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Maserati rapidly expanding dealer network

With the new Quattroporte and Ghibli sedans out on the market, and the new Levante crossover and Alfieri coupe on their way, Maserati is making serious headway towards revitalizing its lineup. Now all it needs in order to reach its ambitious sales targets is to expand the network of dealers where they're to be sold. And according to Maserati chief Harald Wester in speaking to Automotive News at the Paris Motor Show, that's exactly what it has in store.
At the end of last year, Maserati had 79 dealerships across the United States. It has already boosted that number to 100 so far this year, but before 2014 is over, it plans to open another 20 to bring the total up to (carry the two, divide by the square-root of Pi)... 120 showrooms.
Globally speaking, Maserati reportedly closed 2012 with around 220-230 dealers around the world, and currently has about 355, but aims to close 2015 with a worldwide network of 450 dealers, representing a doubling of its network in two years' time. Having more than a quarter of those in the US alone is testament to how seriously Maserati takes the American market.

New Maserati Quattroporte revealed before Detroit debut

Well that didn't take long at all. Although we just saw spy shots of the new Maserati Quattroporte last week, Maserati has now taken the wraps off its redesigned sedan ahead of a confirmed Detroit Auto Show debut. Although no official details for the car were released just yet, we can infer quite a few changes just from the images. Celebrating 50 years of the Quattroporte, Maserati is referring to this new car as a 2013 model, but it will arrive next year for the 2014 model year in the US.
The overall exterior styling of the new Quattroporte hasn't evolved too far away from the current car. There is still the sloping hood, vented fenders and shapely body lines, but it also gets a much sleeker roofline and more steeply raked front glass. It also appears that the rear wheels no longer cut into the rear doors, suggesting a longer wheelbase. The biggest change made to the car's styling is found in the rear of the car where horizontal taillights and exhaust tip design now gives it a strong Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG vibe. Inside, the four-passenger sedan now gets a more stylish two-tier instrument panel, a larger touch-screen display on the center stack and what looks to be equally sized monitors for the rear-seat entertainment system.
Under the hood, we can definitely tell that the Quattroporte still uses a V8, but aside from the press release calling it an "all-new next generation powertrain," we don't have any real details of what powers the car. Or do we? The rear 3/4 image of the new design shows a license plate number of "QP 530 HP" possibly suggesting the engine's output has been raised to 530 horsepower up from the current 425. We are also expecting a supercharged V6 at some point down the line with an output of around 420 hp, and it is likely that both engines will be paired to eight-speed automatic transmissions.

Latin music star Ren? P?rez destroys own Maserati to send kids a message

Can destroying a car be art? That question comes a bit too late for the Maserati Quattroporte seen above. The act depicted is from the music video for Adentro by Puerto Rican hip-hop act Calle 13 new single.
While the video is not yet online, the making-of featurette is available below and shows the luxury sedan getting beat with a baseball bat (and more) by the group's frontman René Pérez. According to Latin Gossip, Pérez wants to send his fans a message not to place too high a value in material objects. The Maserati represents a time in his life of too much excess, it seems...
The guy might have an argument, but it still seems pretty wasteful to destroy a perfectly good Italian sports sedan. We will be curious to see how far the destruction goes, but you can get a peak at it in the video below.