The Quattroporte Trofeo has some likeable qualities but, given its notable failings and shortcomings, it’s hard to take seriously priced next to its significantly more enticing German- and British-built rivals, and harder still to recommend.
The car has competitive outright performance and a fine engine, as well as limo-level occupant space. In all other respects, though, it is either uncompetitive with class standards or downright poor. It rides fairly comfortably but with questionable refinement; it handles with little or none of the extra agility, purpose or engagement expected of a performance derivative; and for cabin quality, on-board technology and control ergonomics, it falls way short of expectations of any luxury car with a six-figure price.
The Trofeo feels like a performance derivative done to deliver a short-term boost to this ageing model’s order bank, rather than as a serious attempt to relaunch the Maserati brand and aim it at buyers of Porsches, Mercedes-AMGs or Alpina BMWs. It’s only a momentary appetiser to the forthcoming MC20 in that respect, of course, but Maserati ought to do much better. Our advice would certainly be to skip to the main.
