Maserati GranCabrio Folgore is a 751bhp droptop luxury EV
Thunder and Lightning
You’re looking at the Maserati GranCabrio Folgore, the Italian luxury car brand’s latest electric vehicle (EV) and the third “zero emission” model it has launched in the past three years.
The GranCabrio Folgore looks a lot like its V6-powered GranCabrio twin — except for aerodynamically optimised alloy wheels and a slightly different grille, with narrower slots for cooling.
Struck by Lightning
Due to its underpinnings, which are shared with the GranTurismo petrol models, the battery doesn’t take up the entire underfloor — it’s instead arranged in a T-shape in the chassis — and so the GranCabrio Folgore can have a lower, sportier-looking roofline.
Said roof can be raised and lowered in just 14 seconds on the move, at speeds of up to 31mph.
The Folgore — meaning “Lightning” in Italian — is claimed to be the first fully electric convertible in the luxury segment, as well as the fastest.
This is down to its advanced 800-volt, three-motor set-up that delivers robust outputs of 751bhp and 996lb ft of torque (twisting force).
That’s enough oomph to take the GranCabrio Folgore from 0-62mph in just 2.8 seconds, and on to a top speed of 180mph.
Up to nearly 1,200bhp possible
The company’s engineers reckon the Folgore’s tri-motor arrangement, which places one propulsion unit on the front axle and the other two at each of the rear wheels, could produce up to 1,183bhp.
However, the 83kWh (usable) battery pack can only output up to 610kW (818bhp), so Maserati is looking to source an alternative that would allow it to fully unleash the Folgore.
As it is, the car will do 278 miles on a single charge, according to the official test (expect less in the real world), while its powerful 800-volt architecture allows for a maximum 270kW DC charging rate — at which speeds, the Maserati’s battery would go from 20 to 80 per cent full in just 18 minutes.
Inside, the GranCabrio Folgore has four seats, as it is designed to be a grand tourer. The dashboard is screen-heavy, with digital displays for both the instrument cluster and the infotainment screen.
Even the company’s fabled clock, a long-held traditional fixture of the fascia, has been reinvented with a digital interpretation for this pure-electric convertible.
Practical enough?
The boot space isn’t great for travelling across continents with luxury luggage, though. A volume of just 157 litres is said to be on offer in the Maserati EV soft-top, which is even less than the 185 litres found in the back of the tiny Fiat 500e Convertible city car. These two models, both in the wider Stellantis car group, now form the bookends (price-wise) of electric open-top motoring.
Speaking of which, Maserati will sell the GranCabrio Folgore for £185,610. That’s a fair hike on the price of the 543bhp GranCabrio Trofeo V6 (£169,465), as well as being more expensive than the hard-topped electric alternative, the GranTurismo Folgore (£179,950).
Maserati launched the GranCabrio Folgore, which is already on sale in the UK, at a dramatic, star-studded — well, Italian star-studded — event in its home country on Monday, April 15, which it called “Made in Thunder”. Just remember to close the roof when the heavens do open.
Related articles
- If you liked reading about the new Maserati GranCabrio Folgore, you might like to read our review of the new Maserati Grecale Folgore, too
- Also take a look at the new Maserati GranCabrio convertible GT car with 542bhp V6
- And don’t miss our Maserati GranTurismo 2023 review, including the electric Folgore version
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