Editor Mabuyane Kekana gets behind the wheel of a Maserati supercar

Italians are known around the the world for a number of reasons, such as for being the best pasta makers and for their fashion sense.

You can spot an Italian man from the crowd just by the way he's dressed.

One thing that we often forget about Italians is that they also make great exotic cars. I was reminded of this when I got an opportunity to test the Maserati GranTurismo Sport.

Italians make gorgeous supercars. Germans make beautiful cars in every respect but Italians make highly emotive speed machines.

Under the bonnet of the GranTurismo Sport lies a mean 4.7-litre V8 that can make my 94-year-old granny quiver with excitement.

My time behind the wheel of the Maserati was pretty limited so I savoured every minute and second. This meant not stopping for lunch or anything else.

When I test such extraordinary machines I prefer to have equally exciting passengers along for the ride.

I had a choice of taking the Maserati to the track and spending a day nourishing my ego thinking I drive better than Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel but then I decided to take the car to the people.

The Idol

Since it was a week day, a lot of people were slaving away in their offices and factories, while my office was the plush seat of the Maserati GranTurismo Sport.

I had to think fast. I decided to call Sphiwe, a young man who is crazy about fashion and all things fast.

He was available as it was varsity holiday time and the first thing he said when I parked in front of his house was "OMG this thing looks mean".

Throughout the drive Sphiwe wore a smile, the kind that you can only appreciate when you see it. I adore having passengers who love and appreciate an exotic performance car for what it is. This guy is one of those.

From Sphiwe's house it was off to collect my "special friend" Eric.

Don't we all have friends and then those "special friends?" Eric is special in every way possible; he knows how to make others laugh like fools.

The special friend

When we reached Eric's house Sphiwe knew what was expected of him - he quickly moved to the back seat.

Eric is a larger than life character who lives for his clothes and fun.

When I called I expected him to tell me he was in court (he is a criminal law advocate) but he said he would be available. As usual he was ready and dressed for the occasion.

After taking his favourite seat in front and opening the window to rest his arm on the door sill, we were ready to take on the world.

Off we went to our favourite Pretoria back roads. In typical Eric style he said the Maserati was the most beautiful car he's ever been in.

The drive was alive with fun and laughter. After all, life is too short to be too serious; tomorrow might not even come.

My high school teacher

We all have one or two high school teachers who were close to our hearts.

For me it was my mathematics teacher, Mr Moeletsi. He could never have been described as boring - in fact he hated boredom. He is always lively even when he was teaching us a subject we all disliked.

He would scream at the top of his voice in an attempt to make us understand algebra. When I visited him he still displayed that same enthusiasm he had in the '90s when I was still in high school.

In typical Mr Moeletsi style, he was at school during holidays doing what he does best - teaching maths.

When I arrived, he welcomed me with a big smile. He wanted to know what car I was driving as he'd never seen one before.

I laughed and told him what it was. He started taking pictures while proudly declaring "you come from these hands", raising his hands in the air.

After he'd taken pictures it was time for us to say goodbye to this noble man.

He said: "I will tell them you were here in a Maserati."

The random guy

I parked at my family's home in Nellmapius and was taking some pictures along with many school kids who had taken an interest in the beast that had invaded their suburb.

A guy in a VW Polo pulled over simply incapable of ignoring what he had just seen. He politely asked what car it was and like many other people he also asked how much it cost.

Even though I was tempted to ask him if he wanted to buy one, I decided not to and told him the price.

He just gave me a tired smile which clearly told me this was a dream he could never think of realising.

The random guy then asked for the unthinkable: could he take the Maserati for a spin.

Bearing in mind that I didn't know who he was, did he honestly think I was going to do that? But I decided not to be too hard on him as he probably became intoxicated by the sight of a Maserati.

The would be Jay-Z

This is the former classmate who, judging by the things he says, seems to be watching too many action movies and music videos.

He probably even thinks that, one day, he's just going to wake up in a mansion in Camps Bay without having lifted a finger.

He also seems to think he's got a lot in common with Jay-Z, given the American rapper's colourful criminal past.

He views his colourful present as the recipe for success. We had stopped at a filling station and Sphiwe had gone to the convenience store to grab some snacks when the former classmate arrived.

He said he was driving past with a friend and noticed this gorgeous looking car. He knew it was a Maserati, obviously from watching Jay-Z and Rick Ross music videos.

Then he said some mumbo jumbo about how he would have "taken" the car if someone else had been driving it.

Really,? What was he going to do with it? I decided I wasn't going to waste my energy trying to make him see things differently. Sphiwe returned and we left him drooling as the sound of the GranTurismo Sport filled the air.

Me

I arrived at Viglietti Motors in Johannesburg in the morning ready to collect a gorgeous car.

A driver brought the car to the front and a few minutes later I hopped into the driver's seat to assess it.

The interior of the GranTurismo Sport is much like any other vehicle you and I have been in. In fact I think the interior is too understated, too simple.

I always expect more from certain brands, but that's human nature, isn't it?

But then I started the motor and the sound made up for everything. I switched it off and walked around the car appreciating the design - the lines and curves - on this beast's body.

It was time for me to hit the road - I am a Pretoria girl so home to PTA is where I was going.

I hopped back in and started the engine again and the roar filled the air.

I pressed the sport button for stiffer suspension settings, which simply means more fun in layman's language.

A few minutes later I was on the N1 north and the Maserati kept tempting my right foot.

But I kept urging myself to stick to the speed limit to avoid being locked up.

Overtaking in this car is instant and executed with precision.

It gives one confidence but I was careful as I know how quickly things can happen.

The Maserati and I formed a bond. Approach a corner, the Maserati just tackles it as if it was a straight line. I marveled at what was happening and was impressed by the handling prowess of this Italian babe.

If there was one day that I felt like a James Bond girl, it was when I tested the Maserati GranTurismo Sport.

Not because it is the fastest car I've driven but because it is the meanest looking thus far.