Maserati GranTurismo to be axed within 12 months

The enduring Maserati GranTurismo coupe and GranCabrio convertible will be withdrawn from production later this year, the Italian marque’s Australian boss says.

First unveiled in 2007 and 2010 respectively, the beguiling two-door coupe and drop-top are now two of the oldest ‘new’ cars on sale.

A recent facelift will see both models through to their intended deadline resplendent with a naturally-aspirated 4.7-litre V8 and traditional hydraulic steering.

In an interview with carsales.com.au last week, Maserati’s Australian chief Glen Sealey indicated that production of the GranTurismo and GranCabrio will continue only for a matter of months.

“I suspect that production will cease at the end of this year,” Sealey said. “For me it will be a very sad day.

“It’s still the best 2+2 coupe on the market. It’s unique in its space; it’s unique with its normally-aspirated engine, the long bonnet.

“We’ll get production up until the end of this year, and then it will run its life in Australia by June or July next year.”

Maserati is set to replace the GranTurismo with a production version of the striking Alfieri concept, which will be available in all-electric and plug-in hybrid guises.

Maserati first showed off its successor way back in 2014, promising a 0-100km/h time in the two-second range, active aerodynamics and Q4 all-wheel drive with full active torque vectoring, making it one of the quickest cars on the road.

The Alfieri is set to ride on an all-aluminium spaceframe platform that will also spawn a convertible to replace the GranCabrio.

Timing for the Alfieri production car is clouded. In late 2016 Maserati promised it would put a battery-powered version of the two-seat Alfieri into production by 2020, following its global launch next year with a twin-turbo V6 powertrain.

More recent estimates have the new Alfieri coupe and convertible pairing arriving around 2022.