Maserati: Alfieri concept car to be put into production in 2016

16 June, 2014

 

Maserati will be putting a concept car into production that is likely to be a bit of a rival of the Porsche 911.

The Alfieri concept will be put into production in 2016 with a plan to produce it in both coupe and convertible forms, on rear- and four-wheel drive platforms that will be shared with new Alfa Romeo models.

Unveiled at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, the Alfieri concept car is all about the company’s sports heritage and the future of Maserati design.

It’s named after Alfieri Maserati, one of the five Maserati brothers, who loved speed and raced cars as a mechanic and from the driver’s seat. The unveiling of the Alfieri concept marked 100 years since Alfieri and brothers Ettore and Ernesto Maserati opened their workshop.

Polishing to perfection

The secret to a show-stopping finish is colour sanding, no matter which paint system you use. Even a good painter, no matter how experienced or talented — like my mate Bruce Haye, CEO at Ace Panel and Paint in Whitianga — can’t shoot to a perfect mirror finish. To get that level of perfection, you need to colour sand.
It used to be called ‘rubbing out’ or ‘cutting’, and it was done with pastes that came in cans. They worked — sort of — but the compounds really just rounded off imperfections instead of eliminating them, and they removed a lot of paint in the process. But now your new finish can be made flawless, thanks to microfine sandpapers that come in 1000, 1500, 2000, and even 2500 grit ranges, and Farecla G3 polish — available from automotive paint suppliers.

NZ Classic Car magazine, March/April 2026 issue 404, on sale now

BMW’s flagship techno showcase
The supermodel 1995 BMW 840Ci is simply elegant and perfectly engineered.
BMW’s 840 Ci flagship Coupe provides superb comfort and equipment packaged in a stylish body, with grand-touring performance and surprisingly competent handling for its size.
It’s the kind of machine that stands apart from the start. When BMW first unveiled its flagship Grand Tourer at the 1989 Frankfurt Motor Show, the automotive world blinked twice. Sleek, low, and impossibly modern for its era, it combined drama with a sort of purposeful understatement. This silhouette still looks striking today, long after its peers have faded into obscurity.
Initially offered with a range of engines, the model you’re reading about is the V8 iteration, featuring a 4.0-litre eight-cylinder heart under its long bonnet and a smooth five-speed automatic at the back. It wasn’t about blistering sprint times so much as effortless velocity. There was power on tap, sure, but the way it delivered thrust felt unhurried and measured – the automotive equivalent of a deep exhale on a long drive.
Poster 1964 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, C2