The next Maserati GranTurismo might have a familiar look, but it'll have a new heart when it arrives later this year
The next generation Maserati GranTurismo is well on its way to fruition having already been spotted during various stages of its development – new images have now brought to light a clearer picture of its final form that will debut some time this year. It’ll come on the tail-end of a busy few years for the Modenese icon – Maserati has also had the MC20 supercar and its new Grecale SUV to focus on – but a return to the GT class with its new GranTurismo will mark its return to a traditional segment it hopes to once again dominate.
As you can see, the new GranTurismo will not fundamentally change in its form, its proportions and generous four-seater cabin remaining in-tact, with a familiar combination of expressive haunches, compact glass house and a typical low-set grille. There have been some changes to the GT’s detailing, though, with new upright headlights similar in shape and profile to the MC20 and some slimmer lighting at the rear.
Instead, bigger changes are due under the skin, where the old naturally aspirated 4.7-litre V8 (previously 4.2-litre) will be replaced with the new Nettuno V6. As already seen in the MC20 supercar, Nettuno is a 3-litre twin-turbocharged 90-degree V6 engine with some good old fashioned mechanical engineering solutions lifted directly from Formula 1. This includes the use of a pre-chamber ignition system, which makes greater use of the available fuel in the combustion chamber to produce more power and more torque.
Final outputs are still a while away from being published, but in the MC20 supercar, it produces 621bhp and 538lb ft of torque – expect these numbers to be toned down for the more relaxed demeanour of the GranTurismo, though. If you’re already bemoaning the loss of the naturally aspirated V8 and its iconic exhaust note, the extra performance derived from the V6 will more than make up for it, and should finally give the GT the grunt to match its key rivals – something it’s generally lacked, especially in the turbocharged era. There’s also something to be said of the new Nettuno’s own character, which by all accounts of the MC20 has plenty on offer with its whistling wastegates and baritone exhaust notes.
Later in the GranTurismo’s life cycle, Maserati will also introduce an all-electric Folgore derivative, packing a total of three motors: one on the front axle and two on the rear, making it all-wheel drive. This tri-motor configuration will support total torque vectoring on the rear axle, and will run on an 800V system – similar to the Porsche Taycan – to deliver exceptionally fast charging capabilities.
What the new EV Folgore won’t have is a bespoke chassis like the Taycan, instead it’ll integrate the electric powertrain into the familiar IC chassis – similar in concept to Audi’s e-tron SUV. We’ll have to wait and see what the battery capacity and expected range will be, but given the model’s name implies grand touring, it ought to be reasonably substantial.
We also expect changes to the interior, likely mimicking the Grecale’s cabin with a larger touchscreen interface and clean layout. As before, Maserati’s designers will place a significant emphasis on material quality and the use of fine leather befitting an Italian GT, keeping the MC20’s sparse interior ambiance specific to its more focused form.
So despite the delays to Maserati's new product wave, its momentum as Stellantis’ flagship marque still gives us faith that a new era is coming. With the MC20 already shaking up the supercar market, and the Grecale hoping to bring some much-needed volume to the line up, the new GranTurismo and its GranCabrio sibling look nearly ready to still play their part in Maserati’s renaissance. We’ll just have to wait a little bit longer to see more of it.
Keyword: 2022 Maserati GranTurismo – all you need to know about the new Italian GT