By Samuel Ee

POWER with silken smoothness is what the new Maserati GranTurismo S Automatic promises.

The sensuously styled Maserati coupe now comes with big power and big comfort in the form of a 4.7-litre V8 engine mated to a conventional automatic transmission for silky-smooth gear shifts.

When the two-door GranTurismo model was first introduced here in late 2007, it was introduced with a 4.2-litre V8 engine.

This model is called the GranTurismo 4.2 Automatic, because it has an auto transmission with a torque converter.

Then a more powerful 4.7-litre V8 was made available, but instead of a conventional auto, it featured Maserati's Cambiocorsa robotised manual gearbox.

This model is known as the GranTurismo S.

This super fast and super aggressive electro-actuated transmission was not to everyone's taste, even though the meatier power plant was attractive to many.

So now, to cover all the bases and tastes, Maserati has unveiled the GranTurismo S Automatic.

Its 4.7-litre V8 engine is harnessed to a six-speed ZF automatic gearbox that delivers all 440 charging horses smoothly and creamily.

In this power train combination, the GranTurismo S Automatic is the epitome of performance luxury.

The prodigious 490 Newton-metres of torque is attained comfortably and the ease of use is further enhanced by the Skyhook suspension system, which is standard on the GranTurismo S Automatic.

Skyhook provides automatic and continuous damping control to give the Gran- Turismo a veritable magic carpet ride or all-out sports performance.

This is achieved by choosing one of the two settings it comes with - Normal and Sport.

With Skyhook, the GranTurismo S Automatic is a less extreme alternative than the GranTurismo S with its harder fixed rate dampers and two-stage sports exhaust that offers the option of more sound and more power - this is because the latter has a separate Sport button on the centre console that allows the driver to open two pneumatic bypass valves in the rear silencers.

Instead, the GranTurismo S Automatic is the performance comfort alternative.

This four-seater is still very fast though - zero to 100 kmh is achieved in 5.0 seconds, or just 0.1 second less than the GranTurismo S with the Cambiocorsa transmission.

And at 49:51, the car's front/rear weight distribution is near-perfect and less hardcore than the GranTurismo S's 47:53.

With its more relaxed character, the GranTurismo S Automatic is better suited to expressway cruising or Orchard Road traffic.

For those who prefer it sporty, but not extremely so, this coupe is a good blend of beauty and balance.

samuelee@sph.com.sg

This article was first published in The Business Times.