27 October 2023
What happens when you put a ludicrous engine into a sensible car? Read on to find out
Before we get to the driving impressions, it’s useful to consider the Maserati Grecale in the broader context of the vast organisation that makes it. When the PSA Group and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles merged into Stellantis, it was hard to see how so many brands could survive under the same umbrella. It still is, but as all of them were given 10 years to prove their worth, no hard decisions have been made yet.Already, some brands are making bigger moves than others. We have seen a few concepts from Lancia but no actual cars, and DS has yet to fully convince us that its products are more than diamond-encrusted Citroëns. A surprising early mover was Maserati, from which we have seen a brand-new but pleasingly old-school supercar in the Maserati MC20 as well as a four-seat coupé, the Maserati Granturismo, both of which will soon spawn electric versions. Even more important for sales volumes and profitability will be the subject of this road test, the Grecale.It is perhaps not as all-new as its stablemates, being based on the Giorgio platform that we know and love from the Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio, and was widely presumed not to have much of a future. At the same time, that relation creates some stern internal competition. That’s not helped by Maserati charging at least £63,970 for a Grecale, and a teeth-sucking £102,480 for the V6 Trofeo that we are focusing on here. It will need to prove it’s more than an Alfa Stelvio with a trident and three portholes on each side, and then some.The Range at a GlanceModlesPowerFromGT296bhp£63,970Modena325bhp£70,925Trofeo523bhp£102,480Folgore500bhp+tbcThe GT and Modena versions of the Grecale use the same hybridised 2.0-litre turbo petrol engine, but it puts out slightly more power in the Modena.The Trofeo range-topper is the only Grecale with a six-cylinder engine and no electrification of any kind. Not much is known yet about the Folgore EV, but it is sure to pack a punch. Along with more power, the more expensive versions also have a bit more equipment as standard.