2021 Maserati Ghibli

Italian sports cars speak to our appreciation for beauty and the art form that is automotive design. When browsing them, it's not your head making the decision to purchase. The 4-door Ghibli sedan makes an excellent first impression with its good looks and the soundtrack of its V6 engine. It is also a rarer sight than a Mercedes or BMW, which adds to its novelty and appeal. Looking through the windows, you'd be forgiven for thinking the interior is ultra-luxurious, too. Unfortunately, this beauty is skin deep, as the materials used in the cabin are not as upscale as those used in the German luxury execs. You'll also notice it's missing some of the features you'll find in almost all its competitors, which is disappointing, considering you pay quite a bit for a Maserati.

Despite these shortcomings, the IIHS's review of the 2021 Maserati Ghibli returned a favorable safety rating, at least in the few tests it conducted. The NHTSA hasn't taken a look, but it has two recorded recalls, bringing the reliability of the luxury sedan into question. Still, the Ghibli has more going for it than just looks and a solid safety score. It is genuinely fun to drive and can keep up with most of its competitors. Nobody would blame you for picking this Italian beauty over its more refined German contemporaries, but if we put emotions aside, it's not the smartest buy.

Maserati asks for more of you money to get behind the wheel of one of its works of art, so we can't in good conscience suggest the top-tier models. However, we also can't pass up the bump in performance offered by the higher-tuned V6. For this reason, we think the Ghibli S is a good compromise. It gives you the full 424 horsepower, but it cuts back on some standard tech in order to keep the cost down. Nevertheless, you still get the 10.1-inch touchscreen with smartphone integration, power front seats, automatic dual-zone climate control, and some driver assists like blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert. The price of a 2021 Maserati Ghbili S sedan with no extras is $79,740.