- Maserati hasn’t announced pricing. We expect gas-powered GranTurismo models to start at about $170,000, with the electric GranTurismo Folgore probably running over $200,000.
- The new model is gorgeous but loses the traditional Maserati V8 in favor of a turbocharged V6 or all-electric drivetrain.
One of the loveliest modern cars is back after a multi-year hiatus. It’s every bit as lavish and indulgent as when it left the market but brings a newfound conscientious approach to its luxury.
Maserati put its GranTurismo grand tourer on hiatus back in 2019. The long, low-slung coupe had always featured gorgeous looks, high-luxe interiors, and Ferrari-derived V8 engines. It lured buyers from legendary sports coupes like the Porsche 911 and almost kept up with them while offering a more pliant ride.
All of those traits are back for 2024 Maserati GranTurismo, except for one. The V8 is gone. In its place is a choice — a Formula-1-inspired V6 or an all-electric drivetrain with a claimed 0-60 mph time of 2.6 seconds.
The GranTurismo comes in three trim levels: Modena, Trofeo, and Folgore (Italian for Lightning, so you can guess which one is electric). Both hardtop coupe and droptop GranCabrio models will be available.
Still Breathtaking
The new GranTurismo keeps the former car’s long hood, fastback proportions, and sinuous lines. It keeps both the vital portholes in the front fender and the wide grille with the big Maserati trident.
But the 2024 gran tourer looks more organic and curvy than the old model. A more pronounced curve to the fenders and a deep well low along the doorline look like corded muscle. Deep contours in the hood add to the sense that the car is almost rippling when standing still.
Klaus Busse, head of design for Maserati, says the look comes from a combination of high-tech design tools and human sculpture. “Yes, we’re using lasers, we’re digitizing, we’re scanning, we’re using data. But when it comes to critical parts of the car that are so core to our design DNA, we’re still applying the touch of the human hand.”
The rear wheels are 21 inches. The front wheels are 20. The size difference is barely noticeable but subtly suggests that it has settled back on its haunches, ready to pounce.
Maserati hasn’t shown photos of the car’s interior yet. They describe saying, “The layout is a sports car’s, with a highly dynamic design for the door panels and a color division that highlights the design of the dashboard: a slim, delicate upper section appears to soar over the main part, enhanced by the craftsmanship of the various trim levels.”
Drive mode control buttons are built into the steering wheel, F1-style. A Sonus faber 3D sound system uses 14 or 19 speakers, depending on trim level, and 1,195 watts of power.
V6 or Electric Power
The Modena and Trofeo trims each use a version of the 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 found in the Maserati MC20 supercar. Known as the Nettuno engine, it makes 490 horsepower in the lower trim and 550 in the Trofeo.
In a major change from GranTurismos’ past, power goes to all four wheels regardless of trim. It gets there through an 8-speed automatic transmission.
Despite the car’s rearing appearance, Maserati says weight distribution is almost perfectly balanced — just 52/48 biased toward the front wheels.
The Folgore uses three electric motors — one up front, two on the rear axle. Each makes 300 kilowatts, for a total of 900. On paper, that’s equivalent to about 1,200 horsepower.
But the figure is slightly misleading. The maximum output at the wheels is closer to 750.
The battery is unique. Most electric car batteries are flat units set under the floor. The Folgore’s is T-shaped, running down the space traditionally used for the transmission tunnel and then behind the seats. That helps Maserati maintain weight balance, the company says, and offers an elegant way to work an electric car battery into an architecture built for a traditional internal combustion drivetrain.
Like the Porsche Taycan, the GranTurismo Folgore uses an 800-volt electrical system. That system makes the Porsche one of the fastest-charging electric cars on the market, but Maserati hasn’t revealed charging times for the Folgore.
Curiously, they haven’t posted a U.S. range figure, either. Maserati says the electric GranTurismo should get about 280 miles between charges based on European testing. Euro tests tend to estimate much higher ranges than America’s EPA testing system, raising concerns that this beautiful thing could be one of the shortest-range electric vehicles on the market.
We’ll bring more info when American agencies get the chance to test the car.
The company plans all-electric versions of its Quattroporte 4-door and Levante SUV as well.
