Maserati fans have been eagerly awaiting a new large touring coupé for four years. Now it's here: only with six cylinders in the combustion version, but with more power than ever in the electric version.
If that's not even a bang: Maserati's first battery-electric vehicle does not come as an SUV or sedan, but is the long-awaited successor to the GranTurismo. The shrill screams of the fan base must have been heard as far away as Modena, where developers with camouflaged coupés with the suffix "Folgore" (lightning bolt) have been supplying electricity to the brand's own charging stations for some time. But before we get to the electrically powered GranTurismo edition, let's first get into the basic model called Modena, which costs from 178,280 euros.
The entry succeeds without contortions. No wonder, because the 4.96 meter tall two-door car is not only spacious, but also easy to board thanks to the expansive openings. Then you fall into a cuddly sports seat with a view of the large display. The kinked touchscreen unit in the center console - can really do everything from extensive personalization to smartphone integration - familiar to enthusiasts from the Grecale. Everyday features can be controlled in the lower area, such as simply adjusting the interior temperature, while the upper part of the monitor can display the road map, the radio program and many other things.
The instrument cluster - designed as a display panel - may feel unworthy of one or the other potential customer in such a distinguished vehicle class. After all, you are poaching in an environment in which fans of mechanical clockworks are likely to romp. Speaking of the watch: this also adorns the dashboard of the latest Maserati in the traditional way, but now in an electronic version. And on the instrument cluster, the rev counter and speedometer can at least be displayed in analog form.
But enough about operating concepts or instrument clusters, after all, the most important component of a sports coupe is under the hood: the petrol-fired heart. However, the six-cylinder does not come in a row arrangement, but in a V-shape. None other than the "Nettuno" V6 with a displacement of three liters and double charging is now in service in the Maserati coupe - it is already known from the MC20.
Before we reflect on the musical complexity of the six-cylinder engine with 365 kW/490 hp or 410 kW/550 hp, let's first let the chassis work its magic on the body. One could almost think that the route planners of the driving event had deliberately found the most desolate streets in the Roman countryside to show how comfortably the GranTurismo, lying on air bellows, rolls over the asphalt, which has been maltreated by the elements.
Of course, the all-wheel drive has a tight basic configuration. But it's not brutally hard, it's more like a back-friendly touring coupé that you could have used to travel from sunny central Italy to cold Germany without any problems. There is a lot of space in the front, only tall people bump their heads in the back. So the second row is not good for long distances.
Does the GranTurismo need the combustion engine at all or does it also work with a silent drive? Maserati basically answers this question itself. The engineers gave the electric version of the Folgore a sound that is not unlike a classy combustion engine. Especially when the "ignition" is switched on, he astonishes with an artificially generated idling rumble.
To be honest, the question of choosing a model is not easy to answer, especially for performance lovers. Maserati has created the Folgore with a boost output of 610 kW/829 hp as the top model. It should therefore be far superior to the 410 kW/550 hp Trofeo in terms of longitudinal dynamics and the 365 kW/490 hp Modena anyway.
Of course, it actually suffices for the Modena. Because he pushes brutally, zooming the body made of 65 percent aluminum including the freight to speed, the maximum of which is somewhere under the 300 km/h mark. It sounds from discreetly noble under partial load to snarling and angry when the virtual needle of the rev counter approaches the 6500 tour mark.
Can't be beat? Are you kidding me? Are you serious when you say that. The Trofeo proves it. It's more than the icing on the buttercream cake. It pushes even more powerfully out of every situation, drives the GranTurismo forward more bitingly across the entire speed range, even if you would hardly have thought of 60 more hp in these spheres. It is also clear that the technicians have once again adjusted the tuning of the air suspension for the most powerful petrol engine. It also has an electronically controlled, mechanical locking differential on the rear axle.
While the two combustion engines appear to be quite different in terms of speed, the battery-electric version feels like it is somewhere in between. But she is actually more agile. A launch start with an integrated stopwatch certifies that the three-engined bolide takes a crazy 2.8 seconds for the fuel to 100 km/h, the Trofeo puts the factory at 3.5 seconds. The stomach hangs somewhere in the basement while the 2.3-tonner, perfectly balanced with a weight distribution of 50:50, dashes forward. And he can be directed through bends quite light-footedly.
But in the end it's not just the sound that's missing, but also the drama that characterizes the classy Nettuno motor across the entire touring band. Actually, of course, you should have both, i.e. Trofeo and Folgore. However, since the top gasoline engine already costs 222,200 euros, this is unfortunately rather unlikely. Although Maserati does not intend to communicate the prices for the BEV until later, it is hard to imagine that anything below 250,000 euros would be possible here.
Thanks to 800 volt technology, it should take less than 20 minutes for the 83 kWh (net) battery to charge from 20 to 80 percent, thanks to the maximum charging capacity of 270 kilowatts. The question now is how the customer will decide. Back to the roots and thus straight to the six-cylinder or off to the future with the electric drive? The solution is simple: Both variants will probably find their fans.
Maserati GranTurismo - specifications
Thunderbolt
Modena
Trophy
