I find that really quite sad that somebody of that nature is given the word space to write a review if thats what you can call it of any car. At no point does Doug Demuro mention how the car drives, feels or looks.
The only thing that was informative about the article was that he takes 9 minutes when using the toilet. Well I can confirm that BMW 5 series owners take 5 minutes and Mercedes E class owners take 4 minutes 39.52 seconds. That is because they are more efficient and spout far less Cr4p than the writer of that article.
Massaging seats ???? Now call me daft but I want to be alert when I am driving not having my back and posterior massaged to the extent that I am in danger of falling asleep and then I would need extra safety features such as a lane departure warning and automatic brakes to avoid shunting cars in front or to the side of me when I fall asleep.
E class automatic seat bolsters that adjust when cornering. The average size / weight of our american cousins means that this particular feature is rather pointless. Its more likely to be pinching more than an inch of lard that is over hanging the seat in all directions.
In all fairness to Mr Demuro I should point out that he also wrote an article that says Bluetooth is the most annoying automotive feature in existence. So at least we know there is something that annoys him on the BMW 5 series and the E class Mercedes.
Just goes to show Doug Demuro (pronunciation: "Dug De More on" nick name D*ck) is a journalist/author in the same way as Milli Vanilli were singers.
I can only assume that Mr Demuro wrote the article on his Iplop while reading the online brochures for Maserati, BMW and Mercedes. It appears he didn't see hear or drive the Ghibli.
I like most people look at buying a new car based on the following factors:
1. looks even though i'm sat in the car most of the time I want something that looks good
2. how does it drive ? if it looks good but the drive is rubbish then its a no go.
3. Interior. is it a nice place to be
4. price bracket. Is it within my budget range with the features I want. which for me is usually, Leather interior, alloy wheels, cruise control, blue tooth phone system. Anything else after that is nice but not necessary.
5. safety features.
6. depending on what I am buying the car for MPG / car tax. If its a mile muncher then MPG may be an important factor. If its a low mileage leisure / pleasure vehicle then its less important.
7. the smile factor. this has the power to over rule everything on the list with the exception of looks and how it drives.
The above points are not in order of priority but the first three are always in the top three.
Now in the interest of fairness have Maserati got things wrong for the American market. Yes I think they have to some extent. The Ghibli isnt a F150 pick up so its never going to shift 100's of thousand units. Perhaps Maserati in conjuction with Chrysler should produce a sporty pick up to give them a mass unit model with low development costs.
The Ghibli should in my view be priced attractively in the sector they are aiming for. Like most manufacturers you sometimes need to buy your market share and lets face it you will make more selling parts than you will on the car itself.
Have as standard more equipment. The cost of reversing cameras and automatic boot openers is very little so put them on there. I'm not saying it should be full to the brim of gadgets but put a few more on as the baseline and have more options to spec up.
Knowing how much car you can get for your money is the USA I would have thought a more reasonable price would be around the $50000 to $55000 area. Lower price and more volume means more profit in the long run. Tweak the package and reap the rewards.
Now Mr Demuro I didn't feel the need to start an angry thread on a Maserati forum. What I did do is take a more balanced view good and bad and make some comments based on that. What I did discover was you seem to be a bit of a dork and I didn't need BMW night vision to see this either. Perhaps you don't rember BMW selling cars where the stereo was an optional extra ?
Just as a foot note a couple of anagrams for your amusement. Doug is the author of a book called plays with cars :-
Doug Demuro -- doomed guru
Doug Demuro plays with cars -- Priory saw the smug loud cad
constructive comments over