First revealed back in March this year, the Maserati Grecale has now arrived in Malaysia for a preview organised by official local distributor Naza Italia. The Grecale is the Italian brand’s second SUV after the Levante that has already gone on sale here, and like its larger sibling and past Maseratis (Mistral, Ghibli, Bora and Khamsin), the new model is named after a wind, specifically the Gregale in the Mediterranean.
Built on the Giorgio platform, the SUV measures 4,846 mm long, 1,948 mm wide, 1,670 mm tall and sports a wheelbase of 2,901 mm. Those dimensions pale in comparison to the Levante, which measures 5,003 mm long, 1,968 mm wide, 1,679 mm and has a wheelbase spanning 3,004 mm.
Of course, the Grecale doesn’t compete against the Levante, as its main rival is the Porsche Macan. Parked side by side, the German SUV isn’t as big as the Grecale, measuring in at 4,681 mm long, 1,923 mm wide, 1,624 mm tall and with a wheelbase of just 2,807 mm.
The generous wheelbase is clear to see when the vehicle is viewed from the side, with other notable cues being a sloping roofline, discreet door handles and signature Maserati touches like the triple vents on the front fenders along with trident emblems on the C-pillars.
Up front, the Grecale’s protruding nose and wide grille are inspired by the MC20, which is the first model to showcase the brand’s new styling direction. The grille insert is made up of concaved bars, which are chrome-plated for the base GT variant, while the mid-range Modena and range-topping Trofeo (seen here) options have theirs in black instead.
Elsewhere, the headlamp clusters are stretched vertically to suit the SUV and bear a similar daytime running light signature to the MC20. Rounding up the front fascia are prominent creases on the bonnet and large intake openings in the lower portion of the apron.
Moving to the rear, you’ll find two-piece taillights that are styled to be reminiscent of another Maserati model, the 3200 GT, with slim clusters that are extended visually by strong creases leading to the rear wheels. The clusters themselves are linked by a trim piece on the tailgate, while further down, there’s a diffuser element set between the exhaust outlets.
Inside, you’ll find no less shortage screens, including a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster as well as a centre 12.3-inch touchscreen system that sits above an 8.8-inch ‘Comfort’ touchscreen. These are linked to MIA (Maserati Intelligent Assistant), which is an infotainment system based on Google’s Android Automotive OS.
As you would expect, the Grecale’s infotainment system comes with a wide array of connectivity options – via Maserati Connect – and other features such as the ability to set five different user profiles and their preferred vehicle settings, as well as connect two smartphones via Bluetooth. Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are also included, as is the Maserati Connect telematics system.
A less obvious display is the digital clock that is placed on the dashboard above the wide-width air vents, which is the first for a Maserati. Taking its place where an analogue clock would usually be, the digital clock does more than just tell the time, as it can also display a compass, G-force meter and emitting a visual response signal when a voice command is issued.
Rear passengers will also have touchscreen to fiddle with at the end of the centre console, which serves to adjust climate settings – the Grecale comes with a three-zone climate control system and rear vents. Maserati also worked with Sonus faber to develop a 3D sound system for the SUV, which comes with 14 (standard) or 21 speakers (High Premium).
As for the mechanical aspects of the Grecale, the SUV features double wishbones at the front and a multi-link setup at the rear. Depending on variant, you’ll either get passive dampers (standard on the GT), adaptive Skyhook dampers (standard on the Modena and optional for the GT) or air suspension (standard on the Trofeo and optional for other variants).
Another key system is the Vehicle Dynamic Control Module (VDCM), which is an evolution of the Chassis Domain Control Module (CDCM) found in the MC20. This controls all vehicle dynamics (vertical, longitudinal and lateral) with precise targets and timing for all the major actuators, reducing intervention times while also increasing performance, driving pleasure and safety.
The dynamic characteristics differ depending on the chosen drive mode, with five being made available to drivers: Comfort, GT, Sport, Corsa (Trofeo only) and Off-Road. Cars with the air suspension will have six levels of adjustment over 65 mm, with a minimum of -35 mm when parked to a maximum of +30 mm in Off-Road mode.
