Maser Quattro goes auto

FANS of Maserati’s Quattroporte sedan who have a preference for not changing gears themselves are being treated to the Australian debut of the Italian maker’s first automatic sedan at this week's Melbourne motor show.

Now fitted with a silky-smooth six-speed ZF automatic transmission, which is available alongside the current DuoSelect automated manual gearbox variant, Quattroporte is expected to attract a new, much larger group of customers as a result.

Unlike the DuoSelect gearbox, which is located at the rear differential, the ZF transmission is mounted directly to the rear of the engine, altering the Quattroporte’s weight distribution from 47 per cent front/53 per cent rear to 49/51.

The Quattroporte auto, whose 294kW 4.2-litre V8 remains unchanged, debuted at the Detroit motor show in January and carries no premium over its sequential-manual sibling.

That means $269,000 for the base Quattroporte, $288,000 for the Sport GT and $298,000 for the Executive GT.

Read more: Maserati to offer ZF auto option for Quattroporte