quattroporte has won several global titles amounting to 28 awards. This global success is continuing just as strongly in 2006: in the first month of the year, five European magazines have named the Maserati Quattroporte Best Car in Maserati’s top European markets: Italy, Germany, France, Switzerland and Holland. Maserati is present today in 58 countries across the five continents with a total network of 259 dealers. New showroom openings have recently taken place in key cities around the world like Milan, Moscow, Kiev and Taipei.

The Maserati Quattroporte Automatic will be showcased in Sports Motors Company showroom located on Grand Hamad Streetin Qatar. The Quattroporte returned a 2.5 million dollar winning bid at the Reach Out to Asia auction in November 2006 benefiting school children in the Middle East and Asia.