MotorAuthority

Spy shots: Maserati GranTurismo Spyder

Posted Tue May 12 2009 6:19 AM by Viknesh Vijayenthiran

The new GranTurismo Spyder will likely feature a conventional folding soft-top to keep weight down

Maserati officials have confirmed the convertible version of the GranTurismo will arrive in showrooms by March of next year and now we have a few new details about the car, which is expected to go by the name GranTurismo Spyder.

Maserati is yet to reveal if the car will sport a traditional canvas roof or a new hard-top, but according to most sources it will come with a conventional soft-top in order to keep weight as low as possible. The latest spy shots and renderings below give us a good indication as to what the final styling may look like.

The new Spyder is also expected to be priced from $130,000 in the U.S., pitting it perfectly against rivals like the Mercedes Benz SL, Aston Martin Vantage Roadster, BMW M6 Cabrio, and Jaguar XKR Convertible.

In keeping with its premium status the Spyder will likely come standard with the new 434hp 4.7L V8 engine from the more recent GranTurismo S. This means it will likely get Maserati’s new automatic gearbox (as opposed to the previous automated manual) and a Brembo brake package as standard.

Performance will likely be down on its hard-top sibling, however, as the Spyder will require extra reinforcements due to its missing roof. Remember, the regular GranTurismo already weighs in excess of 1,800kg so the extra weight of this reinforcement plus the automated folding roof system could easily push the drop-top past the two ton barrier.

Story Tags:

• 2011 Maserati GranTurismo Spyder
• automatic
• Cambio corsa
• Cambiocorsa
• Convertibles
• Gran Turismo
• GranTursimo
• GT
• Maserati
• Maserati automatic
• Maserati GranTurismo Spyder
• Spy shots

Reader Comments

• Mon Apr 7 2008 2:06 PM

  Gus says

  I've seen that gaping mouth in person now, and it is really ungainly looking. It will age the car very quickly...

• Mon Apr 7 2008 9:31 PM

  archony says

  With all due respect to the most excellent writers, this is the fourth time that a convertible has been described as a "poser's" car; in defense (or defence) of drop-top drivers, it's not about the posing so much as the open air.
  Driving home late on a warm summer's night with the top down is infinitely pleasant and involves no showing off. How about giving convertible drivers a break?

• Tue Apr 8 2008 3:10 AM

  Gus says

  I guess they don't consider the S2000 or Boxster real sports cars... :)

• Tue Apr 8 2008 3:25 AM

  admin says

  archony, don’t take it personally. We love driving convertibles for the same reasons you do, but compared to their coupe siblings convertibles will always have some compromises be it rigidity, space or weight issues.
  
  Note that the best convertibles - the S2000, MX-5, SLK, Boxster - were all designed to be convertibles from the beginning.

• Wed Aug 20 2008 12:21 AM

  Gus says

  Correct.
  If the car was designed to be a convertible from the beginning, or maybe even nothing other than a convertible, the results tend to be better.
  I'm sure this car will be excellent, but that gaping, huge, incredulous, magnanimous, monstrous, fish-mouth is hard to get used to...
  Not that I'd mind if someone gave one to me, but there's prettier cars for the money...

• Wed Aug 20 2008 1:24 AM

  NoNameDenton says

  I get vibes that this is similar to the Ferrari California, with only so differences.

• Wed Aug 20 2008 1:24 AM

  NoNameDenton says

  Dern, so for the double post, my original one did not show up on my computer for some reason.