Good morning! We’ve reached a letter for which I had to resort to model names. I couldn’t find any Qvale Mangustas for sale, nor – surprisingly – a single Qingyuan Xiaosun. I know! You’d think Craigslist would be littered with them, but, strangely, no.
Yesterday’s P cars were really an H body and an L body, but whatever you want to call them, they were not popular with you lot. The Pontiac Astre won, mainly due to being rear-wheel-drive and a stickshift, I think. A few of you wanted to ditch the Vega four-cylinder and drop in a V6 or V8 engine, and I think that might be the best use case for this car.
But you all know me well enough by now to know that it’s not my choice. I have admired the styling of Chrysler’s L-body coupes since I was ten years old, sitting in a Shelby Charger in the showroom while my parents hammered out a deal for our new Dodge 600 sedan. I have model kits of an Omni 024 and a Shelby Charger in my stash. And I was genuinely disappointed that I couldn’t score that free 024 in college. Make mine the Plymouth.
My wife and I have a tradition of playing Scrabble when we go camping in our little vintage trailer. We’re quite evenly matched; usually the winner comes down to the luck of the draw on letters. Specifically, it sometimes comes down to whoever gets stuck with the Q, and can’t manage to draw a U. That damn thing will sit there on your tray, just waiting to cost you ten points at the end, and sometimes there’s nothing you can do about it.
But one thing we’re both good at is not being too proud to make small plays. Those little two-letter, two-point words can sometimes make a huge difference. You don’t always have to swing for the fences; sometimes a little grounder just to get you on base is all you need. (Sorry for mixing metaphors there.) With that in mind, I took the easy way out today, and looked for the first two Q cars that I thought of. Here they are.
2005 Maserati Quattroporte – $9,500
Engine/drivetrain: 4.2-liter dual overhead cam V8, six-speed automated manual, RWD
Location: Brentwood, CA
Odometer reading: 66,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
The Italians are lucky in that they have a language that makes everything sound sexy. “Quattroporte” just means four doors; it would be like Hyundai just calling the Elantra the “Sedan.” It wouldn’t fly. But Maserati makes it work, simply due to the language. And it worked for a long time; Maserati built the Quattroporte for sixty years, off and on, across six generations. This is the fifth generation, introduced shortly after Maserati re-entered the US market after more than a decade away.
This generation of Quattroporte featured a kick-ass four-cam V8, courtesy of Maserati’s then-corporate-partner, Ferrari. It’s de-tuned a bit from Ferrari’s spec, but you can’t blame the folks in Maranello for keeping the best stuff for themselves. It’s backed by Maserati’s DuoSelect transmission, a six-speed manual with paddle shifters and no clutch pedal. It has an automatic mode, but the consensus I read on Maserati forums is to just ignore that feature, learn to drive it well in manual mode, and you’ll enjoy the car more and the clutch will last longer. This one has 66,000 miles on it, which sounds low for a twenty-year-old car, but for a Maserati it’s practically ancient. Someone has kept up on the maintenance, or this car would not still be on the road.
These cars have gorgeous interiors full of leather and wood, but unfortunately, out of fourteen photos in the ad, not a single one shows the front seats. That usually means they’re hiding something. The seats might be fine, but if so, why not show them?
The outside looks good, and I like the blue; like so many cars, these are usually seen in boring colors. It’s a Pininfarina design, and photos don’t do it justice; it really is a lovely design. The golden hour photos are meant to show the car off, I’m sure, but the shadows and reflections make it hard to see any flaws. Again, maybe that’s the idea.
2016 Nissan Quest SV – $6,900
Engine/drivetrain: 3.5-liter dual overhead cam V6, CVT automatic, FWD
Location: Monterey Park, CA
Odometer reading: 107,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
The Nissan Quest minivan started out as a joint venture with Ford, which sold its own version as the Mercury Villager. When that joint venture ended, Nissan got weird with the Quest’s styling, with an everything-in-the-middle dashboard design and individual moonroofs for every passenger. It didn’t sell all that well, and Nissan toned down the design quite a bit for this final generation.
Like practically every larger Nissan at the time, the Quest is powered by a VQ35DE V6 engine, mounted transversely and driving the front wheels through everyone’s least favorite transmission, the Jatco CVT. These have a terrible reputation for reliability, but they do seem to hold up all right if you keep up on the maintenance. My biggest complaint with them is that they suck all the joy out of any car so equipped, but I guess that doesn’t matter too much in a minivan.
It’s in pretty good shape, except for the driver’s side seat bolster, which gets beaten down in any car after a hundred thousand miles. We don’t get a good view of the second and third rows of seats; I’m hoping they’re as clean as the front seats are.
