Daily Archives: March 7, 2013
Maserati to Launch Ghibli before the SUV, Levante
After being surrounded by rumors about the much awaited new models that the company is about to launch, Italian luxury car maker Maserati’s news reports indicate that the amazing new sedan Ghibli will go into production before the SUV Levante, proving previous rumous wrong. As the designs of the SUV Levante were revealed, the SUV world started anticipating its production and launch, but now it seems that the sedan Ghibli, which will be making a comeback, will go into production first. Maserati has taken many steps as it aims to raise the annual sales by 50,000 units before 2015. One of the most prominent of these steps is that the company is launching new and fresh version of its legendary model, Quattroporte on the car’s own golden anniversary!
The production as well as launching times of the Levante have been preceded by that of the Ghibli. Markets will see the launch of the Ghibli somewhere in 2014 while the Levante is expected to come out in the markets for sale somewhere in 2015. The new Ghibli will come in various models, out of which, the entry level model will feature a turbocharged V6 engine. This engine is expected to deliver a power of around 390 horsepower. A higher version is expected to boast of the Ferrari’s direct injected turbocharged V8 engine. The engine is expected to be a 3800cc engine which will be capable of delivering around 490 horsepower of power. Coupled with these engines will be the amazing eight-speed torque-converter automatic system, which will give the car the sharpness that it needs! Apparently, Maserati wanted to be a bit crazier when it came to the engine statistics of the SUV Levante. The new SUV will feature a V8 engine which will be designed and manufactured by Ferrari itself. The new Quattroporte which is to be launched on the car’s golden anniversary is also going to be equipped with the same engine. Levante will hence enjoy a power output of around 530 horsepower and its wheels will be driven by a torque of 479 lb. – ft. What’s more to the craziness is that the SUV’s engine will be accompanied by an all-new eight-speed automatic transmission, which will only enhance the performance of the beast further.
Both the new Maserati vehicles look stunning! While the Ghibli is said to have look quite similar and as sharp as the Audi A7, the Levante on the other hand features a unique look of its own kind. One can also expect that the company will install some of the best quality suspensions, brakes, etc. which the company will design and produce itself at its own plants. The Ghibli and Levante will face severe competition from cars like Adui S6, S7, Jaguar XF, Mercedes Benz E Class and Porsche Cayenne, Volkswagen Touareg, etc. respectively. Anyway, the main thing to note here is that although the company seemed quite enthusiastic with the SUV, especially when they revealed the Kubang Concept in 2011, green light has been given to the sedan Ghibli before the new and much waited SUV, Levante.
Range Rover Goes “Semi” Environment Friendly
Since the increasing awareness of the environmental problems that SUVs cause, a number of companies have come up with numerous alternatives which include innovative options like hybrid concepts as well. SUVs are known for their substantially low fuel economies, high levels of pollution causing emissions and a lot more. Under such circumstances, Range Rover has also come up with an effective plan that it will be using for its new SUVs. This alteration will lower emissions by a significant amount while causing negligible fall in power and performance.
As per the company’s new plans, the new SUVs that it will be producing will not be using the traditional V8 engine that almost all the Range Rover SUVs produced till now have featured. Range Rover plans to drop the V8 engine, replacing it with a much more efficient supercharged V6 engine. This new engine is certainly very powerful; it’s a supercharged one after all! However, the company as well as critics hope of seeing much reduced emissions from the new vehicles. Besides the new engine, the new SUVs will also feature some other changes. Range Rover seems to be getting a makeover!
Technically speaking, we all know that the supercharged V6 engine is going to be somewhat slower than the beast like V8 engine, but the improved efficiency and the lower emissions are a much desired characteristic! The V8 engine that Range Rover was using till now produces an overwhelming power of 375 horsepower. This power is used to produce a torque of 375 lb. – ft. This torque is enough to thrust the SUVs from rest to a speed of 60 miles per hour in just 6.5 seconds. However, the supercharged V6 engine under consideration produces a reduced power of 340 horsepower. This means that the torque produced by the engine reduces to 332 lb. – ft. As a result, the time taken to reach the speed of 60 miles an hour from a zero is 7.1 seconds. The difference of just 0.6 seconds might sound big to you, but not when the fuel economy statistics are considered! SUVs with V8 engines boast of a mileage of 14 miles per gallon while running in cities and 20 miles per gallon on highway. The increased mileages featured by these SUVs with the new engines are expected to rise to 16 and 22 miles per gallon respectively. The combined mileage will hence rise from 16 miles per gallon to 18 miles per gallon. Not only this! The Carbon dioxide emissions are also expected to reduce by over 22%!
Among the other changes that Range Rover plans to make, one pleasant change is that they are going to reduce the prices listed on the price tags of the various features that they offer. Anticipate lower prices for features like Adaptive Cruise Control, Active Rear Locking Differential, Tow Package, etc. Also, one of the colours that were offered has been taken back, while two new variations have been added to the already magnificent fleet of SUVs!