Maserati Grecale Trofeo Performance SUV Confirmed
Speaking to The Drive during Monterey Car Week, the CEO of Maserati North America let us in on new details about the all-new Grecale.
It's not often that the world gets excited about an SUV, but there are some exceptions. The upcoming Maserati Grecale is one of them—more specifically, the possibility of a spicier Trofeo version that best represents what Maserati is all about. Thankfully, there is good news on that front.
Speaking to The Drive during Monterey Car Week, William Peffer, CEO of Maserati North America, said that the Italian automaker absolutely has plans to release a Trofeo variant of its all-new Porsche Macan-fighting model.
The Grecale is Maserati's D-segment model, fitting directly below its Levante SUV. That's just industry-speak that simply translates into "compact SUV," or what Peffer says is the fastest-growing and most profitable segment in the game right now. In fact, Maserati sees the Grecale as a way to legitimize the brand alongside other compact luxury offerings like the Audi Q5, BMW X3, Jaguar E-Pace, Mercedes GLB, and of course, the Porsche Macan.
According to Peffer, the Grecale will separate itself from its rivals thanks to one key characteristic: it'll be fun to drive. And like the rest of its 2022 lineup, the compact SUV will be offered in three trims, such as GT, Modena, and Trofeo.
"One of the ways you do that is you’re consistent with that product within your lineup," Peffer told us. "For us, that means the three trims. So we will have a Trofeo version of [the Grecale], we will have a Modena version of that. We will have a GT version."
GT represents Maserati's "urban, minimal, and contemporary spirit," whereas Modena-trimmed cars look sharper inside and out—more upscale if you will. Then there's the Trofeo, the trim for motoring enthusiasts who want more power and better handling.
Unfortunately, the rest of the ensemble is still a mystery. Other Trofeo vehicles in the lineup—Ghibli, Levante, Quattroporte—all have high-revving twin-turbo V8s, which Maserati considers to be the "heart" of its Trofeo collection. That being said, it's hard to imagine the automaker dropping such a big motor into a vehicle based on the same Giorgio platform as the Alfa Romeo Stelvio. Stranger things have happened though, so we'll just have to wait and see.
Maserati is set to unveil the Grecale this November as a 2022 model, and more than likely the details of its Trofeo trim will come along with it.
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