Six years after the arrival of the Levante, Maserati finally gives it a little brother, the Grecale. Its goal ? Challenge the Macan. Even if it starts its career with combustion engines, this SUV will be able to face the next generation of the best-selling Porsche from 2023 thanks to its Folgore electric version.
Unveiling the Grecale: for Maserati, this was a plan that did not go smoothly. Initially, the brand with the trident invited us to discover its family and sporty SUV in preview from September 2021. We were then instructed to keep the secret until November. But ultimately it was until spring 2022 that we had to hold our tongues! The official reason for this delay is the global shortage of semiconductors. The Italian manufacturer did not want to launch such a crucial model for its finances when it was unable to produce it in series. However, it will still be necessary wait until the second half of 2022 for the first deliveries, and even until 2023 for the Folgore electric version. A variant that will allow the Grecale to counter the second generation of Macan, while the thermal versions rather attack the current model, whose career will extend until 2024. Let’s discover together this newcomer with teeth as long as the bars of its grille.
A beautiful baby 4.85 m long
The first Maserati “family SUV”, the Grecale is both more affordable and more compact than the Levante. But with its 4.85 m long (or even 4.86 m in the Trofeo version), it is only 16 cm shorter than its big brother, which makes it one of the largest in its segment. The SUV thus exceeds the current Macan by 15 cm and a BMW X3 of 14 cm. It’s not even that far off an X5, which measures 4.92m. Add to this a width of 2.16 m, mirrors included, and you will understand that this will still not be the ideal vehicle for sneaking into French cities!
On the other hand, its 2.90 m wheelbase and its 1.67 m high promise rear habitability “more generous than its competitors”. A test will soon allow us to make sure, while checking if its dynamic abilities are up to its blazon. The Grecale starts in any case on good bases in this area by taking up an evolution of the famous Giorgio platform, which offers a really pleasing behavior to the Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio.
The dimensions of the Grecale compared
| Maserati Grecale | Maserati Levante | Porsche Macan | Alfa Romeo Stelvio | |
| L x W x H (m) | 4.85×1.95×1.67* | 5.01×1.98×1.69 | 4.70×1.92×1.62 | 4.69×1.90×1.69 |
| Wheelbase (m) | 2.90 | 3 | 2.81 | 2.82 |
| Trunk volume (l) | 535/570** | 580 | 488 | 525 |
* Dimensions on GT. 4.85 x 1.98 x 1.67 m on Modena. 4.86 x 1.98 x 1.66 m on Trofeo.
** 570 on Trofeo, 535 on hybrid versions.
Breaking inside rather than outside
On the look side, the kinship with the Levante is blatant. The Grecale is inspired by its elder for the shape of its side glass surfaces, its rear window, the three small gills on its fenders or its wheel arches. In profile, the less observant may even have trouble distinguishing these two Maserati SUVs! But, from the front as from the back, the “small” last preferred to copy the super sports car MC20 with a grille placed quite low, headlights arranged vertically and rear lights stretched in length.
It is especially the dashboard that contrasts with the habits of the brand. If we find the traditional round watch at its top, it abandons its analog hands to go digital. The instrumentation also becomes digital, and the center console is monopolized by two touch screens. The top one, in 12.3-inch format, controls the multimedia system and many other functions, while its 8.3-inch counterpart located lower takes care of all the temperature or ventilation settings. Already seen at Audi and Land Rover, for example, this arrangement has unfortunately never fully convinced us of its ergonomic virtues, forcing us to take our eyes off the road.
A cabin that dances the MIA
However, many functions can still be controlled from the steering wheel, which includes the start button and a wheel for selecting the various driving modes. As for the gear lever, you are not dreaming, it has disappeared, in order to be able to offer more storage space between the seats. To replace it and control the ZF 8-speed automatic transmission, supplied as standard, as is the all-wheel drive, there are now four small buttons between the two central screens. Note that a head-up display will also be available as an option and that there is an additional touch screen at the rear, so that passengers can adjust the three-zone air conditioning at their convenience.
In short, you will have understood it, it is this Grecale which allows Maserati to make its digital revolution. With, as a highlight, the MIA (Maserati Intelligent Assistant) multimedia system, which has nothing to do with a famous French rap hit of the 1990s. its German competitors thanks to its remote updates, its wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functions, its sophisticated voice recognition, its ultra-high definition resolution of 15 million pixels or the possibility of connecting two telephones via Bluetooth.
