2009 Maserati Quattroporte S

Maserati has tampered with the Quattroporte, a sedan that inspires visceral, carnal automotive lust wildly out of proportion with its size and door count. Perhaps fearing cries of "blasphemy!" the factory proffered these historic precedents: DaVinci's do-over of his "Virgin of the Rocks" masterpiece and Henri Matisse's reinterpretation of "Le Luxe."

Well, okay, in that context, we might forgive Pininfarina for extending the nose 1.4 in. and the tail by 0.4 in. and giving it a larger grille with vertical slats (chromed to distinguish the new S model) to strengthen its resemblance to the GranTurismo. It's also incorporated new bi-Xenon and LED lighting and expanded the already staggering array of interior trim choices to 10 leather colors with 11 piping hues and myriad woods or lacquers from which to choose. Other interior upgrades include new cluster graphics, reshaped seats and a new multifunction wood and leather steering wheel with sporty thumb rests. We can certainly forgive the infusion of 25 extra horses and 22 lb-ft of torque that come with the S model's half-liter-larger V-8. If you take umbrage at these aesthetic amendments, you'll surely embrace the quantum improvement in ergonomics brought by Bose's new multimedia/nav system, standard on base and S models (only these two trim levels are offered; the outgoing Executive model's many extravagances are now optional on either).

Still need convincing? Take an S for a blast along any twisty, hilly road with a bit of slow-moving traffic to overtake and you'll never look back. Everything wonderful about the current Q'porte (now the best-selling Maserati of all time, with 15,000 units delivered) is still here, from the high-hosannas engine note and smooth-shifting ZF automatic to the Ferrariesque steering, braking, and neutral handling-but it's all espresso-caffeinated. The new red-headed 4.7L V-8 (base 4.2s are blue) fattens the torque curve significantly from 2000 to 4500 rpm and the power curve from 6000 to 7000 revs. At least a little of that added oomph comes from a new "perforated foil" catalyst design that allows exhaust to flow more homogeneously over the precious metals with significantly reduced backpressure. The Skyhook adaptive dampers are firmer in normal and sport modes and a new valve design improves their frequency response. Bigger front rotors (see Technical Highlights) on the Brembo brake system easily erase the extra momentum the engine so quickly gathers, and the larger 19-in. Pirellis (245/40 front and 285/35 rear) deliver that extra thrust with no smoking or fishtailing on dry pavement, even with the stability controls off.

Inherently great handling attributable to the Quattroporte's 49/51-percent front/rear weight distribution has always made this car feel more agile than its size suggests, and the S-model enhancement make it seem nimbler still-on a par with the far lighter Jaguar XJR, but with a far more stirring engine note. So intoxicating is this sound that you'll find it flat impossible to think about carbon footprints, gas prices, or dwindling oil reserves during a rush to the 7200-rpm redline. These sound frequencies compel unrepentant hooliganism that leads to paddle-shifted overtaking of even fast-moving cars. $124K will buy a lot of great sedans with better resale and JD Power stats, but none will make you look or feel as fabulous as this one does.

Front light clusters incorporate side marker lights, bi-Xenon low/high beams (inboard), flash-to-pass and daytime running lamp functions (outboard), 10 LED turn-signal indicators, and headlamp washers.