autos sport

The Maserati Quattroporte 2030 Concept is Yaroslav Chumachenko's vision of where Maserati's large sedan could be design-wise should we end up in the world of Minority Report and Tom Cruise is knocking at your door for that crime you're about to commit.

Chumachenko, a 25-year old Ukrainian designer, drew inspiration from dinosaur skeletons, zeppelins, and the Maserati Birdcage to create a car that is futuristic and unique: its modular platform would allow engineers to replace the car's various systems as they evolve and the panels would be uniquely customizable for each customer (in theory).

Its curvaceous exterior body panels use "Stereolithography additive manufacturing technology", the benefits of which are a quick formation process and the ability to adapt to any customer's request, while the four doors - larger front units and smaller rears - can actually fuse magnetically to become two larger doors (or, conversely, simply open as smaller front doors and leave the rear doors in position).

Beneath its body panels, the Quattroporte 2030 has a backbone consisting of the engine and transmission (its "vertebrae"), around which is a rib cage that functions as structural reinforcement and protective bracing.

This is definitely a concept that would most definitely be welcome on the show circuit, hearkening back to the long overhang-wearing pods of the 70's. Something like this would be much more entertaining to view than these "concepts" companies release purely as a means of gauging public reaction to a production car.

By Phil Alex

Images: Yaroslav Chumachenko , Via: CBD

_______________________________GALLERY_______________________________

Someone has turned Maserati's lovely Quattroporte sedan into a tall, bulky hearse, and there's video of it on a trailer below. Regardless of how it looks, it sure puts the Cadillacs used in America to shame. Unlike Ferrari, who has issues with anyone doing anything heinous to their cars (like making a 360 limousine), Maserati apparently doesn't mind too much.

Spotted near Modena by youtube's lambofanX, who usually doesn't film Quattroportes (but we're sure glad he did), it appears as if there's at least one Italian mortuary out there with mad style. This at least seems a little more appropriate for a funeral compared to those funky car coffins we recently showed you. Who knows, maybe Maserati's just prepping a hearse for the Vatican.

If anyone knows what this is for (other than hauling the deceased, that is) and where it's going, feel free to drop us a line.

By Phil Alex

When Porsche's designers were trying to make a five-door liftback out of the Beetle, Maserati already had one of best looking proposals in the sports saloon segment; the Quattroporte. And while neither the 430HP Quattroporte S or its 440HP Sport GT S brethren are underpowered, the German tuner of all things Italian, Novitec, has come up with a package of upgrades for both versions of the saloon, including a significant power bump and some styling enhancements.

Starting with the engine bay, Novitec strapped on a supercharger along with a new water-to-air intercooler to the Quattroporte's 4.7-liter V8.

Other modifications include a new intake manifold and larger fuel injectors, while a recalibrated ECU takes care of the electronics. In both the Quattroporte S and Sport GT S, these changes help lift output to 590HP at 7,300 rpm, while torque grows from 490Nm to 572Nm / 421.9 lb-ft.

As a result, the Italian four-door saloon accelerates from 0 to 100km/h (62mph) in 4.6 seconds, an improvement of 0.5 seconds over the Sport GT S and 0.8 seconds over the S model. Novitec's 590HP Quattroporte can sprint to 200km/h (124mph) in just 14.9 seconds while the car's new top speed is 295km/h (183mph).

To improve handling, the tuner equipped the Quattroporte with a new electronically-controlled sport suspension that is continuously height-adjustable and features multiple settings for compression and rebound. In addition, the car rides on a set of three-piece 21-inch alloy wheels with five double spokes mounted on Pirelli P Zero high-performance tires in size 255/30 ZR 21 up front and 295/30 ZR 21 at the back.

A discreet boot lid spoiler made from clear-coated carbon fiber completes the package, though customers can also choose from a variety of options for the interior including special leather or Alcantara trim, and multimedia systems.

Source: Novitec , Via: Autoblog.nl