Shock tactics: Maserati GranTurimso Folgore EV gets 749bhp tri-motor setup

Published: 03 October 2022

► 2023 electric version of new GranTurismo
► Tri-motor layout promises punchy 749bhp
► 0-60mph in 2.6sec, 200mph+ also claimed

Official studio pictures of the 2023 Maserati GranTurismo Folgore electric car have been released alongside details of the all-new petrol-powered GranTurismo V6.

The first electric Maserati will become one of the quickest EVs on sale at launch next year – with a 0-60mph time of just 2.6 seconds and a top speed of ‘more than 200mph’, according to claims in a promotional video with its chief designer, which you can watch at the bottom of this page.

When it arrives in showrooms in 2023, the electric GranTurismo will challenge the likes of the Porsche Taycan, Audi e-tron GT and Tesla Model S. It will be built at the Maserati Mirafiori plant in Italy.

So what do we know about the GranTurismo Folgore EV so far?

The brand’s earlier hints that the electric drive system would have ‘more than 50 percent more power’ than the old V8-engined model have come to fruition, with the official combined power output rated at ‘around’ 749bhp.

Maserati GranTurismo Folgore EV - rear view, studio

We say combined, because it actually uses three 300kW permanent magnet (so not electro-magnet like the latest BMW Gen-5 kit). That means each motor is equivalent to a theoretical 402bhp, so there’s plenty of headroom in the new powertrain.

Keeping things rolling is a substantial 92.5kWh ‘T-bone’ battery pack, the shape meaning that it can be fitted between the seats, rather than having to go beneath them. This means a lower seating position and ‘the containment of vehicle height to 1353mm’.

Maserati has also revealed that the new GranTurismo will be built form a multi-material mix of aluminium, magnesium and high-strength steel – ‘resulting in best-in-class weight levels’ apparently. We understand this will still see the EV exceeding 2.2-tonnes, however.

Maserati GranTurismo Folgore electric car - front view, studio

Other details include an 800v electric system – as per the Taycan – for ultra-fast charging speeds.

In 2023, Maserati will re-enter the world of racing after a 13-year hiatus by taking up a place on the 2023 Formula E grid. The brand claims the R&D from its racing programme has already benefited the GranTurismo Folgore with ‘cutting-edge technical solutions’.

Weren’t we promised a new GranTurismo in 2018?

Maybe. But Maserati is still hoping you’d forgotten about that. In fact, this new model was then supposed to break cover in 2020, but several issues (including the coronavirus pandemic and the merger of FCA and PSA into the Stellantis supergroup) conspired against Maserati and delayed the project again. Just be thankful it’s happening at all…

The notion of a new GranTurismo was first floated back in 2014 with the Alfieri concept, but the project has been steadily evolving since then to take factors such as electrification into account. Maserati even toyed with the idea of giving its new sports coupe a plug-in hybrid powertrain, as shown by the official slide below.

Maserati EV presentation slide showing full electric and PHEV proposals

Watch that promotional video of the new Maserati GranTurismo Folgore here:

By Luke Wilkinson

Deputy Editor of Parkers. Unhealthy obsession with classic Minis and old Alfas. Impenetrable Cumbrian accent

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