Next Maserati GranTurismo will be a 1,200PS EV

What do we know about upcoming models specifically? Well, the GranTurismo, which we’ve gotten our best look yet at here, will be the first fully-electric Maserati and indeed, it claims, the first dedicated electric model in the luxury segment. 

The performance numbers are staggering and dare we say it, excessive? Featuring three e-motors, “top-class charging” and Formula E inverter tech, the GranTurismo will have 1,200PS, be capable of 0-62mph in under three seconds and go on to a 180mph-plus top speed. That kind of shove is even more staggering when you consider there’s a GranCabrio open-top version mooted to return too. The new lightweight multi-material architecture had better be rigid.

It couldn’t be more different from its predecessor in terms of power and performance, which was far from class-leading, and yet in silhouette at least, they are very similar-looking. No bad thing in our book. Will an absolute savage turn of speed fill the hole in our hearts left by that howling V8? That remains to be seen. We’ll find out when it arrives next year.

The Grecale SUV too, which will first launch in ICE form in the coming days, will also be getting an all-electric version next year. That leaves just the MC20 and the to-be-replaced Quattroporte and Levante models to be electrified and introduced by 2025. They should be formidable indeed, judging by the precedent the GranTurismo is expected to set.

On the other end of the scale is the question of how long existing petrol models will last in the range, including the recently-introduced MC20 supercar and its state-of-the-art Nettuno twin-turbo V6 engine. The claim is that Maserati will be all-electric by 2030, in line with the planned ban on the sale of ICE-only cars in the UK and other markets. No plug-in hybrids here, which aren’t to be outlawed under present plans until 2035. Maserati is going for broke on full electrification.

In the internal combustion era, Maserati was always the ‘alternative’ marque. That’s a status it was apparently not happy with, given the moves and claims it’s making for the future. Does an electrified and reinvigorated Maserati, positioning itself as much as a rival to Tesla as it is to Porsche, Aston Martin and Mercedes-AMG sound good to you? Let us know…