Cheering for Maserati right now feels a bit like being a Toronto Maple Leafs fan. You spend each year hoping for the best, but reality bites every time the chips are down. Even with a heavily revamped product range going into the 2020s, sales aren’t spectacular, and it can be a struggle to recommend its models given their high price points. Nevertheless, the marque’s refreshed its GranTurismo, GranCabrio, and Grecale models in a bid to stay in the fight, and all of them are getting some seriously large grillework.
Let’s start with the Grecale, Maserati’s Porsche Macan rival. This one actually holds some promise because it’s receiving something it’s badly needed. Previously, it was available with either a turbocharged four-cylinder engine making up to 325 horsepower or a strong 523-horsepower three-liter V6. That’s a big gulf, so Maserati developed a low-output twin-turbocharged three-liter V6 to try and fill it. Pumping out 385 horsepower, the low-po V6 model claims to shave three tenths off the old four-cylinder Grecale Modena’s zero-to-60 mph time while providing a more exciting soundtrack. However, it’s not exactly new. America already got it in the Grecale Modena for 2026, but now Maserati’s sticking it in the base model. How exciting.
Otherwise, the compact crossover gets a few interior and exterior tweaks. A new digital clock features what Maserati calls a “mineral crystal dial,” which, hang on a second, isn’t that just like the screens on mid-range fitness trackers? Regardless, the steering wheel’s more octagonal now, and metal toggles replace the old car’s plastic shifter buttons. However, the big news is the face.
Yep, Maserati’s signature concave grille has now spilled over its frame and consumed much of the Grecale’s front fascia. There’ll be no mistaking a facelifted Grecale on the rare occasion you find one in your rearview mirror. While the new face is definitely keeping with the MCPura supercar, something about it doesn’t quite translate to a larger, taller plane.
I will say, the new family face does seem to work better on the GranTurismo and GranCabrio thanks to their low hood lines, although it’s more purposeful than pretty. Lots of open area here, which probably helps now that Maserati has whacked maximum output of the Trofeo models up to 582 horsepower. Rapid stuff, but perhaps the most exciting powertrain change is a new drive mode on non-Trofeo models that owners might actually use a lot. It’s called “Country Mode,” and while it doesn’t dress you in tweed and put a dog in the passenger seat, it does raise the ride height below 75 MPH for a smoother ride over pockmarked, frost heave-affected stretches of tarmac.
On the inside, the new GranTurismo and GranCabrio gain an eye-popping addition to the options list: Something called “Nude Alcantara.” Okay then. It’s paired with Bordeaux leather, and I could make a joke here, but HR is watching. Anyway, the same sort of metal shifter toggles and digital clock in the Grecale make their way into the GranTurismo and GranCabrio, and the steering wheel’s now octagonal. A new infotainment user interface rounds out the interior, and clear-lens taillamps finish off the external facelift.
It’s a routine mid-cycle update for the Grecale, GranTurismo, and GranCabrio, but the trouble will be making people care. Maserati’s slide back into relative obscurity is something worth studying because in the mid-2000s, the marque was actually cool. With bits of Ferrari DNA under the skin of models like the Quattroporte V and sonorous V8 soundtracks, the Maserati range dripped with desire. Then, a few things happened. The Ghibli and Quattroporte VI sharing switchgear with a Dodge Dart probably didn’t help, and the current range is simply eye-wateringly expensive. The pre-facelift GranTurismo was discounted pretty much as soon as it hit the market, and that’s not a good sign for a luxury brand. The marque still has a long climb ahead of it, but hey, maybe Nude Alcantara can help.
Top graphic image: Maserati
The best thing to happen to Maserati lately is the prominent presence in Apple TV’s Friends and Neighbors.
Immediate reaction to the topshot: Groucho Marx paint moustache. Well, now.
“Our most expensive cars weren’t selling well, so we made them uglier” is not the flex Stellantis thinks it is.
I feel 1952 Buick love industry wide.
I don’t know what you are on about.
Anyway, I want an MC20 (or whatever it is called this week) but with normal doors.
Thank you.
The Chinese don’t buy foreign cars anymore, can we stop pretending anyone else likes this?
Maserati Billy Bass Edition, not to be confused with Lincoln’s Bill Blass Editions.
And here I thought The Autopian’s HR department stood for HR Giger, in which case, it’s not nude enough!
I’m going to rush right out and ignore it!
Downgrade
Once again, we owe the 2019 Camaro SS a heartfelt apology.
No, no we don’t
In no universe is that true and it’s still uglier than sin.