Maserati

It is an Italian luxury car manufacturer established on December 1st, 1914 by the Maserati brothers, Alfieri, Bindo, Carlo, Ettore, and Ernesto, in Bologna. The company's headquarters is now in Modena, and its emblem is a trident. It has been owned by the Italian car giant Fiat S.p.A. since 1993. Inside the Fiat Group, Maserati was initially associated with Ferrari S.p.A., but more recently, it has become part of the sports car group including Alfa Romeo.

Car developments

After war was offer, Maserati made cars; the Maserati A6 series did well in the post-war racing scene. Key people joined the Maserati team. Alberto Massimino, an old Fiat engineer, with both Alfa Romeo and Ferrari experiences oversaw the design of all racing models for the next ten years. With him joined engineers Giulio Alfieri, Vittorio Bellentani, and Gioacchino Colombo. The focus was on the best engines and chassis to succeed in car racing. These new projects saw the last contributions of the Maserati brothers, who after their 10-year contract with Orsi expired went on to form O.S.C.A.. This new team at Maserati worked on several projects: the 4CLT, the A6 series, the 8CLT, and, pivotally for the future success of the company, the A6GCM. After 1957, Maserati became more and more focused on road cars, and chief engineer Giulio Alfieri built the 6-cylinder 3500 2+2 coupé, which featured an aluminum body over Carrozzeria Touring's superleggera structure, a design also used for the small-volume V8-powered 5000. Next came the Vignale-bodied Sebring, launched in 1962, the Mistral Coupé in 1963 and Spider in 1964, both designed by Pietro Frua, and also in 1963, the company's first four-door, the Quattroporte, designed by Frua as well. The two-seat Ghibli coupé was launched in 1967, followed by a convertible in 1969. In 1968, Maserati was taken over by the French car manufacturer, Citroën. Adolfo Orsi remained the nominal president, but Maserati changed a great deal. New models were launched, and built in much greater numbers than before. Citroën borrowed Maserati expertise and engines for the Citroën SM and other vehicles, and Maseratis as well as incorporated Citroën technology, particularly in hydraulics. New models included the Maserati Bora, the first mass-produced mid-engined Maserati, in 1971, and the Maserati Merak and Maserati Khamsin soon afterwards; the Maserati Quattroporte II, which shared some parts with Citroën SM, never came into production, although seven were made to special order. The Maserati engine and its associated gearbox have been used in other vehicles such as Special Rally prepared Citroën DS, as used by Bob Neyret in Bandama Rally or in the Ligier JS 2. The 1980s saw the company largely abandoning the mid-engined sports car in favour of squarely styled, front-engined, rear-drive coupes, cheaper than before but with aggressive performance, like the Maserati Biturbo. The Maserati Biturbo engine was fitted in a large number of models, all sharing key components. These inclided a short two door coupe, the Maserati Karif, and a cabriolet, the Spyder, designed by Zagato. The last version of the Maserati Biturbo was called Maserati Racing. It has been a transitional model in which several features to be found on the Ghibli II and the Shamal were tested. Two new coupes, the Maserati Shamal and Maserati Ghibli II, were released in 1990 and 1992, respectively. The company also worked loosely with Chrysler, now headed by de Tomaso's friend Lee Iacocca. Chrysler purchased part of Maserati and the two jointly produced a car, the Chrysler TC by Maserati. There were also two further projects: the Chubasco a canceled V8 mid-engine sports car and the Maserati Barchetta a small open top mid engine sports car, designed by Synthesis design (Carlo Gaino); 17 examples were produced. In 1998, a new chapter began in Maserati's history when the company launched the 3200 GT. This two-door coupé is powered by a 3.2 L twin-turbocharged V8, which produces 370 hp (276 kW); the car does 0–60 mph in 5.5 seconds. Its top speed is 285 km/h (177 mph). It was replaced by the Maserati Spyder and Coupé in the 2002 model year, which in turn were replaced by the GranTurismo and GranCabrio. In 1999, Ferrari took full control, making Maserati its luxury division. A new factory was built, replacing the existing 1940s-vintage facility. Meanwhile two new models have been shown to the public: the MC12 road super sports and successful GT racer with a Ferrari Enzo–derived chassis and engine. Moreover, the Quattroporte, it is a high luxury saloon with the 4.2l V8 engine. Quattroporte S, featuring the same 4.7L V8 as the Maserati GranTurismo S was introduced also in 2009. The Maserati GranTurismo has a 4.2 litre V8 Grand tourer and 405 PS (298 kW; 399 hp) in standard from and year later introduced GranTurismo S version has 4.7 litre and 440 PS (324 kW; 434 hp). The third is Maserati GranCabrio. It is a convertible version of the GranTurismo S Automatic. The last is Maserati MC12. Maserati MC12 is a very rare Targa top sold for only one year. Maserati developed fifteen GranTurismo MC racecars.