Grecale, which means Mediterranean wind, must blow worldwide to bring back fortune and glory to the brand. Being the second SUV and placing it in one of the hottest segments aims to be the bread and butter for their sporty siblings, imagine Cayenne for Porsche. Let’s get subjective now.
Verdict
Maserati Grecale pleases you with sophistication; nothing other than my favourite, the four-tipped metal exhaust, is shouty. Maserati knows their cars won’t be seen everywhere you look, but with the Grecale, with its practicality and Indian compatibility, other than any other model to date, it wishes to be seen more often, at least when you look into places like Colaba and Bandra for Mumbaiakaars. So, if you’ve got the money to have one, should you buy one? Two things within you can answer this, and it depends on who you listen to. If you listen to your brain and boast about the numbers, you shouldn’t. But if you dream of owning a Maserati one day and listen to your dear heart over all things, quirks included, you'll be happy. Then spend like an Italian and put that smile on your face.
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Does it drive like an Italian?
Maserati is a master of decisiveness. Mind you, we drove the humble ₹1.31 Crore (ex-showroom), and under the hood, it has another humble 1995cc 4-cylinder engine along with some electric assist. The hybrid setup gives rise to 296bhp and 450Nm of torque on tap. That said, the Modena has around 30bhp more, while the mighty Trofeo gets a detuned Nettuna engine. Yes, the same V6 under the MC20 supercar. This upgrade will take the power and torque figures to 523bhp and 620Nm and costs up to ₹2.05 Crore. The GT we drove sprints the slowest among these, yet the 0-100 kmph in 5.6 seconds is nothing close to slow. The gear shifter takes time to learn and to shift direction. The combination loves to go fast; the ZF 8-speed automatic transmission will also not complain in slow traffic. The power is distributed to all four wheels, giving it a good grip. The steering wheel weighs up brilliantly as the speed rises and is as sharp as a sword. But let’s be real, not everything is excellent; the suspension lets the bumps inside the cabin even in comfort mode. The sport mode makes it stiffer, but I had one good reason to use it often. Sports mode opens the exhaust with a growl and occasionally pops and bangs. It will make you forget completely that you are driving a four-cylinder.
Does it look Italian inside?
What impressed me and will impress you is the interior fit and finish. Everything you see is fancy, and everything you touch is soft-touch, but don’t look where you are not supposed to. Like the button you use to control the music, those will hit you with memories of a Jeep. Still, I would not see them as bad; the richness and artistic vibes will definitely be felt—silver trident buttons in between leather, stitching, and the Sonus Faber sound system are a few among those. Since it is Italian, there must be some quirks, right? The doors open with buttons, plenty of space in the rear but no recline, and the speaker grille can grate cheese, maybe. The first thing you need to do to start going is to start the Grecale, a blue button in the GT (the colour of the button is respective of the variant) on the steering wheel, just like another Italian, the Ferrari. The large fixed aluminium paddle shifters only add to it. However, the indicator stalks could be a tad longer. Looking to my left, there are two screens: a 12.3-inch screen and an 8.8-inch screen, respectively. Both sandwich together and also house the gear shifter buttons in the middle, which look like a tiny laptop. Looking front again, I can see a 12.3-inch crispy driver's display. But there is more! The exquisite ‘Future O'Clock,’ a digital colour clock in the middle dash, can show more than time; I love it!
These are crisp and fast responsive; however, the UI will be new to most buyers. After the learning curve, the screens will not bother you much. Even if we don't like screens, there are people who are fans of them. I would go so far as to say this is the best touch on climate control. Let me explain briefly: the slightly tilted-up screen is packed with all the buttons; even your light settings and seat ventilation are thrown in. However, none of these comes in the way of your air conditioning. All you need to do is swipe left or right anywhere to adjust fan speed and swipe up and down anywhere to adjust temperature. All this is done with proper haptic feedback, resulting in your eyes not being taken off the traffic. How genius is that!
Does it look Italian outside?
I know you may have already commented on the beauty the moment you saw the images. Hold on; these images can't do justice to the huge SUV as they do in real life. However, a humble Japanese hatch and an Italian designer, Klaus Busse, might have never met before in person. The Grecale is unmistakably a baby Maserati, from the huge grille, which perfectly shapes the Maserati way to flaunt the trident crest, to the triple side fender vents that have been on every Maserati since 1947. That’s not all; more tridents on the C-pillars and the iconic boomerang taillight inspiration that dates back to the 3200 GT. Ok, I had to squint my eyes for that one, but there’s more like this. Would you believe that the controversial headlights match those from the supercar MC20? Don't fight me; designs are subjective, and there’s nothing like this to be mistaken in the segment in which it arrives.
