With the rise in restrictions around thermal engines, all manufacturers are now turning to electric cars, even the most legendary. Maserati intends to launch a whole range, and its second model, an SUV competing with the Porsche Macan, will have a lot to do to find a place… Let’s go and discover this Maserati Grecale Folgore.
Maserati Grecale Folgore // Source : Jean-Baptiste Passieux – Aroged
It’s a story that you already know: thermal engines are no longer really popular in Europe, where they should be banned from 2035, and in many other parts of the world. Faced with this, there is only one solution for manufacturers: develop their electric range. A strategy followed by everyone, even the most prestigious.
Maserati, for example, plans to eventually market no less than six 100% electric models, under the surname “Folgore”. If the festival started with the sublime GranTurismo Folgore, a large coupe brimming with technology, in which we got on board, the Italian brand intends to make a mark with another model: the Grecale Folgore. An SUV, a direct competitor to the new electric Porsche Macan, which we went to discover.
Technical sheet
Model Maserati Grecale Folgore Dimensions 4.87 mx 1.95 mx 1.65 m Power (horsepower) 557 horsepower 0 to 100km/h 4.1 s Autonomy level Semi-autonomous driving (level 2) Max speed 220 km/h Main screen size 12.2 inches Car side socket Type 2 Combo (CCS) Entry-level price 125,850 euros Product sheet
Exterior: elegant, without overdoing it
Where the GranTurismo Folgore is there to turn heads and make people dream, the Grecale Folgore is more rational. This doesn’t mean it’s ugly, far from it. With 4,87 m de long At 1.95 m wide and 1.65 m high, the Maserati electric SUV has quite a presence.
The family resemblance with the coupe is there, with the fairly vertical headlights at the front and the large grille decorated with the trident, symbol of the brand. Like the latter, this 100% electric version differs from the “thermal” Grecale by a few details: partially blocked grille, revised shield, (logical) disappearance of the exhausts at the rear and bronze-colored details.
Maserati Grecale Folgore // Source : Jean-Baptiste Passieux – Aroged
Ah, and the rims are specific, with a view to improving aerodynamics (capital for an electric car) – this does not mean that the Grecale Folgore is entitled to casters, since it rests on wheels ranging from 20 to 21 inches.
The model we went to see, for example, has 21-inch rims, while its color is quite extraordinary. Have you ever seen a shade that manages to combine gray, brown, pink and blue at the same time? This “Rame Folgore” achieves this, for the modest sum of 16,800 euros.
Interior: lots of GranTurismo, plus extra roominess
Once on board, the family resemblance between this Grecale and the GranTurismo is even more obvious, since the two dashboards are almost identical. We therefore find the three screens : a first of 12.3 inches behind the steering wheel, another of 12.3 inches also, but in the center of the dashboard and running under Google Automotive (ex-Android Automotive), and a third, just below, of 8.8 inches to adjust the air conditioning in particular.
Maserati Grecale Folgore // Source : Jean-Baptiste Passieux – Aroged
It doesn’t stop there, since the clock at the top of the dashboard is also a screen, customizable according to several modes (clock, therefore, but also charge indicator once connected or G counter), while A head-up vision is there to project the most important information for driving (speed, navigation, etc.) onto the windshield.
Obviously connected screens, Google Automotive obliges, allowing you to have a route planner with battery preconditioning when approaching a charging point.
In terms of perceived quality, even though we are not in the extravagance of the GranTurismo, the materials used by the Grecale Folgore are impressive. Leather mixed with Econyl (a recycled nylon), carbon veneers, stitching… It’s really very beautiful.
Maserati Grecale Folgore // Source : Jean-Baptiste Passieux – Aroged
Maserati Grecale Folgore // Source : Jean-Baptiste Passieux – Aroged
Maserati Grecale Folgore // Source : Jean-Baptiste Passieux – Aroged
All electric and Maserati that it is, this Grecale does not forget to be an SUV, and offers appreciable habitability. The rear seat is welcoming and the trunk, 535 liters, will allow you to swallow a lot of luggage. It’s a shame, however, that the front hood doesn’t hide an additional trunk (the so-called frunk), especially since its fiercest rival, the electric Porsche Macan, has one. In fact, the German promises 624 liters in total.
