Never thought I would switch from a 958 GTS to this new beauty....
 

Don't get me wrong I loved my 958 GTS but as soon as I laid eyes on a deep dark blue 2018 Maserati levante S I knew she is gonna take over my heart. I couldn't resist and I ended up trading it for my new found toy. It is a 426 hp beast and when you activate the sport mode It grawls like one (engine is built by Ferrari). I did this sinful act about 5 days ago so I am still new to it. Besides the beauty of the car another major reason that I traded is that cayennes are becoming too populated like the BMWs and AUDIs (everyone and their brother has one )....So far the only difference I have noticed is that the handling is a bit softer in the Maz than in the GTS. I am confident that this will be a good company in my garage for my 991s Cab. Until I fall in love again with another GTS in the future I will say farewell to all you good posters and thank you for all the help and advice that I have received from you. I will probably talk to some of you in the 991 forum.

P.S. : Any comments on levante S or this trade is greatly appreciated. Thanks again.

I hope you leased the Maserati. Resale for the brand, thus far, has been poor. Everybody should love what they drive, and no vehicle perfectly fits all needs and wants. Enjoy your vehicle. Keep us posted as to how things go....enjoyment factor, reliability, cost of ownership, etc.

Resale and high-end SUVs has never been good, so I wouldn't put much emphasis there. I'd imagine an anvil thrown out of an airplane has a better glide path than the depreciation curve on lux SUVs.

I looked hard at the Levante when shopping for my GTS and passed on it for several reasons. One being small kids and Zegna fabric on the seats seemed like a bad plan. The other being an overall sense of cheaper grade interior materials. The plastics and such seemed more like mid-market sedan than higher-end SUV. And then there's the whole reliability factor. Since buying the Porsche I've met three other Levante owners and all have reported multiple trips back to the dealer for major problems. Which one could either attribute to first year model (of anything) or typical Maserati lack-of-reliability.

Still, it is a pretty vehicle and no doubt more appealing than a lot of other SUVs on the market.

Their blue IS pretty.
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...d68bb832e9.jpg

As for handling, I had the occasion to borrow a neighbor's Toyota SUV recently. Yeesh, you forget how poorly many vehicles handle when you only drive a Porsche regularly.

not something I'd ever have done but if you are happy with it, more power to you. I don't mind the outside, but the inside just looks cheap to me. Maserati brand has no appeal to me.

What's under the skin (I found the resemblance in design to a Cayenne interesting):
>
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...b5f24a71c0.jpg
> Looks familiar..

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...5be432105b.jpg
> As does.. actually looks identical to my '11 CTT front caliper - except for it saying Maserati rather than Porche on it.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...4a7d0cf631.jpg
And.. >
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlis...02d9fdcba9.jpg

Well - the engine looks different.

You don't say what year your GTS is, but I'm assuming '13 or '14. Which puts you out of warranty (or nearly so) and in line for some serious maintenance. Maz has some serious lease deals and discounts on purchase and it isn't hard to see how a new Maserati wouldn't lure anyone out of a middle aged Porsche.. Tell us what you like about it compared to the Porsche. A bit of info on other marques is good for all to know. Congrats and enjoy.

Hello my Porsche friends, First, I thank you for all your advice and inputs. Going through your comments I noticed 3 categories of concern as follows :

1- Resale/ depreciation : I BUY my cars free and clear. If I was worried about depreciation/ resale value I would be buying Toyota, Subaru or other brands that hold their value better than high line brands . To be honest, I think anyone who can afford to spend 2-3 times the average household income to buy luxury brands should be the least concerned about resale/depreciation as it is well established that most cars are depreciating assets.

2-Interior quality : Before my 958 GTS I had a Merc. 550ML and before that a RangeRover sport which all had leather interiors and plastics wherever it was needed. This levante is the Gransport version which came with the zenga edition for the interior. IMHO, the leather in this suv tops all my previous three suv's for the richness and quality of installation. The dash board is 90% covered with double stitched tan leather and honestly there isn't too many areas that plastic was used except window buttons, a/c buttons and vents and a little bit on the center console and it looks like the same plastic that was used in my previous suv's. Check out the Maz. web site and you will see what I mean.

3-Reliability : The warranty should take care of any problems in the future. They valet service their cars.

The GTS that I traded had 68k miles with no warranty on it. IMO, A little risky. :nono:

2013 GTS. It sounds amazing. The power of the twin turbo v6 . The beautiful interior. More exclusive than Cayenne (seeing too many on the road). Check out their web site to see what the zenga interior looks like. I am still too new to go into details for you. Thanks PJ.

WARNING : " DO NOT check out this suv if you love your Cayenne. ":nono:

Not sure where you live, but I see Levante's in Jersey/NYC way more than any Cayenne GTS like ever. I've seen a GTS on the road a total of 4 times. Now base model Cayennes? Yes they are a bit more common but not nearly as common as a Range Rover or BMW X5 or Merc.

Hope you enjoy the new car!

Good points, but you are on a Porsche forum
 

You're on a Porsche forum, so you're going to get some opinions that are less than complimentary. All that matters is that you are happy. I buy my cars free and clear as well. The rule we live by is that if we can't write a check, we don't buy the vehicle. That being said, we all have our issues with how we spend our money. I don't mind paying high dollar for a car I want. I do get chapped about spending over $400 for an oil change. Porsche maintenance is over priced, and I am not buying any excuses as to the reasons. If I knew how to do it myself, I would. I do care about resale, but everything is a trade off. I could buy a Toyota or Lexus, but I don't like their current SUV's (talk about plastic), and American SUV's, which have beautiful interiors are too big and boring. I've wanted a diesel Cayenne for a long time, so when they came available I bought it. I really enjoy it. I am also a brand fan.

In my opinion, the interior of my CD is nice, but not luxury. I think Porsche could do better when it comes to the leather. My Lexus LS had far better leather than my CD. A Porsche, regardless of model, should have quality semi-analine leather and wood rather than plastic. They should up the price and make more options standard. I can't imagine an interior by Ermenegildo Zegna not being very nice.
I too see far more Levante's in my city than GTS', but so what. Sometimes, after owning a car for a long time, when I am ready for something new, I want something different.

As for reliability, who knows. It may be very reliable, and if not....the inconvenience factor would drive me crazy. Warranty is great, but I don't like having to take my car to the dealer even though I am leaving without paying for a repair.

Regardless, enjoy and keep us up to speed on your new ride.

Thanks for your comments. I love reading your comments whether they are complimentary or otherwise and that is why I respond to them. I was not being specific about seeing too many GTS's, as a matter of fact I rarely even see one myself. However to the eyes of most non- porsche owners I would say that , depending on the years, ALL Cayennes almost look the same as far as appearance is concerned whether it being the base, S, GTS or the turbo. In other words ," hey, there goes another Cayenne " . I will update you on any issues that might come up (hopefully none) . :biggulp: