"Wouldn't you really rather have a ... Maserati???"
There was an interesting comment the other day at the website of Professor Glenn Reynolds, who is better known on the Internet as "the Instapundit":
"Today, coming out from lunch, the Insta-Daughter and I saw a Maserati Quattroporte parked next to my Mazda. I thought it looked very nice, especially the interior, but the Insta-Daughter pronounced it 'ugly' and added 'I thought it was a Buick until you pointed it out.' "
Could this possibly be true? Let's look at the evidence.
Exhibit A is a current-production Buick LaCrosse in an official Buick advertising image:
It's a four-door sedan in the low-drag aerodynamic style that's all the rage these days. Note the rounded "landscape" grille faired in to the bumper, with a Buick badge in the center, and the "exhaust port" trim on the front fenders. The LaCrosse is 198 inches long, seats five, and can be had with a 300-horsepower V-8.
Now, on to Exhibit B--the Maserati Quattroporte's official photo:
Like the Buick, it's a low-drag, aerodynamic-style four-door sedan that seats five. Note the rounded "landscape" grille faired in to the bumper, with the Maserati badge in the center and the "exhaust port" trim on the front fenders--very similar to the Buick. The Quattroporte's overall length is 190.98 inches--less than an inch different than the LaCrosse. The Maser comes with a 400-horsepower V-8.
From ten yards away, there's not a whole lot of difference. "Ugly" is a subjective judgment on which reasonable people can disagree, but young Miss Reynolds is absolutely right about one thing: the Maserati looks like a Buick.
That's not to say that the two are Interchangeable. Far from it:
- The Maserati's interior is a lot plusher.
- The Maserati will go way faster, and is probably a lot more fun to drive.
- The Buick gets better gas mileage.
- Saying "I just got a new Maserati" to cocktail party guests is more impressive than saying "I just got a new Buick."
- You're unlikely to see a Maserati in the parking lot at Target.
- Ted Nugent doesn't mention Buicks in "Wango Tango."
- You can get parts for the Buick from your local auto parts store and from the fine folks who sponsor Car Lust. Parts for the Maserati ... not so available.
Most important:
- You can actually afford the Buick.
In fact, for the sticker price of a single Maserati Quattroporte, you could get three top-of-the-line Buick LaCrosses and have enough left over to widen the driveway so you can park them all off-street.
For the people in the Maserati's target demographic, price is not a major consideration. Still, if you were a Maserati customer, would it not bother you a bit to pull into the parking deck and find that the rare and distinctive Italian supercar you just put down six figures for is only barely distinguishable from your office manager's Buick?
--Cookie the Dog's Owner
lucklucky on July 29, 2008 at 03:14 PM
Well someone that mixes that two have not a very good eye for cars at least.
Jeff on July 29, 2008 at 03:37 PM
I got upgraded to a Buick Lucerne when I went to pick up a rental (they were out of the cheapo ride I had reserved) and was amazed. I hadn't been in a GM car since forever and was expecting cheap plastic crap. Boys and girls, I know they are too heavily invested in big iron (trucks and SUVs), but I didn't feel like I was in a senior citizen ride...GM is doing very, very nice work these days. The Lucerne compared very favorably to my bro-in-law's BMW 5-series at about half the price. Fit and finish = excellent.
At the moment I'm having serious car lust for the 2010 Caddy CTS wagon. Never thought I'd say that. We'll see how that goes.
DavetheChemist on July 29, 2008 at 03:39 PM
Mmmmm, one is essentially a hand made Italian suit, the other is a velour leisure suit from Target. The choice is yours. Oh, and cars are (mostly) for driving, not looking at. Flick both these cars through some twisty bits and you'll see why the Maserati wins hands down. Different planet altogether. And Jason O'Connell, we're talking about a Maserati, not a Honda, Toyota or Volkswagon.
haha on July 29, 2008 at 03:45 PM
Of all the people that commented above how many do actually own a maserati? exactly, not many. So, stop bitching about things/cars you don't have. Rolls-Royce Phantoms are ugly but that's only because I can't afford one.
DaveC on July 29, 2008 at 03:52 PM
As an owner of a Quattroporte, I have also noticed the Buick similarity. And when I did, after a second's hesitation, I realized that I don't care.
Here's why. Firstly, the Buick is trying to copy the Maserati and imitation is a form of flattery. The Maser came first, either way. Next, while both aim for the same notion (luxurious, performance, style, space) they are very different under the skin. Bear in mind that if you don't care about cars and engineering, per se, then you might not care that they're different. But the fact of the matter is that it's a central consideration. If you don't care about the Ferrari-designed V8, the heritage, the bespoke nature of the interior and the glorious exhilarating noise, then just save your money with a Buick.