It’s in good condition outside, with just a few minor bumps and bruises. The rear bumper in particular has seen some action, it looks like. The Quest’s styling is toned-down from the previous generation, but it’s still a funky-looking vehicle. Looks pretty good in black, though.
So, with a big sigh of relief, I am proud to announce that I have managed the letter Q. The back half of the alphabet is proving much more challenging to find cars for than the front half. But I already have one car picked out for tomorrow, for the letter R. Tune in tomorrow to find out what it is. In the meantime, you’ve got a Japanese minivan and an Italian sports sedan to choose from.
This was a much more difficult decision than I expected. In the end, the opportunity to legitimately say “Quattroporte” won the day.
Quattroporte, per favore!
This is definitely an emotion-driven decision. I’ve wanted one since seeing it on Top Gear years ago.
Here, have a look and a listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmeeF9ZtkCA
Just watched the episode of Grand Tour where all 3 bought a quattreporte. One lasted to the end but to be fair James Mays was only done on by driving it off the docks to a yacht.
When the van breaks I’ve got a fugly broken minivan, when the Maser breaks I’ve got a Ferrari V8 to swap into something stupid, like a Pontiac Vega…..
Now we’re talking!
Yeah because an Italian Engine won’t be what breaks.
Throw in a Quadraphonic Blaupunkt head unit and you’ve got yourself a deal on the Quattroporte, Mister!
Normally I would take the practical way out, but today I just can’t. Those Quests are just too ugly, and their shitty CVT is too, well, shitty.
Call me Joe Walsh today
Since the pandemic, $5k is the new $3k in the car world, so both of these are practically f**k it money. I’m getting the Maserati, and it will sing the song of its people right up until its glorious demise.
So what is $3k the new one of.
I dunno. $1500, maybe?
Now see, in your situation, I would’ve stretched the definition of starting with Q to include any of James Bond’s many work mounts because they all came to him from the Service quartermaster known as Q. So, Q cars. But, when you didn’t do that, I settled on the Quattroporte because this Miserati loves company.
How about a Quizno delivery vehicle?
Only if it comes with a spongmonkey.
Today is definitely a day for a “neither” option. I spent enough of my life wrenching on a friend’s Quest to have absolutely no affinity for the piles of crap they are. The Maserati isn’t much better with that transmission and the known electrical gremlins they have, plus that price is a solid $4k too high, but at least the Maserati will sound amazing until it breaks.
This is the first time I’d pick the Maserati in one of these. It might actually end up the more reliable car. I’ve heard people complain about that gearbox around town, but no clutch pedal means no knee pain. I’ll deal with the rest.
Quattroporte. When it breaks I can still sit in it and make “vroom-vroom” noises.
A client of mine had a Quattroporte of that year when new. He got rid of it before the lease was up. The transmission was so terrible when driving around town that it was embarrassing. It was like riding with somebody just starting to drive a manual. I’m sure it was fun on some nice roads, but the terrible flappy-paddle monstrosity made it unusable in town, and the interior and ride weren’t good enough for it to be a good executive cruiser. It just wasn’t a very nice car.
That being said, I like minivans but not this one at that price. Get the Quattroporte and then part it out once it breaks.
I have a similar transmission in my MR2 Spyder. I wouldn’t call the one I have embarrassing at low speeds. It’s slower than a human but very consistent and the clutch lasts a very long time. I think the other factor in the MR2’s favor is that the funkiness fades away more when driven aggressively. The 139hp 4-cylinder in the Spyder allows you to do that around town without being a complete tool. The big V8 in the Maser not so much.
I have been in several semi-auto cars, and the Quattroporte was terrible. I don’t know about the MR2, but imagine Toyota was more concerned with drivability than the Italians.
Less than $10k to own a Ferrari V8 in a timeless sedan? Sign me up. I’m not scared of turning a wrench.
You say that, but when you have a bit of time, check out M539 Restoration’s YouTube saga on rescuing a Quattroporte. It was… not fun.
It can’t be any worse than working on a Nissan minivans with a transverse V6. I remember my neighbor taking an entire weekend to replace an alternator on one of these.
You are not entirely wrong. I was a Nissan tech in the late naughties and the cab-forward packaging on those Quests made things a bit tight. Fortunately the wiper cowl came apart fairly easily for better access to the top and rear from above, but if you don’t know and/or don’t have access to a lift, certain jobs can be an unpleasant experience.
And at one end you have a sexy Italian sportscar and at the other end and ugly keep me celibate minivan.
Just because there is a dealer nearby, I see used Maseratis often. They do not age well.
I’ll take the Maserati and enjoy six months of driving bliss before the inevitable check engine light comes on
I think you spelled “miles” wrong.
*kilometers. The “kilo” part being optional.
Took me a minute but that’s funny I don’t care who you are.
