Maserati has launched a new online platform for North America, part of a revitalized effort from the brand in this vital region. The brand says its aim is to "simplify the car-purchasing process for customers." It's called "My Maserati Showroom." The idea is to allow potential buyers to virtually research and design their potential cars.

More importantly, Maserati says buyers will be able to view live dealer inventory near them. The site is also live as of publishing, so we took some time to play around with it. In short, it's not a revolutionary change - most won't notice - but the new site does work quite a lot better than its predecessor.

Unfortunately, the Maserati configurator is still a little bit slow, though it's a lot better than it used to be. Often, the system is slow to update the changes you've selected. We opted to build a Maserati Grecale and MC20 and, in both instances, it took a noticeably long time for wheel selections to update.

Regardless, Maserati has provided some insight into the changes. It says the new platform is really for shopping for models online, not building them. For example, the site will calculate payment options for buyers. Before it comes to that, buyers can browse different models, toggling between trim levels.

Maserati has rapidly expanded its offerings over the last few years, so this is a nice perk of the new site. From there, buyers will be able to schedule test drives, submit credit applications, review warranties, and get trade-in estimates.

Eventually, you'll be able to speak directly with a Maserati representative. What Maserati doesn't say is that these changes bring the brand's dealerships closer and closer to a direct sales model, something any number of brands are mulling after what has happened with excessive dealer markups over the last two years. Whether Maserati heads that way isn't clear.