Alexandre
It's now official: Maserati is rethinking its powertrain line-up, gradually abandoning the idea of focusing solely on the 100 % electric. Long heralded as the spearhead of the Stellantis Group's "Dare Forward 2030" strategy, the electric Maserati 100 %, dubbed the "Folgore", is struggling to win over customers. Sales of the Grecale Folgore SUV, like those of the GranTurismo and GranCabrio Folgore, have fallen far short of expectations, forcing the Trident brand to return to hybrid combustion engines.
A hybrid engine under study?
Mariangela Del Vecchio, Director of Maserati Northern Europe, confirmed toAutoExpress : the brand is indeed planning to add hybrid powertrains to its range. Until now, Maserati has admitted to favoring a direct transition to the 100 % electric, snubbing the plug-in hybrid (PHEV) in particular. But changes in the market, the lukewarm reception of the Folgore range and Stellantis' desire to strengthen the hybrid offering have reshuffled the cards.
"The Grecale SUV is equipped with a mild hybrid system. What we don't have is a plug-in hybrid, because the company's direction has been very clear: we will go all-electric, rather than have this intermediate technology. For the future, developments are open-ended, particularly for the Levante and Quattroporte. All this is still under study, and the consumer is the driving force behind it."
- Mariangela Del Vecchio
However, the brand did not give any further details, keeping future Maserati engines a mystery.
Cancellation of the MC20 Folgore supercar
At the same time, we have official confirmation that the 100 % electric version of the MC20 supercar, the MC20 Folgore, has simply been cancelled. It's no longer a surprise to us, originally scheduled for autumn 2024, the brand gave no further news of the MC20 Folgorethen a few months later, we learned from the unions that the model was suspended. This choice is a powerful symbol: Maserati, which was counting heavily on the Folgore model to underpin its electric drive, is finally backtracking.
"The MC20 Folgore was discontinued due to the low demand for BEVs in the supercar segment." - Mariangela Del Vecchio
What's next?
With this announcement, we understand that Maserati will offer a choice between an electric motor and a hybrid combustion engine for its future models, Levante and Quattroporte. However, Masearti is still thinking about this, and doesn't seem to be able to say whether it will be a 3.0L V6 PHEV, a GME T6 PHEV, or some other type of engine?
"All product developments in terms of engines and powertrains are still ongoing. I think the current climate, the brand's position with the current product range is to go all-electric and gasoline, and offer the consumer choice" -. Mariangela Del Vecchio
A common-sense approach, which unfortunately cost the Italian brand many years (and customers). Former Maserati CEO David Grasso, already said the same thing a year ago. As a reminder, the new Levante SUV is not expected before 2027 and the new Quattroporte sedan before 2028, which should leave plenty of time to develop a hybrid solution on an existing engine. To find out more, read : Maserati: which engines for the next models?