And I parked my QP next to the Buick. Side by side and acknowledging my bias, the QP is beautiful and the Buick is nice. Balance, proportion, detail and poise all are part of what makes the difference. Pininfarina gets that bit right.
And this leads to the final point. As a kid, my wall was covered in pictures of Ferraris, Porsches, Aston Martins and Bristols. I dreamed of owning them. When I saw one I'd crane my neck to watch it as long as possible. Oh man, did I love those cars. And so it is today. I wanted a piece of that racing history, the design, the lore, even the image. Why did Joe Walsh sing about his Maserati? Because rock stars don't get their kicks from driving Buicks (nice though they may be); they drive Rolls Royces into pools, and drive exotices with model groupies in. Rock and roll baby - living the dream.
So yes they are similar, but truly so different. And that makes ALL the difference.
Spidey on July 29, 2008 at 04:35 PM
The auto world has always been copycat in its designs. I'm a big fan of the boxy pre-bathtub auto designs; my favorite auto style is the 1932-1934 Fords, both coupe and Vickys. However, just by co-incidence I'm sure, Chevrolets, Pontiacs, Chryslers, Dodges of the same years as the above mentioned Fords, as well as before and after the posited years, were almost identical to their equivalent year-model Fords. Go figure.
monkeyfan on July 29, 2008 at 05:41 PM
GrndLkNatv on July 29, 2008 at 02:09 PM
"Owning anything other than a Maserati or a Ferrari is merely owning a car."
Yeah, the Maseratis and Ferraris kinda end up owning us in one way or another.
B^)
seguin on July 29, 2008 at 11:09 PM
The Buick regularly ends up at the top of overall quality and reliability comparisons...the Maserati, being built by FIAT, does not.
That being said, the Maserati has a better interior, sweeter powerplant, rear-wheel drive and I'm not sure but I think they offer a manual stateside. Since I have absolutely nothing against Italian cars (in fact, I'm picking up an Alfa 2600 Sprint tomorrow) - I'd say that hands the crown to Maserati for me.
Although I support GM, so I'd still buy the Buick, or more likely the Pontiac G8.
out4blood on July 30, 2008 at 11:15 AM
Not to disparage the "brilliant" essay about the evils of CAD-design or anything, but the Buick designers are just copying the look of the Maserati in the hopes that some people might actually buy one.
out4blood on July 30, 2008 at 11:15 AM
Not to disparage the "brilliant" essay about the evils of CAD-design or anything, but the Buick designers are just copying the look of the Maserati in the hopes that some people might actually buy one.
Ian on July 30, 2008 at 11:54 AM
haha (if that is your real name): "Of all the people that commented above how many do actually own a maserati? exactly, not many. So, stop bitching about things/cars you don't have."
So we can only comment on cars we own? I'm sure Chris has owned a lot of cars, but it seems like this blog would lose some of its appeal if those were the only cars he could write about, don't you think?
Ian on July 30, 2008 at 12:05 PM
out4blood: ". . .but the Buick designers are just copying the look of the Maserati in the hopes that some people might actually buy one."
The portholes, especially.
Mochi Mochi on July 30, 2008 at 03:40 PM
"Evils of CAD"? I thought we cleared that up - it is in fact: the evils of Globalism and Marketing, the out growth of common tools and perspectives, and a narrow set of design goals.
But seriously, if Buick was going to "copy" a design - don't you think they would have picked something better and more impressive than a Maserati Quattroporte? Don't flatter yourselves guys.
The two cars had roughly the same launch date. That means that tooling was completed A LONG TIME before - and the design of the car (in CAD) was done well before that. Does anyone really believe that Buick sent design spies to infiltrate Maserati of all places?! Give me a break. Buick doesn't have that kind of budget or cunning. If they did they'd head somewhere like Audi or over to Benz for market inspiration. This is just a case of Buick designers being as good as Maseratti designers, using the same tool, following the same trends, and trying to appeal to markets with similar tastes. It's a "Targetization" of auto design and that's a good thing. The difference in details is important only to someone who really wants a Maserati. Its nice to see Buick designers doing world class design work. But what does this say for Maserati?
The real shame here is that Maserati has created an incredibly boring car. This heap has nothing over any italian car from the 70s.
BTW: Rock stars like to sing about Maseratis because they sound recognizably cool and fast and they are easier to work into a song than Lamborghini.
"Flick both these cars through some twisty bits and you'll see why the Maserati wins hands down." Yeah right up until the time they both get passed by a old Honda Civic or Prelude 4WS. No one Flicks 4100 lbs of car through any twisty bits. You want to flick a car, you're looking at something about half that weight and a lot more nimble.
Nathan of Brainfertilizer Fame on July 30, 2008 at 08:39 PM
I think if we can only write about cars we've actually owned, David (one of 'em) would own this blog.
haha on July 31, 2008 at 01:49 PM
You are missing the point. The point is, just by looking at the pictures and spec sheets doesn't mean you have experienced the car itself. It's like looking at the pictures of NY, LA, and SF and you conclude the entire US is like that.
