Maserati Grecale Folgore EV mid-sized SUV for 2023

March 23, 2022April 2, 2022 John Carey 3597 Views maserati

Maserati revealed more than just the shape of its new Grecale at the SUV’s online global premiere overnight. The Italian luxury brand also provided some hard details on the EV version of the mid-sized SUV planned for late 2023 launch.

Production of ICE-powered Grecales begins later this year. This should have happened late in 2021, but Maserati was forced to delay because of the global computer chip crisis that has affected many car makers. They’ll reach Australia around December 2022.

Copper-coloured Folgore badge will identify all Maserati EVs

Folgore, Italian for thunderbolt, is the name Maserati will give all its EV variants, and the Grecale will be the brand’s first SUV to wear it. Its most obvious competitor is the upcoming Porsche Macan EV.

There are battery-powered versions of the fabulous MC20 sports car and so-far-unseen GT coupe replacement in the pipeline, too.

The Grecale EV will have a big 105kWh battery pack. Its range should be reasonable, in spite of unimpressive aerodynamics. The ICE-powered Grecales all have co-efficients of drag above 0.30.

While big, the battery pack won’t be 800 volt, like those promised for the EV versions of the MC20 and GT. Instead the Grecale will have a 400-volt pack, like the great majority of EVs on the market today.

The Grecale will have two motors, one for each axle, making it an all-wheel-drive EV. Though Maserati isn’t telling how much power the pair of e-motors will provide, they do promise they will deliver oodles of torque; 800Nm.

This was significantly more than the peak torque of the hottest ICE model, the Trofeo. It has a new version of Maserati’s twin-turbo 3.0-litre Nettuno V6, introduced last year in the MC20.

Grecale Folgore gets a different grille from the ICE-powered versions

Maserati claims a very snappy 3.8-second 0-100km/h time for the Trofeo, but the Folgore is very likely to accelerate even faster.

John Carey

Grew up in country NSW, way back when petrol was laced with lead. Has written about cars and the car business for more than 35 years, working full-time and freelance for leading mags, major newspapers and websites in Australia and (sometimes) overseas. Avidly interested in core EV technologies like motors and batteries, and believes the switch to electromobility definitely should be encouraged. Is waiting patiently for someone to make a good and affordable EV that will fit inside his tiny underground garage in northern Italy, where he's lived for the past decade. Likes the BMW i3, but it's just too damned wide...