By: IOL Motoring Staff
Geneva Motor Show - The star of the Maserati stand in Geneva is the striking Alfieri 2+2 concept, named for the engineering genius who founded 'Officine Alfieri Maserati' with his brothers in Bologna 100 years ago this year.
Created at the Maserati Centro Stile in Turin by a group of talented young designers under the direction of Marco Tencone and head of design Lorenzo Ramaciotti, it's not just a runner but a 100 percent functional prototype that says a lot about the design DNA of future Maseratis.
Sportier than the GranTurismo, the Alfieri's proportions might well be the inspiration for a future Gran Sport, given that the long, low nose with its vertically split grille that seems to float in the air is derived from current Maseratis.
LIQUID METAL
The concept is based on the GranTurismo MC Stradale chassis with its wheelbase shortened by 240mm to 2700mm; it's 4590mm long overall, 1930mm wide and 1280mm high.
It's finished in a special colour called Steel Flair, intended to make the concept look as if a metallic veil has been draped over a naked body.
The only decorative elements on the whole car are the triple air ducts on the wheel arches, while the 20" front and 21" rear, one-piece forged rims were specially designed for this concept.
The cut spokes of the rims, brake callipers, grille, air ducts, diffuser and the brows over the tail pipes are finished in blue, as is the Alfieri signature on the back of the car, which was copied from an old company document.
MINIMALIST CABIN
Finished in classy dark blue and white with copper highlights, the interior has been kept as simple as possible, built around a central TFT Screen, with a classic double binnacle in front of the driver, each with a TFT display that has the numbers themselves moving round the faces; current speed and revs are highlighted by a magnifying-glass effect.
The seat profile inserts, gear lever and the oval clock case on the centre stack are each milled from single piece of solid aluminium, hand finished and anodised in a natural copper colour, while the cast-alloy pedals, paddle shifters and steering wheel spokes are also hand finished and anodised in a palladium colour.
MOTORVATION
The Alfieri is built on the transaxle platform of the GranTurismo, its 4.7-litre, naturally aspirated, V8 rated for 340kW at 7000rpm and 520Nm at 4750, driving the rear-mounted six-speed electronically actuated gearbox and limited-slip rear differential through a specially shortened torque tube.