Elite Traveler Summer 2020

Maserati 2020 Quattroporte S Q4 GranSport Edizione Ribelle

elite traveler SUMMER 2020 85

Indisputably Maserati’s Grande Dame, the Quattroporte continues to blur the line between sports car and burly sedan. After five decades of fine-tuning, the Quattroporte S Q4 GranSport Edizione Ribelle embodies peak poise by way of persistence. Not in a category typically brimming with competition, the Modena, Italy-based brand remains committed to expanding its options and editions. There’s a single specification that unites every car manufacturer: Any vehicle looks sexier, sleeker or, in Maserati’s case, more rebellious, when blacked out. The Quattroporte S Q4 GranSport Edizione Ribelle features a Nero Ribelle mica exterior, a black that accentuates its voluptuous quarter panels and catches streetlight reflections. Ample black chrome finishes, from the exhaust tips and the vertical grille bars to the 20-in wheels with contrasting red brake calipers, reinforce Maserati’s desire to encourage ‘the excitement of the urban night.’ The alternating nero and rosso (black and red) interior with contrasting stitching reads a touch Ferrari. And there’s more Prancing Horse under the hood: The Ferrari-designed and -developed 3.0-liter, twin-turbo V6 engine propounds 424 hp and a max speed of 179 mph. The Q4 intelligent all-wheel drive system, with its variable torque control, shifts engine torque in real time from its normal rear wheel preference to a 50:50 weight distribution. With increased stability and dynamic functionality, Maserati’s flagship sedan refuses to sacrifice performance despite its reputation as an all-road, all-weather-condition vehicle. From $120,000, maseratiusa.com

Each is individually numbered; only 25 Quattroporte S Q4 GranSport Edizione Ribelle exist

Land Rover 2020 Defender 110 X

Above & Beyond — equal parts decree, challenge and promise, that tagline has encapsulated the Land Rover spirit and the Defender nameplate since the latter launched in 1948. Steeped in history and deeply beloved, the new four-door Defender debuts after a two-decade absence. Off-road purists find disbelief in its unibody framework, oft considered to be weaker than the previously popularized body-on-frame architecture. Adding shock value, the SUV also deploys an independent suspension. Defender leaned into and learned from every Land Rover in order to efficiently prove the naysayers wrong. The turbocharged six-cylinder, mild-hybrid with an electric supercharger (P400 MHEV) pushes 400 hp and three times more rigidity; the Defender can handle school pickup and uncharted mountain roads with equal vigor. Opulence befalls by way of technology and personalization. Windsor leather seats come with a side of fording capabilities (in up to nearly three feet of water). A thoroughly pragmatic ClearSight Ground View system uses a camera to display video of what’s normally obscured by the hood. Clever. An exposed magnesium beam doubles as the dash, providing pockets to stow gadgets and gear, both wild and urban. With over-the-air updates for Defender’s infotainment and electrical architecture, two separate modems ensure that software can be downloaded without affecting data flow, like streaming music, to Wi-Fi-connected devices. Rarely has a nameplate soaked in sentimentalism and adventure married modern comfort and drivability with rugged and refined capability like Defender does. From $81,000, landroverusa.com

Originally denoting wheelbase, the 110 naming convention remains constant, even though the vehicle now spans 119 inches