To Shift or Not to Shift
February 18, 2003
Unanimity of opinion is rare among automotive critics. So I found it especially unusual when just about all the respected automotive writers panned the Cambiocorsa gearbox offered in the new Maserati Coupe. While they all agreed that it was excellent at the track and great fun when ripping canyon roads, they felt, for an automatic, it was noisy and rough in traffic. Most of them observed that smooth automatic shifts can be achieved with practice, but that such a degree of driver involvement was not acceptable for the paddle-shift system. I disagree.
There are many fine automobiles requiring skills that might be of limited use when driving a Mercedes or a Lexus. This is what makes them sporting cars, not two-door sedans. The Maserati GT Coupes and other sporting counterparts are purchased because they are involving, out-of-the-ordinary automobiles, and they don’t cater to just any motorist. We commonly refer to these as “driver’s cars.”
The optional Cambiocorsa gearbox—pioneered by Ferrari and currently installed in the 575M and F360—replaces the Maserati Coupe’s traditional gear lever and clutch pedal with F/1-style shifting paddles mounted on the steering column. A standard 6-speed manual rear-mounted transaxle coupled to a computer-controlled clutch and electrohydraulic sequential gearchange system (where gears are accessed in sequential order only) provides either fully automatic operation or the lightning-quick manual paddle shifts, Ferrari F/1-style. While many complain that the Cambiocorsa transmission makes seamless part-throttle shifting virtually impossible, this is not necessarily the case. In a very short time, smooth automated or manual shifts can become second nature to the Maserati driver, if he realizes that it is not the clutch that makes a smooth gearshift: It is the throttle.
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