Shopping the current Italian SUV market, buyers have options from Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Maserati, and now Lamborghini. Rumors of a Ferrari SUV exist as well. Today we plan on featuring one of each in the trim that we would find ourselves most likely to purchase one. While we went with the base engine on the Alfa Romeo Stelvio, where the price remains under control, we can't see moving up to the Levante for anything but the top Trofeo model.
Lesser Levantes rely on FCA Pentastar-derived turbocharged mills that sound great but leave us wanting. Move up to a GTS or Trofeo model, though, and the forward motivation comes courtesy of the more-palatable Ferrari Tipo 154 A series of engines. These units swap out the flat-plane crankshaft of the Ferrari variants for a cross-plane unit, reducing stroke slightly for an overall displacement of 3.8L. In the GTS, the engine produces 542hp, while the Trofeo sees the full 582hp.
Year: 2019
Model: Maserati Levante Trofeo
Engine: 3.9L turbocharged V8
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Mileage: 0
Price: $171,875
Location: Williamsville, NY
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2019 Maserati Levante Trofeo
If only the selling dealer had popped the hood for some shots! The V8 comes with unmistakably Ferrari red crinkle coat valve covers and a gorgeous carbon fiber center cover. The recent trend may be to obscure engines, but the Trofeo certainly bucks the trend and then some. While we appreciate the large Anteo trident-spoke wheels optioned here, we prefer the machined units available on the Trofeo press cars. And, the carbon fiber exterior trim doesn't really pop against the grey exterior paint - fine for some, but we'd seek a bit more contrast.
To us, it's odd that this engine never made its way into the most intuitive application in the Maserati lineup - the GranTurismo. Cannibalization of Ferrari California / Portofino sales is one theory as to why the GranTurismo never received the turbocharged 3.8L, although at the same time, perhaps the upgrade involved too many technical changes. In any case, Maserati managed to fit the engine to the Levante. If you must drive an SUV, well, now you can do so with Ferrari power. We can warm up to that concept.
-Graham