2014 Maserati Granturismo Sport on 2040-cars

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Maserati and Zegna to roll out limited-edition Quattroporte in Frankfurt

Back in April, Maserati announced a new partnership with men's clothier Ermenegildo Zegna. We wondered at the time how a Maserati could possibly get any more stereotypically Italian stylish, but now the Modenese automaker is presenting the answer in this fresh take on the new Quattroporte.
When the doors open at the Frankfurt Motor Show next week, Maserati will unveil the Quattroporte Ermenegildo Zegna Limited Edition concept car. That's their name, not ours, and if you're wondering how a production vehicle could be turned at once into both a concept and a limited edition, well... we don't know, either. Maserati says that it previews a production version to follow next year.
So, confusing nomenclature aside, what are we looking at here? For starters, there's a special platinum-color paint finish with tiny aluminum flecks and a gloss-black primer to give it that extra-deep luster. And the interior has been upholstered in "moka" and "greige," with leather seats, door panels and headliner and other surfaces finished in Zegna's own textiles.

Submit your questions for Autoblog Podcast #329 LIVE!

We're set to record Autoblog Podcast #329 tonight, and you can drop us your questions and comments via our Q&A module below. Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes if you haven't already done so, and if you want to take it all in live, tune in to our UStream (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.
Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #329
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Ram/Jeep Ecodiesel engine has Maserati roots

The 3.0L turbodiesel V6 in the 2014 Ram 1500 EcoDiesel earned a slot on Ward's Automotive 2014 10 Best Engines for its power, fuel economy and refinement. In a piece looking at how Fiat subsidiary VM Motor developed the engine, Ward's also makes note of the fact that the same lump goes in diesel versions of the Maserati Quattroporte and Ghibli. They're tuned a bit differently, naturally, with the QP putting out 275 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque, the smaller, lighter Ghibli making do with the same number of horses but a lower torque output of 420 lb-ft.
The 240 horsepower and 420 pound-feet put out by the oil-burning six-cylinder in the Ram was tamed with a host of advances, but it appears that Ram hasn't tamed demand: the initial allocation of 8,000 engines was spoken for within three days of the truck going on sale. Head over to Ward's to read the story of how Ram worked out the equation light-duty-pickup + diesel = success.