Truth is, I really wanted to like the Maserati Grecale Folgore. When I flew to Italy’s southeast coast to drive it earlier this Spring, I arrived with high hopes set by the V6-powered Trofeo. This 523-horsepower crossover is as fast as it is great to look at, and crucially, it oozes character. It’s a firecracker that prioritizes a thrilling driving experience over almost everything else, precisely as a machine proudly sporting a Trident should.
If the Grecale Folgore, Maserati’s first electric SUV, could harness some of the Trofeo’s magic, it would be a clear winner. However, as I piloted this $109,000 EV through the winding roads that edge the Adriatic Sea, magic wasn’t exactly what I found.
As good-looking as the Folgore was, elegantly wearing smoothed but not overly aero-focused bodywork, hardware problems lurked beneath its stylish skin. Despite receiving a power boost up to 542 hp, it also gained 998 pounds, making it slower than the outgunned Trofeo. Its suspension struggled to cope with its added heft, producing a bouncy, unsettled ride, while its slow charge rate, low estimated range, and six-figure price didn’t exactly sweeten the deal. I walked away disenchanted.
It’s nearly Winter now, and the stage is set for a proper redemption arc. I’m in a snowy valley in Livigno, Italy, a small town nestled between towering peaks in the Alps. I’ve got access to a private ice track for the day. Maserati has brought out its entire Folgore range, including the GranTurismo, GranCabrio, and, of course, the Grecale. If a car can’t make you feel a bit of magic flung sideways on a snowy course in one of the most beautiful places in the world, chances are it never had any, to begin with.
A man with a clipboard gives me a thumbs up, and it’s as if a gun goes off in the Kentucky Derby. I practically sprint to the awaiting GranTurismo Folgore, its matte $17,250 Rame Folgore absorbing the odd ray of light as it peaks through the mountains, the sun not yet fully risen. It’s freezing in the shadowy valley, and a decent layer of snow covers the track’s icy surface. I’m the first one up.
As I drive out of the makeshift pits, my right hand darts to the central screen to disable traction control. My left disables any form of regenerative braking, then twisting the drive mode selector out of GT, past Sport, and into Corsa. I’m armed with a 751-horsepower tri-motor $192,000 EV, an empty ice course, and a reassurance that even if things go horribly wrong, the consequences won’t be dire.
I mash the gas to get a feel for how the GT lays down power, and a blizzard shoots out the back with little action up front. Despite being all-wheel drive, the GranTurismo has one motor under its long hood and two in the rear. As such, most of its monumental output heads south. After the first bend, I lift to shift its weight balance forward, turn in, and power through the second sweeper. It’s instinctive, easy even. The snowy surface provides a hint of grip, enough of a buffer to feel out the required amount of power, and sufficient traction to not 180 the thing on the first go.
Lap two comes, and the drifts pick up speed as my confidence in the big Maserati GT builds. As counterintuitive as it may sound, the GranTurismo Folgore is downright ideal for this sort of thing. It allows you to power into a slide while it’s near 5,000 lb weight makes it come around predictably. It allows you to link drifts effortlessly. There’s even decent feedback through the wheel, so you can immediately feel when you’ve pushed too hard, and the front is about to let go.
My run in the GT comes to an embarrassingly predictable end. Emboldened by the ease with which the Folgore slides, I overcook it and dive nose-first into a pile of snow. Of course, it’s the mound right in front of the pits where journalists wait their turn as Maserati’s staff looks on with what I can only imagine is a healthy dose of cringe. I back out, the GT’s oval nose packed with more white stuff than Tony Montana’s, and I scurry back to the pits with my tail between my legs.
Round two comes much later in the day, long after each of the ten or so journalists has had a go. The sun beams warmth from overhead into the icy valley, and I can feel my toes again. More importantly, as I line up for my run in the Grecale Folgore, the forgiving layer of snow that made sliding the GT a breeze has begun to make way for patches of raw ice. Nonetheless, I quickly reconfigure the SUV as I had the two-door. The Grecale is at its most aggressive in Sport mode, instead incorporating a lifted Off-Road setting in Corsa’s wake.
