[Rwc13]

I've had my Ghibli for about 2 months now, but haven't driven it much for various reasons. But today I drove it from Manchester to Sheffield over the Snake Pass. For those that don't know it, The Snake Pass is a famous drivers road, now somewhat ruined by lorries and a 50mph speed limit. However, this morning, I had no traffic all the way across and could really enjoy the road and the car.

What a car. Mine's the diesel, but in Sport mode, still very quick. However, what struck me for the first time today was how good the chassis is, and how composed, how quickly and accurately it turns in, and how it can be made to flow from one bend to the next. I have driven a lot of theoretically quicker cars down this road, but I'm not sure I have ever felt that I have done it quicker or with more fluidity or composure. A truly memorable journey, and one that has really helped me to bond with the car. I now can't wait to drive it again.

 

[UKGhibli]

Great road.... Great car !

 

[maserwannabe]

Rwc13
Congrats. I notice you have had several maseratis in the past. Curious as to how you think the ghibli compares.
Cheers

 

[Spsesq]

I have had the car since May 21 and I have gone on four long highway mile trips. My latest was to From New Jersey to Pennsylvania and back to visit family. (371 round trip miles) Total 1,305 miles on the car. I have found out a few things that may be interesting ;

1) On local driving with sport mode on my city averages are exactly at 13-14 MPG. Highway driving going up to the Poconos, I averaged 26 miles per gallon when ICE mode set to 75 MPH cruise control. On the way back at night, when there were more police out along the way I set the cruise at 65MPH and got only 23.8 MPG. This was coming home from the Pocono mountains, so I was coming down on the way home. Conclusion: The city mileage on sports mode drinks the fuel up like water. If the sports mode only closes exhaust dampers ad stiffens suspension, why the lower gas mileage? I assume that since this is a highly precise sports engine designed for European driving styles and speeds, the higher speeds in this car gets better gas mileage;

2) Ride comfort on a long journey was excellent. The chassis was quite stiff and controllable. I felt in total control of the car regardless of speed and road surface (Concrete v. Macadam or other). My drive included straight highway and twisty mountain 2 lane roads I felt no discomfort in the seating as some reviewers complained. In ICE mode the drive was smooth, quiet and quite enjoyable for a 2.5 hour ride each way. Conclusion: Reviewers who test drive a car for one or two hours total cannot give a completely fair and unbiased opinion on the car handling or seat comfort and ride characteristics unless they use the car longer and take a long trip to test out long term comfort and drivability. I found this to be an excellent touring car;

3) Adaptive Bi-Xenon headlights were very good at night. Around the curves of Northeast PA roadways and at distance, light coverage was extraordinary. On the very dark and expansive highways of PA Route 380, US Route 80, PA Route 33 and NJ Route 78 the automatic high-beam detector system was amazing. Conclusion: I felt safer and in more control because visibility was increase so much and the adaptive moving lights actually forced you to "look up" the road thus being able to anticipate both oncoming traffic and animals darting out into the roadway.

 

[rjp71]

The decrease in mileage in sport mode is because the transmission won't shift past 6th gear in sport mode.

 

[Rwc13]

I think it compares very favourably. Sure, they have lost some of that solidity and hand built feel, but I guess that was inevitable if Maserati was to remain relevant in a much more environmentally aware time. Hence V6s rather than V8s and the lighter feeling of bonnets and boots etc.

However, to me it still clearly looks like and feels like a Maserati. And most importantly to me, it drives like a Maserati. It still possesses those innate characteristics. As a driving tool, I think it compares very well to the duo-select quattroportes, which were very fine driving cars indeed.

 

[Barbalace]

I agree with Spsesq and the others on the mileage. City driving and back roads in the low teens and highway driving on the I.C.E. mode about 26-28 mpg on cruise control. With 2,400 miles on our Ghibli and another 2,000 mile road trip planned from Virginia to Maine/New Brunswick next month, we're looking forward to the versatility of this vehicle.