Engine: sporty, but…
Electric SUV, perhaps, but Maserati above all: the Grecale Folgore could not do otherwise than offer sports car figures. The Italian SUV therefore has two 205 kW motors (one on each axle, enough to make it a four-wheel drive), enough to give a power of 410 kW (or 557 hp) and 820 Nm of torque in combination.
Performances ? THE 0 to 100 km/h is achieved in 4.1 s and 0 – 200 km/h in 16.1 s, while the maximum speed is set at 220 km/h.
Maserati Grecale Folgore // Source : Jean-Baptiste Passieux – Aroged
What is the competition doing? This Grecale Folgore turns out to be between the two versions of the Macan: the Macan 4 has 408 hp for a 0-100 km/h in 5.2, but the Macan Turbo is above, with a power of 639 hp and 0-100 km/h completed in 3.3 seconds.
Going down the range a little, we can find commoners Ford Mustang Mach-E GT (487 hp; 0-100 km/h: 4.4 s), Hyundai Ioniq 5 N (650 hp; 0-100 km/h: 3.4 s), or even, horror, a Tesla Model Y Performance (around 510 hp, 0-100 km/h: 3.7 s).
This Maserati therefore offers solid performance, but does not overturn the table. Is it because of its weight, set at 2.48 tonnes ?
Autonomy/recharging: shortcomings
A weight which can be explained by the XXL batteries installed by Maserati engineers in this Grecale Folgore: 105 kWh raw, it’s huge. What is just as enormous is the WLTP mixed consumption, announced at 23,6 kWh/100 km (taking into account recharging losses).
From there, autonomy cannot work miracles, with 500 km approved according to the WLTP cycle. To give you an idea, even the Porsche Macan Turbo, although more powerful, is satisfied with 18.8 kWh/100 km! Enough to offer 591 km WLTP in its Turbo version, despite 5 kWh less on the battery…
Maserati Grecale Folgore // Source : Jean-Baptiste Passieux – Aroged
The refill shines a little less. Where the GranTurismo Folgore has an 800 volt architecture, allowing it to charge from 20 to 80% in 18 minutes (much, much more if you plug it into a 400 volt terminal!), the Grecale Folgore must make do with 400 volts all the time, with a maximum power of 150 kW.
What to do recharge from 20 to 80% in 29 minutes, an honorable score considering the maximum power – proof of a clearly well-studied load curve. The Macan, again, has 800 volts, allowing a 10-80% in 21 minutes, but the Maserati takes control of a 400 volt terminal, where the Porsche will have to wait four more minutes for the 20-80% (despite a clever system of dividing the battery into two 400 volt blocks).
Price and availability: not given
Who says Maserati inevitably says luxury cars. And this Grecale Folgore is no exception, with an access price set at 125,850 euros excluding options. A price to say the least attractive, but it turns out that this electric version is ultimately the most economical of the Grecale range in France: the three thermal versions, ranging from 81,200 euros to 121,600 euros, must make do with a ecological penalty of 60,000 euros.
Maserati Grecale Folgore // Source: Maserati
Electric competition, on the other hand, is much fiercer. The Porsche Macan thus starts at 118,910 euros in the Turbo version (more efficient than the Grecale, remember). Not counting, of course, the generalist “rivals” (are they really?) that we talked about above. Ouch.
Brief. As much as the GranTurismo Folgore offers arguments that can make you think (or even downright crack up), this Grecale Folgore risks suffering from the competition. On the other hand, it will be interesting to discover the sales mix of this SUV in France, where the electric version could do well thanks to the punishing penalty for the thermal versions. What to seduce business leaders?