Clear of the pits, the pedal meets the floor again, except I’m met with an entirely different response. Unlike the GT, the Grecale Folgore employs a pair of motors, with one in each axle. Its power distribution is more even, routing it like something with a traditional all-wheel drive system. Inducing a slide is as easy as it was in the GT, thanks to the SUV’s plentiful 542-hp output. However, once you’re in it, the rules quickly change.
The Maserati Grecale drifts like a Panda reproduces; it’ll do it if the conditions are just right, but otherwise, it’s happier doing just about anything else. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, though. Even on a slick surface without studded tires, it clings on surprisingly well. To get it sideways, you start by turning in and prying it loose with a bootful of power, which you must then maintain; otherwise, the thing totally settles.
It’s challenging to do but rewarding once you get it right. Modulating the accelerator is difficult, given that power comes on and off so suddenly. Still, after a few laps and one ass-first shunt into a pile of snow, I get the hang of it. The Grecale’s steering isn’t nearly as talkative as the GT’s and its weight doesn’t swing so much as it slumps from side to side. Still, it’s doing roughly everything I ask of it. I’m starting to feel some of the magic I’ve been searching for.
This is, after all, an SUV destined mainly for city life, a sentiment backed up by its EPA-estimated 245 miles of range. Yet here it is on the snow, swinging its tail around, firing snow out from all its four wheels like a rally car, dancing on snow and ice. You may have to force it to slide, and while it’s still not nearly as thrilling as the Trofeo, there’s something to be said for the breadth of its capabilities. This time, I return to the pits without going entirely off course. I am a professional, after all.
There’s a moment in every track day when that feeling of “one last lap” begins to seep in. It’s the instant when pushing just a little harder often turns into an expensive mess, and I feel it now. Maserati originally planned to have us run two stints in the GT and Grecale. Still eager to complete the set, I request a third run in the GranCabrio Folgore. After some quick discussions between the staff onsite, the man with the clipboard again lifts his thumb, and I move quickly into the GC so he can’t change his mind.
The thing is, what little snow remains on the course now hides in the fringes. The 5,129-lb GranCabrio Folgore creeps onto the ice, and even before I’ve induced a slide, I can feel it sliding around in every direction—hints of understeer break into quick oversteer moments. I’m constantly twitching at the wheel to keep it pointed in one general direction. It’s a mess, but I’ve committed to a third stint, and I’m going for it.
Remembering my first run of the day, I blip the gas, expecting at least some grip, and before I know it, I’m facing where I’ve just come from. 751 hp on a slick surface without studded tires is, as you might expect, somewhat challenging to wrangle. Still, I press on, breathing on the accelerator and slowly acclimating to the deteriorating conditions. I manage a few slides and a few more 180s, and I’m about ready to come back in when the call comes over the radio asking me to do just that.
As brief and messy as this final stint is, it’s enough to confirm that the $205,000 is still the one to have. Despite its curb weight approaching that of a Rolls-Royce Ghost, it’s eager to dance like the GT, with the added benefit of looking even better with its top folded. Although that last image is a memory from the Maserati GC drive in the Summer, it’s still freezing in this valley, and its top is latched.
As if schemed by Maserati, I’m allotted a Grecale Folgore to drive back to the hotel in Bormio. There’s no ice on the road, just a gently winding road crossing through small towns as it descends from the mountain. The sun is once again shining between peaks. I dial up the heater in preparation for its departure.
A day in the snow doesn’t magically cure the Grecale Folgore’s ailments, even if the scenery is gorgeous. However, I’m walking away with a slightly deeper appreciation for it.
Maseratis haven’t historically been the leaders in the numbers game, and the Grecale Folgore is old-school Trident in this sense. For the $109,000 it commands, there are better EVs and more practical SUVs. Still, I’m not convinced there are better-looking options in either category. The Grecale Folgore is a statement piece, and should you find yourself on a private ice track, you can rest assured that beneath its stylish skin, there’s at least a little magic to be found.
