2007 Lamborghini on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Heidi Klum and Maserati go Beyond the Swimsuit for Sports Illustrated

When sports and cars come together, the world "super" often comes up - whether it's a high-performance super sports car, a racing series (like Japan's Super GT, Australia's V8 Supercars or Italy's Superstars series), the latest crop of Super Bowl ads from the world's automakers or a supermodel posing with a car in the pages of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.
This year's edition already saw Lisalla Montenegro cozying up to the new Lexus RC F, but it's not the only pairing to be found between an import luxury performance machine and a swimsuit model. The new 50th anniversary edition of the popular bikini special features a seven-page pictorial titled "Beyond the Swimsuit" shot by Francesco Carrozzini.
The spread features the inimitable Heidi Klum posing beside and inside various Maserati models - including the new Ghibli S Q4, the GranTurismo MC Trofeo race car and the Quattroporte Ermenegildo Zegna concept. Of course it's not the first time we're seeing a leggy blonde stepping out of Modena's finest - a role often taken up by one Jodie Kidd, to say nothing of the rich and beautiful in exotic locales the world over - but it's a pairing of which we'll never grow tired.

Maserati Levante SUV may be built in Italy after all

In July Fiat halted its investments in Italy, putting on hold plans for the Maserati Levante SUV to be built at the automaker's flagship factory in Turin. But Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne, whose company owns Maserati, met with unions on Wednesday, and he may announce plans to move forward with production of the SUV at the Mirafiori factory if the CEO and the unions reach an agreement, Bloomberg reports.
Marchionne is reportedly about ready to build new cars at Fiat's largest and oldest factory, on the grounds that 5,300 workers accept extended temporary layoffs through most of next year in a slowing European auto market. If unions don't accept the deal, it's not clear whether Fiat would still consider building the Levante at Mirafiori or not.
The Levante, Maserati's first SUV, is based on the Jeep Grand Cherokee platform, and we reported two years ago that it would be built in Detroit next to its Jeep cousin. Obviously those plans have been altered considerably in the intervening period of time.

Hear the Maserati Alfieri clear its throat at Villa d'Este

We know that Maserati will eventually bring a version of its Alfieri Concept to the road, as a next-generation production model slated to arrive in 2016. Shown at the Concours d'Elegance at Villa d'Este, the Alfieri wowed spectators with its throaty singing voice, releasing a few barks and a very racy idle note. Sadly, we know it won't sound exactly like this when it goes on sale.
See, Maserati is adopting a V6-only plan with the Alfieri, so the 4.7-liter V8 shown in the concept and adopted from the GranTurismo, isn't going to make be available in the production model. That's not to say the production car will sound bad - we've every reason to believe it won't - but that this isn't an accurate representation of what the 2016 Alfieri will sound like.
Take a listen and a look at the video down below, then hop into Comments and let us know what you think.