So just keep driving until the build burns out. I assume Italian light bulbs are as performance challenged as everything else. Anyone know what Lucas is in Italian?
I took the quest as it will not be as much of a wallet draining experience.
That is the smarter option, but I couldn’t resist the allure of the wonderful Italian music today.
I am sure the Maserati would look better on the back of the tow truck 🙂
And as a lawn ornament too!
I dunno, what’s a new CVT transmission & labour cost these days?
Middle of the range is 5 grand.
And an LS for the Maserati?
15K plus
Well Maserati isn’t known for reliability but of these two it’s probably the safer bet. I didn’t want to retire anyway, spicy sedan for me.
When you need to burn money, pick one of these.
Last time I checked, Korea’s language was Korean not English
Maserati: Hyundai
Quatroporte: 문 네 개
or Sedan 의자 가마, uija gama
Damn, now I want a Hyundai Uijagama
I want a Hyundai Uijagama N
The better analogy to prove the point would have been to imagine chevy calling their next new vehicle the four door, or probably more accurately, the midsize crossover.
The semi similar example is the Renault Le Car, but the direct analogy would have been if it was called La Voiture.
Seriously? A beat-ass minivan that was kinda cool looking but outclassed when it was new vs. a Maserati? Pfft.
If you don’t DIY, the Quattroporte is absolutely a disastrous gamble, but the upside is joy every time you wind that bastard out on an on-ramp. No contest. The Maserati is Molto Bene.
I also bet that the upkeep isn’t as bad as the internet warns you. Every car has trouble spots. Most of the time with premium Euros, there’s some electrical stuff to attend to here and there, but plastic in the cooling systems and the interiors are the parts that age the most poorly.
The problem is the Maserati is the trouble spot 🙂
The most famous last words in the automotive hobby.
I dunno – lots of armchair soothsayers.
I drove and wrenched on Volvos (RWDs, Turbo and non, and then S60s) for years. “Gosh those cars are trouble, and they have ____ job that’s difficult and expensive.”
Yup, sometimes stuff breaks. Most of it was okay (I did get annoyed with the P2s after a while) and easy enough to repair. The big jobs are just big jobs, not usually hard, just high labor.
Then we got a Grand Cherokee, everyone has shit to say about Chrysler/FCA/Stellantis reliabiliity. First of all, it’s been way better than even my best Volvo was. Second of all, even by a less skewed metric, it’s been a good rig that hasn’t had a ton of trouble.
So yeah – people say a lot of shit, but rarely do they ever know what they’re talking about. And they are USUALLY coming from the “pay someone to fix it” point of view. Now, there’s things I will happily pay for, but other stuff, I’m gonna do myself.
And in that sense, I’m not afraid of a Euro sedan with a reputation for being finicky.
Which is worse I just bought a quattreporte or I just bought a boat?
A Van called Quest. We could use something like that but the Quest is the last thing I’d pick with that DOHC V6 stuffed in there and Crapco CVT. We’ll just continue to take 2 cars when we road trip the whole family + dog. I get the Quattroporte!
I trust the Maserrari for reliability more than I trust the Jatco Xtronic CVT to get me home in a large vehicle with over 100k miles.
I’ll listen to the Maranello Masterpiece sing it’s heart out while performing an Italian tuneup.
This. I’d be more confident in the Maserati than the Nissan CVT.
Hey, you can always count on me to be there when you need me.
I’ll take the Maserati, but only if it comes with an Armani straight jacket, which I’ll need since I’m totally nuts for buying a 20 year-old Maserati.
On the other hand, with the Quest’s transmission and the VQ’s nasty valve train issues, the Maserati might actually be the more reliable of the two. How about that!
I’d take the older, non-CVT, Romulan Warbird-style Quest from 04 & 05 though.
I know the Maserati will be an expensive maintenance nightmare, but that is a damn nice looking car. I might be willing to risk $9500 on it.
It helps that the competition is a minivan. Minivans are great vehicles, but I have no use for one nor do I want one. I acknowledge the Quest is the better choice for most people, though.
I’ll take the handsome blue fully-depreciated 4-porte – knowing that each maintenance bill will be stroke-inducing.
I’ve never known someone to get that aroused by repair bills, but you do you.
I have a friend who’s into Land Rovers, he takes pics of his repair bills and then brags about how high they are 🙂
He also admitted he married his rich wife just so he can afford to own Land Rovers.
I mean, I would also gladly marry rich in order to fund my unreliable car desires. So I do not blame him one bit.
I’d take a woman I enjoy spending time with and drive hateful cars, over a woman who makes my life a living hell just so I can drive nice cars.
Priorities.. 😀
The smarter choice. But I’ve done dumber stuff in the name of automotive pursuits.