Maserati Levante launched in Dubai (video)
We have prices and specs of the new SUV from Maserati
By Shahzad Sheikh
Maserati Middle East India Africa and Al Tayer Motors (UAE dealer) launched the all-new Maserati Levante this week in Dubai.
See our exclusive video by clicking below
Much better looking in the metal than in the pictures, get used to the shape as we reckon there will be a fair number of these on our roads soon.
It comes in two flavours – Levante and Levante S, with the option of either a luxury pack or sports pack. Under the bonnet a 3.0-litre V6 twin turbo engine (made by Ferrari in Maranello) in two states of tune – 350bhp & 430bhp.
The former gets to 100kph from rest in 6 seconds with a top speed of 251kph and the latter does the dash in just 5.2 seconds with a 264kph top speed thanks to a slippery drag cooeficient of just 0.31. There are rumours of a V8 but not till 2018.
It drives power to the rear wheels most of the time via an 8-speed auto, but drive can be split front and rear by up to 50%. It also has 50:50 front and rear weight distribution and the lowest centre of gravity in its class. This helps handling as does torque vectoring, limited slip diff and Maserati’s Q4 traction.
It has five different height settings going from 175mm ground clearance up to 210mm – with two settings just for off-roading (it has been tested off-road in the region and even in the sand), with four-drive modes. And of course it will have the signature loud exhaust.
It’ll be packed full of kit as you’d expect including safety spec such as forward collision alert with auto braking, lane-keep, rear cross traffic alert, plus of course there’s adaptive cruise control, a 1280 Watt 17-speaker sound system, new infotainment with an 8.4-inch capacitive screen and a choice of wheels from 19-inch up to 21-inch.
Starting price is AED316,150 ($86k) and AED363,150 ($99k) for the S model – prices include three-years free servicing. First customer cars will be delivered late summer and we hope to bring you a test of one soon after!
YES!