Lightning-fast Maserati Gran Turismo EV unveiled
Do you want ICE with that? In the case of the coming Maserati Gran Turismo probably not…
The internal-combustion engine versions of the Italian brand’s iconic two-door are going to be quick, but the all-new model’s battery-powered variant will make them seem slow.
Will the red-hot Folgore-badged EV mean the appeal of the ICE-powered Modena and Trofeo variants gradually melts away?
The answer to this question will only emerge after deliveries of the three-model Gran Turismo range begin in Europe next year. They’re due to reach Australia in late 2023.
What makes the Folgore so fast?
Three electric motors and an 800-volt battery pack is the short answer.
Each of the motors can deliver a sustained 300kW. They’re made in Italy and they are “the most powerful motors on the market”, Maserati claims.
The two motors installed in the Gran Turismo Folgore’s rear axle each drive a single wheel, while the third motor in the front axle drives both front wheels.
But the car’s maximum power isn’t three times 300kW. The maximum discharge rate of the Folgore’s liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery is much less than 900kW. For this reason its maximum combined power output is limited to 560kW.
There’s logic in Maserati’s decision to install such powerful motors. They enable great flexibility of control when it comes to splitting torque between the front and rear axles and vectoring torque individually to the rear wheels.
Maserati’s performance claims for the Gran Turismo Folgore suggest great traction; 0-100km/h in just 2.7 seconds. This number places it among the automotive world’s acceleration elite.
At the same time, it makes the ICE-powered versions of the Gran Turismo seem sluggish. Both the Modena and Trofeo have Maserati’s twin-turbo 3.0-litre Nettuno V6, though with different power outputs. The engine drives through an eight-speed automatic and an all-wheel-drive system.
The 360kW Trofeo will do 0-100km/h in 3.9 seconds, according to Maserati, while the 405kW Trofeo takes 3.5 seconds.
T-bone battery pack
There’s little visual difference between the ICE versions of the new Gran Turismo and the EV. The Folgore doesn’t have exhaust pipes, obviously. It has a different grille and its wheels are a different design.
But the Folgore is as low, sleek and shapely as the others. Maserati says it will be the lowest fully electric car in the market when it arrives. What makes this possible is the EV’s “T-bone” battery pack.
The Gran Turismo’s all-new monocoque body was designed to accommodate both ICE and electric propulsion systems, which normally leads to compromises. Maserati’s engineers came up with a clever and unusual solution for the EV.
Its battery pack occupies the same spaces as its ICE powertrain and its ancilliary systems. It fills the broad space under the bonnet where the V6 sits, then extends rearwards along the narrow central tunnel that in the ICE versions is occupied by their driveshafts and exhaust system.
As a result, the four-seat interior of the Folgore is as roomy as the ICE versions. It’s cargo compartment is the same size, too.
The Folgore battery pack’s shape is a little like a T-bone’s bone, hence the name. More importantly, it stores a little more than 90kWh. This is enough energy for a 450km driving range, measured according to the WLTP test standard.
The cell chemistry chosen by Maserati for the Folgore’s 800-volt battery pack permit it to charge very quickly. It can take up to 270kW from a DC fast charger and, in optimum conditions, it can suck up 400kW of regenerative braking power.
The Gran Turismo Folgore will be one of the EVs capable of taking real advantage of the latest generation of high-power 350kW DC fast chargers. Maserati claims the battery pack will take just 18 minutes to go from 20 to 80 percent full when connected to one of these.
The Folgore’s battery pack will be assembled at the Mirafiori factory in Turin, close by the Gran Turismo production line.
No faking
There will be nothing synthetic about the sound of the Folgore. “No fake sound inside the car,” is Maserati’s promise. What occupants will hear is the noise of the EV’s motors and inverters, though filtered and, possibly, amplified.
The design of the luxurious interior is similar in some ways to the recent Grecale SUV. The Gran Turismo has a similar centre display layout, with two landscape-oriented screens separated by a row of gear-selector buttons.
Digital instruments and a head-up display will be standard in the Gran Turismo. A dial selector on the steering wheel will allow the driver to switch from default GT driving to Maximum Range, Sport or Corsa modes.
More to come…
The Gran Turismo Folgore is Maserati’s first-ever EV, but far from the last. The company aims to be producing an EV version of every model it builds by 2025 and to be building only EVs from 2030.
The Folgore name – it’s Italian for lightning – will be used on all Maserati’s future EVs. Electric versions of the MC20 sports car, Grecale SUV and Gran Cabrio converitble are known to be under development and nearing production readiness.
And though Maserati doesn’t say so explicitly, the intelligently flexible platform beneath the Gran Turismo Folgore is clearly destined to serve as the basis for future EV versions of the Quattroporte and Ghibli sedans, and the Levate SUV.
