An incredible Maserati GranTurismo Sport, as seen on a car market in Beijing on a very cold winter morning in December 2018. The Italian grand tourer looked brilliant in a dark shade of blue with tinted windows and fitted with beautiful five-spoke alloy wheels.
It was so cold that the cars were covered with a thin layer of ice. I had a busy day ahead so I arrived at the market around 0730 in the morning. The shops don’t open until nine but the outdoor area is accessible, the best time for taking pics in peace.
The Beijing sun sets over the Maserati.
The Maserati GranTurismo Sport was a sporty variant of the first-generation Maserati GranTurismo. The Sport was manufactured from 2012 to 2019. The car we have here is made even prettier than standard. It is fitted with an optional hood, inspired by the hardcore MC Stradale model (compared with the standard hood). The alloys are optional too.
The Maserati GranTurismo was designed by Pininfarina, and the Italian design studio did a brilliant job. It is probably one of the best-looking grand tourers ever made, with a classic coupe shape with a long hood and a short rear. It was developed to carry folks in great comfort and at high speed, and the Maserati was able to do just that.
The interior looked great too, with suede-black seats and red carpets on the floor. The center stack is loaded, with an old-school infotainment system, a CD tray, and lots of buttons. Between the air vents sits the classic Maserati clock.
The Maserati GranTurismo Sport was officially marketed in China. Under the hood was a 4.7 liter V8 engine with an output of 460 hp and 520 Nm. The transmission was a six-speed automatic with optional paddle shifters, like in the car that I saw.
Top speed was rated at 298 km/h with a 0-100 in 4.8 seconds. It was a little thirsty. The official Chinese fuel consumption number was 15.5 liters per 100 kilometers! The price in 2013 was 2.46 million yuan. That was a lot of cash
Come at 0900 and the place is crowded, even in mid-winter.
The Maserati logo on the C-pillar is surrounded and covered by ice. It was a cold but well-spend morning.