Officine Alfieri Maserati was founded in Bologna, Italy in 1914 by three brothers: Alfieri, Ettore, and Ernesto. In the first years, during WW1, the production was mainly devoted to devices for aircraft engines, then due to the willingness of Alfieri, who drove race cars, the brothers began manufacturing the first automobile: Maserati Tipo 26. The car debuted in 1926 and it was based on a frame from Diatto (a former car manufacturer from Turin), the engine was an 8-cylinders in line, with 1.5 liters displacement. The popularity of the brand increased after the participation at the Mille Miglia, the most iconic classical Italian race, in ‘26 and in ‘28 with the “Tipo 26 Sport”.
In the 1930s Alfieri unfortunately died, and Bindo (the younger brother) joined the company, a period in which Tazio Nuvolari won races for Maserati.
The years 1939 and 1940 were victorious for the company. In fact, Wilbur Shaw, driving the Maserati 8CTF “Boyle Special” won the Indianapolis 500 twice.
After WW2, a time when Maserati shifted its production to spark plugs and batteries, the brand started producing grand touring vehicles. In 1947 the Maserati A6 1500 was presented. The car debuted at the Geneva Motor Show and the collaboration with the Italian firm Pininfarina resulted in a gorgeous piece of automotive art.
The 1960s and the 1970s marked years of revolutions. In 1963 the first four door Maserati was launched; it was called “Maserati Quattroporte”. During the late 1960s the French manufacturer Citroen purchased Maserati and put one of its engines in the Citroen SM.
Eventually, after being purchased by the Argentinian de Tomaso in the mid-1970s, in 1993 Maserati was bought by Fiat and became entirely Italian again. In 1997, Fiat turned management of Maserati over to Ferrari and grouped it with Alfa Romeo. Finally, in 2014 the companies merged with Chrysler, under the guidance of Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Fiat at that time, giving birth to the FCA group.
Today Maserati is paving the path for the future by electrifying its fleet with the “Gamma Folgore”, and it is committed to make a full electric variant of their cars by 2025. While purist car enthusiasts are not happy to know that this is the end of the Maserati V8 era, we trust Maserati on its ability to give us thrilling cars once again.
“Ciao, nice to finally meet you”. With these few words, on March 22nd Maserati presented its brand-new SUV, the Grecale. Its name, like all the ones of the brand’s latest cars, derives from the one of a wind, the Gregale. It is a Mediterranean wind that during times of low-pressure coils from the Ionian Island of Zakynthos and causes a strong, cool, north-easternly wind moving towards south, to the island of Malta. The Italian name “Grecale” derives from the term Greek wind, given its place of origin. The Grecale is positioned in the luxury segment of the Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) category. Compared to its bigger sister, the Levante, which was launched by the House of the Trident in 2016, it is around 15cm shorter, and it costs between 10 and 45 thousand euros less depending on the version and its specifications. Despite being between 15 and 25cm longer than the other cars in its segment, it competes directly with Porsche Macan, Jaguar F-Pace, Audi Q5 and BMW X3.
The Grecale is a huge step forward for Maserati. With its launch, the Bolognese carmaker wants to further establish its presence in the market for more accessible luxury cars. Moreover, reporting the words of Francesco Tonon, head of Product Planning, Grecale is fundamental for Maserati in terms of production volumes as it is expected to represent around 40% of produced cars in the upcoming years.
The design of the new-born model is openly and admittedly inspired by the MC20, the supercar launched by Maserati in 2020. The horizontal headlights, the bigger and higher front grill and the pronounced ribbing on the bonnet are in tone with both the designs of the Levante and the Ghibli, drawing inspiration from the same flagship model, the MC20.
Even if Grecale’s outside design already represents a huge novelty for Maserati, being it the second car and first SUV of the new Maserati era, it is the interior design that is truly revolutionary. The luxurious elegance of the leathers and the materials combining in a perfect harmony representative of Italian craftsmanship are juxtaposed with a fresh and modern technology-driven design inspired by ergonomic needs and man-machine interface. To top it off, Maseati have included a real treat for the most demanding customers with the Sonus Faber sound system, incorporating 21 speakers and a three-dimensional sound able to guarantee a truly unique level of depth and roundness, reverberating Maserati’s essence of audacious Italian heritage.