MASERATI GRECALE

Prototype’s disguise doesn’t hide the potential of upcoming Porsche Macan rival

-  RICHARD LANE

TESTED 19.11.21, BALOCCO, ITALY ON SALE SUMMER 2022 MASERATI GRECALE

TESTER’S NOTE

The dashboard was covered up in our test car, but we had a peek underneath. There’s lots of leather, and the traditional Maserati clock is now digitally represented, with the royal-blue dial able to be switched between showing time, g-force, heading and brake/ throttle pressure. RL

We arrive at the Balocco Proving Ground expecting to feel the frost that comes with being designated persona non grata. It’s only weeks since Maserati’s flagship Quattroporte Trofeo saloon was given two stars in its full Autocar road test – a real demolition but deserved – and people tend to have long memories in the high-stakes automotive industry.

Happily, both the personnel and the new product at Maserati seem to be moving on, and our brief first taste of the upcoming Grecale suggests it’s categorically not heading down the same path as the Quattroporte. This is just as well, because the Grecale is undoubtedly Maserati’s most important car for a long time. It aims to bring a level of luxury and flair as yet unknown in the big-selling midsized SUV class, and it’s going to be pivotal to Maserati’s finances as well as its journey into the pure-electric sphere. Under the Folgore line (Italian for ‘lightning’), an electric Grecale will be shown in 2022, and that car will eventually sit alongside similar versions of the new MC20 supercar and Granturismo successor.