Maserati has released a few official pictures of their Ghibli sedan ahead of the car’s scheduled debut in Shanghai next week.
The biggest news about the four-door sedan is what’s available under the hood. Besides a 410-hp 3.0-liter V-6 gasoline engine, customers can order a 3.0-liter V-6 diesel – the same 3.0-liter diesel that’s found between the rugged front tires of the Jeep Grand Cherokee.
The 3.0-liter diesel is manufactured by VM Motori, an Italian company owned by Fiat. Both the diesel and the gasoline engines will be mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission. The Ghibli can be had in rear-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive.
Having a diesel option makes perfect sense when looking at what the competition is selling, especially in Europe where more than half of all luxury cars are sold with diesel engines.
The Ghibli is smaller than then current Quattroporte and is said to have a sportier character. It’s set to compete against some heavy hitters like the Audi A6, BMW 5 series, and the Mercedes E-class.
The Ghibli will also play a key role in Maserati’s plan to increase its annual sales eight-fold, from 6,288 units last year to a goal of 50,000 units by 2015.
Pricing for the Ghibli will start around $91,400 when it goes on sale in Europe this summer with U.S. sales following shortly after. Pricing for U.S.-bound Ghiblis hasn’t been release yet.