Four-cylinder hybrid or V6 in 2022
Revolution, there is no question under the hood. At least not from the start. Initially, the entry level is indeed provided by the four-cylinder 2.0 turbo-gasoline already seen in the Ghibli and Levante. Still equipped with a light hybridization in 48 volts which does not allow driving in 100% electric mode, it is available here in 300 hp, for the version called GT, or 330 hp, for the Grecale Modena, with a torque of 450 Nm at 2000 rpm in both cases. The difference between the two promises to be difficult to feel at the wheel, to say the least! It is especially by their interior and exterior presentation that these two variants are distinguished, the first betting more on elegance and the second on sportiness.
With its black grille or its rear track widened by 34 mm, the Grecale Modena thus evokes the Trofeo which crowns the range. But the latter is the only one to be powered by a 3.0 biturbo V6 of 530 hp and 620 Nm, which propels performance into another sphere. With this mechanism, including the combustion prechamber and the two spark plugs per cylinder, the Maserati SUV comes to play in the court of the BMW X3 and X4 M. The 0 to 100 km / h drops by 5.3 s, on the four-cylinder from 330 hp, to 3.8 seconds while the maximum speed climbs from 240 km/h to 285 km/h. The other side of the coin, the deactivation of a row of cylinders is not enough to drastically reduce consumption, especially since there is not the slightest trace of hybridization here.
Prices starting at over €75,000
With 254 g/km of CO2, an ecological penalty of €40,000 awaits you in 2022 for this Trofeo version, then €50,000 in 2023! A sum that should be added to the €115,400 requested by the manufacturer, when a 510 hp Stelvio Quadrifoglio starts at €102,900. The four-cylinder is available from €75,450 in the 300 hp GT version, or €95,726 for the limited PrimaSerie launch series, with a more exclusive interior presentation and superior equipment. The Grecale is thus a little more expensive than the new Macan T, which offers its four-cylinder 265 hp from €71,440. But its light hybridization allows it to display lower CO2 emissions than its German rival and at the same time reduce the penalty… which remains very penalizing despite everything. With 198 to 210 g/km, the two-litre variants of the Maserati family SUV will indeed be “punished” up to a minimum of €13,682 this year, and €16,810 from the 1er next January. Without counting the weight tax of 950 € at the very least generated by the 1,895 kg announced.
The French prices of the Maserati Grecale SUV
| Price in euros | GT | Modena | Trophy | Primaserie |
| Grecale 2.0 Hybrid 300 hp | 75,450 | – | – | 95,726 |
| Grecale 2.0 Hybrid 330 hp | – | 86,000 | – | Not available |
| Grecale V6 3.0 530 hp | – | – | 115,400 | Later launch |
An electric Folgore version in 2023
This dissuasive taxation should open a boulevard in France for the future 100% electric Folgore version, recognizable by its more closed grille, its more aerodynamic rims or its recycled materials in the passenger compartment. However, it will again be necessary to be patient. It arrives only a year later and still keeps its characteristics quite secret: only a large 105 kWh battery and 800 Nm torque have been confirmed, as well as a fairly standard fast recharge at 400V, instead of 800V for the future Macan. The Grecale pays here for the use of a base that is already a bit old and designed for thermals above all.
Soon to be tested on L’argus.fr
The use of this Giorgio platform, on the other hand, bodes well for the comfort-behaviour compromise of this SUV. Especially since it will benefit as a bonus from an adaptive suspension with air springs, standard on the Trofeo and optional on the four-cylinder, with the possibility of varying the ride height as the firmness. As we have already mentioned, we look forward to seeing you soon on L’argus.fr for a first test that will show us if driving pleasure is in the game. But to know if Maserati’s plans have indeed succeeded, we will have to wait above all to know the sales figures. While the recent MC20 is above all there for the image, the Grecale must allow the brand to beat its own production records. With only 24,269 vehicles delivered in 2021, there is still some margin before approaching Porsche, which for the first time exceeded the 300,000 registrations mark last year, including more than 88,000 units for the Macan alone!
