If there was ever an excuse to slow down and take things easy hitting 100 would be it. No one could argue that a rest wasn’t well-earned but, joining a unique minority of centenarians who throw caution to the wind and live each day as if it’s their last, Maserati are grabbing life by the short and curlies.

Having turned 100 on December 1, the luxury car maker from Modena, Italy, has grand plans for growth. They’ve an ambitious agenda for increasing the number of dealerships across the UK, have two new models – the Levante and Alfieri arriving in 2015 and 2016 respectively – and for the first time in their history buyers have got a choice of four-door saloons

It’s those four-door saloons that are currently driving – pardon the pun – Maserati’s ambitions to sell 75,000 vehicles annually. It’s a target that, in the not too distant past, would have appeared wildly optimistic but, given that last year Maserati sold 15,400 vehicles, an increase of 148% compared to 2012, and then suddenly that figure doesn’t seem quite so fanciful.

Despite their focus on growth, they’re determined that it won’t be at the cost of exclusivity. That 75,000 vehicles sold annually figure is a cap so, when every other car on the road is a Merc, BMW or Audi, you’ll still be able to claim dibs on badge snobbery in your Ghibli.

However, if you’re tempted to buy the Ghibli just because of the badge that adorns it then you’re rather missing the point. It’s true that there’s something special about the Maserati name, after all, like owners Ferrari, it’s an Italian luxury car maker with a sporting pedigree but, in order to sell the numbers the company is aiming at, they can’t just build cars and sell them with a large dose of nostalgia, they have to build great cars.

So the Ghibli has a difficult task ahead of it. Fortunately the clothes it’s been given to carry out that task provide it with a significant head start, particularly the front end, which shares its looks with the stunning GranTurismo. The rear lights are a bit too ‘Lexus’ for me, but did I mention that gorgeous front end? If I knew a plastic surgeon who could give me a nose like that…

The simple fact is, that despite my reservations about the rear, when it comes to looks its rivals from BMW, Audi and Mercedes are left trailing in its exhaust fumes.

Step inside and you’re left in no doubt that this is a premium automobile. Anything that can be covered in leather is covered in leather, apart from a few flashes of polished carbon fibre that provide a little contrast.

The switchgear – every knob, button, dial, lever – continues that premium feel, providing a convincing argument that the money you’ve invested in this car has been well spent.

The seats are sumptuous, comfortable and cosseting, providing just the right amount of lateral and horizontal support without becoming restrictive. Lumbar support is excellent and, of course, they’re heated too.

The pedals are slightly offset, but during my three days with the car, I never found it to be an issue and, with the steering wheel electrically adjustable for rake and reach, I had no trouble finding my perfect driving position.

The eight-speed ZF transmission is a delight, changing gear with the minimum of fuss, even in automatic mode. There are two beautiful brushed aluminium gear selector paddles – and of a size that suited my hands – mounted on the steering column. They’re fixed and consequently don’t rotate with the steering wheel. How you feel about that is a personal choice but I prefer this set-up.

A digital display sits between two analogue dials. Quite how useful some of the information it displays is open to debate, but it’s bright, crisp and easy to read. There’s a huge (8.4in) multimedia screen mounted in the centre console. There are icons along the bottom of the display accessed with a dial that gives you control of the sat nav, audio, phone and other functions. It works well enough, but all that real estate would be far better used if the icons weren’t onscreen permanently, particularly when using the sat nav.

I did find the duplication of climate controls - there is a screen icon as well as physical buttons and dials immediately below the display - a little unnecessary. It’s not a huge deal, but if Apple has shown the world anything, it’s that simplicity sells.

The only other minor issues I had was that I found some of the controls a touch on the small size, making them awkward to operate on the move and, slightly more irritatingly, the seatbelt buckles are in an awkward position, tight between the seats and transmission tunnel.

You can comfortably accommodate four fully-grown humans in the Ghibli. There’s plenty of head and legroom, but I’d advise against trying to squeeze a third person in the back. The middle ‘seat’ is rudimentary at best and the occupant would have no choice but to adopt a perch and straddle pose.

Start the engine and, as you’d expect, noise levels inside the car change little. So well insulated are the occupants from the engine noise, in fact, that I’d have struggled to identify the engine as an oil burner, even under hard acceleration. As refined as the engine is, however, I was a little disappointed with the road noise which, while hardly intrusive, was noticeable.

Throttle response, in normal mode at least, was a little sluggish. Switching to Sport mode sharpened it up considerably. It also provided a somewhat more enticing soundtrack, changing the exhaust note to what I thought sounded like a petrol V8, albeit much more muted. Two very good reasons, in my mind at least, for making Sport my default setting.

At nearly two tonnes, the Ghibli is no lightweight, and nowhere is that mass more obvious than under braking. There’s nothing wrong with the stopping distances, performance was consistent even under constant heaving braking, but it’s possible to feel all that weight shift to the front of the car as you slow. It can be disconcerting, fooling the driver into thinking that a harder press of the brake pedal is required to stop within the desired distance but all that’s really needed is a little faith.

There’s a section of the coastbound M2, near the Faversham exit, that’s an excellent test of a car’s ride. The high-frequency bumps there have a habit of exposing all but the most refined of chassis and, I’m afraid to say, the Ghibli failed this particular test, feeling fidgety and struggling to settle.

Stick to less testing road surfaces and the Ghibli performs with aplomb. The handling is neat and tidy, with more than enough grip to cope with the torque (an impressive 600Nm) produced by the engine and, although the steering is not overly imbued with feel, it is consistent and predictable, with good turn-in.

Performance is far from other worldly. It is, compared to its perceived rivals, rather ordinary. However, 62mph comes up in a claimed 6.3 seconds on the way to a top speed of 155mph so it’s clearly no slouch and, in the real world, it’s more than enough to keep all but the most hardened petrol-heads happy.

The Ghibli is facing a tough challenge in a particularly competitive sector. Rivals from BMW, Mercedes and Audi have managed, and still manage, to sell cars in vast numbers while clinging on to the notion of exclusivity but now all those buyers who really want to provoke badge envy among friends, colleagues and even fellow road-users can buy one bearing the Trident. And they can do it knowing that the £48,000 they spent on all that kudos comes with an excellent free car. Now that’s a bargain.

Maserati Ghibli Diesel

Price: £48,835.00

As tested: £62,593

Engine: 3.0-litre V6 diesel

Power: 275hp

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

Maximum speed: 155mph

Acceleration (0-62mph): 6.3seconds

Urban: 37.2mpg

Extra urban: 56.5mpg

Combined: 47.9mpg

Emissions (CO2): 158g/km

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