New all-electric Maserati GT previewed
The GranTurismo Folgore will be the first all-electric Maserati; no pressure, then...
A decade and a half ago, the GranTurismo redefined expectations for a big Maserati coupe. Now its eagerly awaited successor will be expected to do the same, with the new GranTurismo range set to include an all-electric 'Folgore' model. Which is a significant move for the entire GT genre, leave alone Maserati and its fondly remembered V8 predecessor. It really will be the first of its kind, ahead of comparable battery-powered GTs like the Rolls-Royce Spectre.
Having been partially revealed earlier this year, the Folgore model was previewed at the Rome E-Prix, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares taking the wheel for a few laps of the street circuit. Maserati says the new car will offer "the characteristic Maserati sound as well as cutting edge technical solutions, superb performance, comfort and elegance, all typical of the Trident." The noise it makes really will be an interesting one, given the V8 was a huge part of the car's appeal and it's something so conspicuously lacking from driver-focused EVs. But then nobody was quite sure about Maserati making a supercar and then it delivered the mid-engined MC20, so let's not be too hasty in making a judgement...
As for the prototype seen here, the Folgore is perhaps notable for how normal it looks; this will have to accommodate petrol engines as well as batteries, and therefore the GranTurismo has a more conventional silhouette than might have been created for a pure EV. There's a bonnet - with a Grecale-esque front end - a long wheelbase for 2+2 seating and a rear that maybe has just a bit of MC20 to the light design. Let's hope the three-spoke wheels make the options list, too. This looks how you might expect a GranTurismo for the 2020s to look - it's underneath where the surprises will be located.
Maserati says the new car will go on sale next year, presumably with the ICE and battery-powered models arriving at the same time. The launch of a new GranTurismo will kick off a busy few years for Maserati, with its electric line-up "completed by 2025". So, alongside its burgeoning choice of SUVs, this really is the future of the brand we're looking at here; if the GranTurismo Folgore can do for Maserati's EV image what the MC20 has done for its perception as a supercar builder, the gamble will surely have paid off. Expect the disguise to come off in the next few months.
For me this and the MC20 look fantastic, it’s refreshing to see a company that is deviating away from “aggression” and focussing on just designing beautiful cars. I think the MC20 is the best looking super car on sale today, possibly only the Evija coming close but that’s in a different league cost wise.
https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/search?make-id=78&...
I was actually surveyed by Maserati during the development of this car. They wanted to know my opinion of electric or a v6. I told them I wanted a v8....
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