Chris Hafner on July 31, 2008 at 01:55 PM
I think the Maserati crew is blowing this out of proportion. Cookie the Dog Owner's post is clever because it highlights the surprising similarities between a Maserati and Buick, while helping shed light on how surprisingly lust-worthy the Buick is. Nobody thinks the Maserati buyer is going to cross-shop the Buick, or that there's nothing that sets the Maserati apart from the Buick.
I am with Mochi Mochi, though - this new generation of Maseratis leaves me almost completely cold. I recognize that they are stylish, but they don't have the same design passion that made the Bora special, for example. Expensive, stylish, luxurious, capable - sure, but the new Maseratis don't push the same buttons for me that the old Maseratis (even the Biturbos!) did.
Cookie the Dog's Owner on August 01, 2008 at 06:47 AM
Chris, I appreciate you covering my back. I will freely admit that the Maserati would be more comfortable and more fun to drive, and has a certain intangible "Maseratiness" not found anywhere else. I will also state for the record that I don't want either a Quattroporte or a LaCrosse, which is purely a function of my personal tastes and does not reflect on the objective worth of either vehicle. If it's your cup of motor oil, and you can afford it, good for you. I do think that if you're buying a Quattroporte for its distinctiveness--which is part of the appeal--you may be paying too much.
If I were in Maserati management, I'd be burying the styling department in memos exhorting them to "make sure the next generation Q-porte doesn't look like a @#$%^&* Buick LaCrosse!"
If I were in GM's marketing division, I'd be pushing someone to figure out how we could use the similarity to sell more Buicks.
Ian on August 01, 2008 at 07:58 AM
haha: "You are missing the point. The point is, just by looking at the pictures and spec sheets doesn't mean you have experienced the car itself. It's like looking at the pictures of NY, LA, and SF and you conclude the entire US is like that."
Your original post came off more as saying, "You're just jealous and you shouldn't talk about things you can't afford" than that, but that's neither here nor there. You're right, it would be silly to conclude that all of the US looks like those cities, but that analogy doesn't even come close to working here; you don't have to live in Manhattan to know what it looks like. Similarly, you don't have to shell out $120,000 to own a Quattroporte to say that it shares some styling with a Buick, or that it isn't the most attractive form Pininfarina has ever come up with. I also hope I don't have to track down and purchase a Ghibli to say I think it's a very attractive car.
virgil xenophon on August 08, 2008 at 03:57 PM
Most people have a Goldilocks mentality, i.e., they want something fashionably distinguished, but not too extreme of a forward fashion statement. This fact may be seen in the aerodynamically designed "jelly-bean" Ford Tarus falling out of favor for simultaneously being too both too futuristic and too bland. Likewise the Marcos Manta--a rakish, fashionably distinct offering if there ever was one--was too distinct for the public at that time (early 70's). Today? Perhaps. The trick is to be just far enough ahead of the crowd in design without losing touch with the very same mass audience in terms of marketing appeal.
Additionally, some cars, like women, seem to photograph better than they look, and visa versa. The Marcos 3-litre Gt ,the Dodge turbo-Lancer ES and present day Merc. MILAN are classic examples of cars whose striking visual appeal when viewed in person are hard to convey via photos or film in an ad campaign. Also, woe to the car whose upscale version (like the turbo-LancerES) becomes associated in the public mind with the stripped down version (basic wheels, cloth interiors, standard colors, etc.) driven by blue-haired old ladies.
Kent on August 10, 2008 at 03:27 PM
ALL OF THIS BASED ON WHAT A TEENAGE GIRL SAID. YOU PEOPLE HAVE WAAAY TOO MUCH TIME ON YOUR HANDS. IT'S A CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF APPLES AND ORANGES. AND YES BUICK, BY THERE OWN ADMISSION, COPIED THE QP. NOW SOMEONE PLEASE START A BETTER THREAD, THIS IS PATHETIC.
Rob the SVX guy on September 09, 2008 at 09:15 AM
It's been proven that people who type with the caps lock button on are mentally challenged.
MasDaddy on March 21, 2010 at 07:36 AM
I just happened on this blog. I own both a buick and maserati Quattro. This discussion is insipid, there are NO similarilies between my two cars. Buick did a very nice job redesigning and they look sharp, so I bought my son one. No one mistakes his car for mine unless they would also mistake a grilled cheese sandwich for a steak at Ruth's Chris.
tomm on June 16, 2010 at 02:50 PM
Well, Buick in 2010 is not same as even 2008. The new LaCrosse and Regal are great cars. Also, Buick from its birth to about 1984 sold some good road cars, and not until the 90's would be boring FWD old timers cars.