It’s easy to forget that the Quattroporte GTS isn’t actually a sports car

Photo Credit: Maserati

Starting at $140,000, it’s easy to forget that the Quattroporte GTS isn’t actually a sports car. With its 3.8-liter, twin turbocharged V8, the sedan offers 523hp, 479 lb-ft of torque (524 lb-ft in sport mode), has a top speed of 191mph and reaches 0-60 in 4.6 seconds. All of these numbers mean that it’s the second fastest Maserati ever, “outdone only by the limited-production Maserati MC12 supercar with its 6.0-liter V12 engine.” Additionally, the eight-speed transmission and paddle shifters make the transition from automatic to manual incredibly fluid and barely noticeable.

Photo Credit: Maserati

Boasting a strong sporty design, the GTS maintains many recognizable Maserati elements, like the oval radiator grill, three side air vents and logo. The styling of the frameless doors and windows help to give the car a very coupé-like feel (in appearance and drivability), while the rear gets new LED wraparound lights that are joined together in the back by a chrome trim.

Photo Credit: Maserati

For the interior, Mazerati’s design team has managed to straddle that fine line between tradition and modernity. With incredibly intuitive and user-friendly tech, the GTS gives you everything you actually need and not an ounce more. Allowing the materials to shine (which includes fine wood trimmings and Poltrona Frau leather, the controls are very understated and don’t inhibit the driving experience, proving that less really is more. It’s basically like riding around in a five-star hotel suite—you half expect a butler to be waiting in the spacious trunk.

Photo Credit: Maserati

Though the model has tons of power, you don’t actually hear much of it from within the cabin due to the design’s use of sound-dampening materials—especially if you’re listening to music through the Bowers & Wilkins stereo system. I appreciate being able to listen to tunes unencumbered, but sometimes I want the engine to sound like a roaring beast, so I definitely wish there was a little more audible umph from those trapezoidal exhaust pipes. But here I go again, forgetting it’s actually a sedan and not a sports car.

Photo Credit: Maserati

Some may take issue with how touchy the Brembo brake system is and while they do take a little getting used to when in stop-and-go traffic, it’s a small price to pay for how great they are when pushing it to the limit.

Photo Credit: Maserati

The Quattroporte GTS isn’t going to be able to compete with true sports cars and that’s okay, because it’s a sedan. It’s meant for those who want that exciting medium between a relaxed everyday status car and one that will get their heart racing.