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Maserati premiered the new 2023 Maserati Grecale on Tuesday. The midsize luxury SUV will be the company's first SUV to sport an all-electric powertrain. It will follow the Folgore GranTurismo coupe, which also comes out next year.
Trying to grab buyers from the Porsche Macan or the Mercedes-Benz GLC, the Italian luxury marque owned by Stellantis wants to appeal to a younger generation of drivers.
Bill Peffer, CEO of Maserati Americas, told Newsweek that an SUV makes the most sense in attracting young customers to the brand and keeping them there, citing the growing prevalence of SUV purchases in that demographic.
"We created a vehicle that will help appeal to that younger audience so we can move them with the brand as they grow," he explained.
The Grecale features the signature low grille that will mark every new model, which began with the MC20 sports car. Clean lines from the hood and sides stretch all the way to the rear.
The rear boomerang taillights take inspiration from the company's 3200 GT, a car produced from 1998 to 2002.
Three power outputs are available at launch. The base GT version will be powered by a four-cylinder mild-hybrid engine that is capable of 296 horsepower. The Modena trim bumps that same powertrain to 325 horsepower. The top-of-the-line Trofeo version, with a 3.0-liter V6, puts out 523 horsepower.
In a year's time, the Grecale Folgore EV will be available with a 400-volt architecture.
Peffer says that the company is offering a choice, wanting to see how quickly Maserati's customers shift towards electrification.
"We haven't made proclamations to say we're going only (internal combustion engine) or only electric in the short term," he said. "We're providing a suite of products in a suite of powertrains to see what the adoption curve is and how fast customers gravitate towards the electrified space."
In the cabin the traditional analog clock face has been digitized for the first time. The central timepiece will act as a voice-controlled "in-car concierge."
A 12.3-inch infotainment screen is the largest featured in a Maserati to date. That's coupled with another 8.8-inch display and another display for rear passengers.
The Maserati Intelligent Assistant controls all multimedia aspects of the SUV. A Sonus faber sound system can either be had with 14 speakers or 21.
Every Gracale comes standard with four drive modes: Comfort, GT, Sport and Off-Road. The Trofeo trim features an extra Corsa mode.
Online reservations for the Grecale are now open with a $500 deposit. Prospective buyers can be one of first to reserve a Grecale Modena Limited Edition, which comes with 21-inch aluminum wheels, "Skyhook" adaptive air suspension and a panoramic sunroof.
The Grecale starts at $64,995. Deliveries on the mild hybrid and gas-powered variants will begin in the fall. The EV version is due out next year.
