Hi Ron. As an owner of a 2002 coupe cambiocorsa, I would be happy to give you my thoughts on the car. First off, I love this thing. Second, I am happy to hear that you are test driving the car yourself (I have never found the automotive press to be in sync with my tastes). As far as rigidity and handling are concerned, the Maser does very very well (Near the top in the GT class), but your dealer is right in giving the edge to the Porsche. The 996 is not a GT in the sense that the Maserati is, and Porsche's are one of the best handling cars period. However, when comparing acceleration, the Maser will easily keep up or outdo the Porsche (the 996 is made more for handling and not drag racing). Braking is at least as good as a 996, which is of course, extremely good.

When comparing interiors, I think the Maserati wins hands down. And if you need to actually carry 4 real people greater than 10 miles, you can forget the Porsche (babies, of course, are no problem). One downside is driving position, if you have short legs and long arms (like me), the Maserati will fit you like a glove, but for others it may be less than ideal.

When comparing the SL 500 or CL 500, The Maserati's luxury certainly has less bells and whistles, but both cars will be left in the dust if compared performance wise to the Maser.

New for 2003 is an upgraded ECU, which corrects the high-RPM jerkiness seen in the 2002. My cambiocorsa recently had some issues, and my dealer updated my ECU and cambiocorsa to 2003 specs. Also improved is the skyhook for better performance/lateral grip. Both correct significant shortcomings. If you are still relying on magazine reviews of last year's model, these improvements make them outdated and unreliable.

Basically my recommendation is this:
If you don't need a true 4 seater and want to focus on handling/sportiness while sacrificing a bit of luxury, you are probably better off with a Porsche.

If you want true GT luxury/technology and a lot more room, and don't mind giving up a lot in terms of performance, get the CL 500

If you want a GT convertible with a folding hard top, and don't mind giving up a lot of performance, get the SL 500. If you want more performance, get the 999 cab or Maserati Spyder. My preference is the Porsche.

If you need a true 4-seater luxury GT that does not need to be as tossable as a Porsche but is still fast as all hell, then get the Maserati coupe.

I nearly bought a Porsche, but was hooked the instant I test drove the Maser. I am 200% thrilled with my decision. I never considered the CL 500 or SL 500 because they are too slow for my taste and I don't want to wait the months/years for the AMG waiting list. I would be happy to give you more details if you are interested...