All variants of the Grecale get an eight-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive as standard, with the base engine in the GT being a 2.0 litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol unit that serves up 300 PS (296 hp) at 5,750 rpm and 450 Nm of torque from 2,000 to 4,000 rpm.
The mill also features a 48-volt mild hybrid system consisting a belt starter generator (BSG), a battery, an eBooster as well as a DC/DC converter. The BSG serves as an alternator to charge the battery located in the boot, which powers the eBooster electric compressor to fill in the torque gaps before the turbo spools up.
The Modena also comes with the same mild hybrid engine, albeit tuned to deliver 330 PS (325 hp), with the same peak torque of 450 Nm available over a wider rev range (2,000 to 5,000 rpm). The mild hybrids will both hit a top speed of 240 km/h, but the Modena is quicker in a 0-100 km/h sprint, taking just 5.3 seconds compared to the GT’s 5.6 seconds.
Meanwhile, the Trofeo is powered by a modified version of the Nettuno 3.0 litre twin-turbo V6 found in the MC20, which comes with Maserati Twin Combustion (MTC) technology derived from Formula 1. This sees a pre-chamber combustion system with twin-spark plugs, located between the main combustion chamber and spark plug, to enhance combustion.
There’s also dual port and direct injection as well as cylinder deactivation technology, the last of which enables the right cylinder bank to be deactivated to minimise fuel consumption. In terms of numbers, the Trofeo puts out 530 PS (523 hp) at 6,500 rpm and 620 Nm from 3,000 to 5,500 rpm, naturally making it the quickest of the bunch: 0-100 km/h in 3.8 seconds and with a top speed of 285 km/h.
The Trofeo also gets the beefiest braking system of the three, with discs measuring 360 mm (with six-piston calipers) at the front and 350 mm (with four-piston calipers) at the rear. The Modena and GT make do with 350-mm front discs (with four-piston calipers) and 330-mm rear discs (with single-piston calipers) instead. Wheel sizes start at 19 inches on the GT, increasing to 20 inches on the Modena and peaking at 21 inches on the Trofeo.
As with other Maserati models, the Grecale can be personalised however a customer wishes, but the carmaker did highlight three launch colours. For the GT, it’s Bronzo Opaco, while the Modena gets Grigio Cangiante and the Trofeo, Giallo Corse as seen in these photos. Again, you can choose other hues that you find more appealing, and the interior trimmings are configurable to your specifications.
On that mention, Naza Italia did not reveal pricing for Grecale in Malaysia as this is merely a preview for now. However, interested customers can contact the distributor to place a booking or arrange for a viewing before the SUV continues on its ASEAN tour.
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another sport car for timbang kilo founderr
Very soon this car will be the only ones we see around still running when DAP make all B40 & M40 cars disappear from the road. This will be the best magic trick from the biggest wayang producer in whole of Malaysia! Coming soon near you!
only fool will say like that We all know it is impossible. if want to talk politic, here is the wrong place! Go back to your group!
DAP is masters of the dark arts of making the impossible possible. Like it was impossible to be sitting with Bapak Korupsi but instead they made him PM, like it was impossible they could be corrupted but istead their 22 months was worse than BN 60 years, like it was impossible they could be kleptocrats but instead they freed all their members and witchhunt their opponents, like it was impossible they could mess things up further but they did and it only took 22 months. DAP is better than Tom Cruise maverick at doing Mission Impossible to make things worse!
waiting for p1 fan and proton salesman to come bash this car and say how x50 is better as most of them like to compare luxury conti car to our nation pride proton x50 and x70. hahahaha
You know it so you must be it ;-)
not nice at all
Behind looks like toyota harrier.
Put pricing in rm300k range sure can sell out in malaysia
Copy paste Suzuki Swift Sport front and Corolla Cross rear?
I want to ask a hot topic recently. T20 should not be subsidized for petrol. Can a T20 afford to buy this car? Many low income think that T20 very rich. T20 working very hard to imrove living std, not to subsidize those lazy people by aying high income tax.
Only T.01 can afford Maserati
T20 rm5.5k/parent RM11k/household, won’t be able to buy this crazy rich man car..
Family Life has alot commitment, for a more meaningful happiness.