If you have R2-million burning a hole in your pocket, you may very well be in the market for a large, executive SUV with a meaty engine under the hood and more bells and whistles than you can wave a green stick at. In this price bracket, you'll find cars like the BMW X7, Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk and the Lexus LX. Surprisingly enough, the Maserati Levante also comes in at this price range and it has a few rivals that we thought you may also be considering.
Related: First Drive - The masterful Maserati Levante S
Here's how the infotainment in the Maserati Levante S GranSport compares to the Porsche Cayenne Turbo and Land Rover Range Rover Sport Autobiography Dynamic Supercharged.
Maserati Levante S GranSport
Our rating: 3/5
Equipped with a respectably sized 8.4-inch touchscreen but despite that, it's the smallest of the three screens compared here today. Dubber the Maserati Touch Control Plus (MTC+), it handles the infotainment and certain climate control functions as well as seat ventilation and heating.
The system accepts inputs for USB (5x), AUX, SD card, Bluetooth and is Apple Carplay and Android Auto equipped, which allows for seamless screen mirroring for approved app use while in motion.
Controls for the system are placed in the centre console with a simple rotary dial and two shortcut buttons ahead of the dial. There is the omission of a volume control knob, the multi-function steering wheel allows for track skipping, source, muting and volume control. Unfortunately, these controls are placed behind the steering wheel and require familiarization before one is able to use them intuitively.
We found the system rather easy to use with a simple menu hierarchy and clean, clear indications of what screen we were on and what function we were selecting.
The Maserati comes equipped with navigation as well as voice control.
Porsche Cayenne Turbo
Our rating: 4/5
The Porsche Command Manager (PCM) uses a screen with the most real estate of the three with a full 12.3-inches of full-HD clarity at your fingertips. The system is complemented by two 7-inch digital displays either side of the centrally-mounted tachometer and can display certain PCM information while driving.
This system is packed with functionality including connected apps and real-time traffic information. It accepts USB (2x smartphone and 2x charging), SD card and Bluetooth and is equipped with Apple CarPlay. A CD player is available as an optional extra.
Users are able to interact with the PCM system via a centrally-mounted control pad with a volume knob at its centre and several shortcut buttons on either side. These buttons sit flush and are finished off in a glass-like material to blend seamlessly with the rest of the centre console. They have haptic feedback and feel wonderful when activated. Further control is managed with the multi-function steering wheel. Voice control is a standard feature on the PCM system.
The menu hierarchy is not the most straight forward and some settings and control functions are tucked away in seemingly illogical places but after a few minutes, one is able to adopt without trouble.
Land Rover Range Rover Sport Autobiography Dynamic Supercharged
Our rating: 3.5/5
The Range Rover Sport (shortened for convenience) features a dual-screen setup with a large, 10-inch screen up top and a smaller screen lower down in the centre console for handling several additional features.
The top screen will display the regular array of functions from audio, navigation, vehicle settings and phone connectivity but shuffles the basic controls for some of these down to the smaller screen, allowing for a seamless multitasking experience. The lower screen also handles climate control functions.
This system allows for input from USB, AUX, Bluetooth and supports Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for screen mirroring of selected apps from your smartphone. Furthermore, there is a host of included apps that communicate with the Land Rover smartphone app to further enhance the ownership experience.
Land Rover has included a single volume control knob in the centre console but all other interactions need to be via the touchscreen or multifunction steering wheel. the wheel has modular controls and depending on the function selected, will perform different tasks. This can be confusing at first and will require some time before the user is completely comfortable with the system.
As with the Porsche Cayenne Turbo PCM system, this system takes a short while to get accustomed to and the menu will seem a tad complex at first.
Owners will be able to select from the standard 10-speaker audio system or optionally choose the 14-speaker Bose arrangement or the concert-like 21-speaker Burmeister audio package.
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