It’s only been about ten months since the Maserati started producing the Levante, but already the brand’s debut crossover has been subjected to two recalls in the United States alone.
Barely over a month ago, the Levante was included alongside the Ghibli and Quattroporte in a brand-wide recall of nearly 7,500 vehicles over a problem with their reversing cameras. Now another 1,515 examples of just the luxury crossover are being recalled due to a transmission glitch.
According to the statement from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the engine software in the 2017 Levante S “may cause the transmission to shift to neutral, or the engine to shut down, when the vehicle speed is approximately two miles per hour.”
The issue is distinct from FCA’s earlier recall of 1.1 million examples of the Chrysler 300, Dodge Charger, and Jeep Grand Cherokee over unexpected rollaway that was linked to an unintuitive electronic shifter.
This latest problem, however, was deemed to increase the risk of a crash, so Maserati is calling them in: 1,515 examples of them, to be exact. Which may not seem like a lot, until you realize that accounts for every last example the company has sold in America so far.
The S model is the higher-end of the two versions of the Levante that Maserati offers in North America. It’s distinguished from the base model principally by the more powerful version of the Trident brand’s 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 – producing 424 horsepower and 428 lb-ft of torque instead of 345 hp and 369 lb-ft in standard spec.
Fortunately this, like many other modern problems, is expected to be remedied by a simple software update. The campaign is already under way, but if you’re one of those 1,515 owners and have yet to take yours in for the reflash, best keep an eye on the transmission position indicator and be prepared to take remedial action.
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