Maserati’s top man in this part of the world explains strategy for the Grecale, a new model so vital to his brand’s future.

CARE to name the jewel of a sprawling empire that knocks out Opels, Citroens, Peugeots, Fiats, Jeeps and Alfa Romeos for our market?

It’s Maserati, of course, but you’d be forgiven for necessarily be aware.

Of all the Stellantis Group brands here, the Modena, Italy, based maker of fine sports fare is the lowest profile.

Maybe no longer. The Maserati Grecale, a compact five-seater SUV landing here in the $120,000-$180,000 zone, is set to lift the make’s status by some margin.

That it shares some of its underpinnings with the Alfa Romeo  Stelvio - alongside which it is built in a former Fiat factory in Cassino, Italy - and has a teensy touch of Jeep to it (the steering wheel switches are shared with the Grand Cherokee) should not concern anyone anyone seeking genuine high-brow Italian flair and charisma.

Maserati’s excitement about the Grecale seems based on solid foundation. 

Sports utilities of all kinds are hot; within the premium sector, there’s a definite consumer desire for cars that stand out, look good and clearly express luxury and snappy, nicely snarly performance potential. Put all that behind a badge with great history and … well, everything points to this car - releasing with petrol engines, a 2.0-litre four in two strengths with 48 volt mild hybrid assistance and, unsurprisingly, a full-blooded V6 at the top - being the new big thing for a brand that has to date sat quietly even within its big dollar segment.

Having cut his teeth in the car industry with Toyota and then Lexus in Australia - and, for a short time, in New Zealand - Grant Barling now charts direction for the famous trident brand, as general manager for Maserati in New Zealand and Australia.

The future for Maserati is exciting; a brand that started by dominating Formula One then transferred into a road car maker delivering some of the best-sounding petrol engines out of Modena - home, of course, to another famous ‘stallion’ brand - is now going electric. Hybrids are here, fully battery-fed cars are coming, including a Grecale EV.

He spoke to MotoringNZ.com about the potentials for the brand.

MotoringNZ.com: It seems best to start by asking what potential Grecale presents in New Zealand; it seems fair to assume it will become Maserati’s best-seller. How long will that take?

Grant Barling: If you look at the small luxury SUV segment it sits in, from our point of view it would represent 60 to 70 percent of our total volume. When you consider that we haven't competed in that segment - yes, we have the Levante  but that sits the level up - then it presents a big opportunity for us.

That being said, we are not driven by any specific volume. We want to look after the customer.  They're not going to be everywhere. This is going to be for the exclusive.

MNZ: Will provision be the point where Grecales will be built to order, as other Maseratis are?

GB: The dealers will order stock so we can get production, but I want customers to build their own car. I want them to be able to personalise their vehicle. If they want something sooner and the dealer's got a car available, so be it.

MNZ:  Maserati has two sales outlets in New Zealand so, in respect to initial consignment for display cars and press cars you are looking at what, perhaps a dozen vehicle?

GB: For this launch period, the dealers will have a couple of each derivative and we really are keen for customers to experience those cars. From then it’s all about customers deciding what they want and how they want it.

MN: Last year Maserati registered 60 units. Is that good; it is satisfactory?

GB: It's okay. If you look at Australia and New Zealand, we did about 650 cars. Take that number and it’s (NZ sales are) 10 percent of the total pie, which we think is about right. 

Market share for us in Australia puts us second behind Japan, in markets outside of Italy. So we are one of the top performing markets. New Zealand kind of bundles in with Australia. We work together and we say that, as a market outside of Italy, we are one of the best. We're highly regarded and that means that we get a voice.

MN: Would you be prepared to give a NZ-specific volume prediction for Grecale?

GB: Not at this stage. From my point of view, all I want to do is make sure we can build an order bank. 

MN: If a customer want to order a personalised car, how long will they wait for delivery?

GB: Probably six months. We’re now in May, so cars we'll order now will be here before the end of the year. 

MN: Is there any gut feel about which version of Grecale will do best?

GB: Actually, so far it (customer interest) has been pretty well evenly shared between the GT, the Modena and Trofeo. The mix is pretty even. 

 You've got your traditional customer who wants a performance and, yes, they tend to gravitate towards the V6. But we also have people coming into the brand because it is at an affordable entry level price. It’s the most affordable entry level car we've ever had. That opens it up to a younger audience and that segment has a much higher female skew to it. Traditionally we haven't been in that space.

MN: Do you think that after the initial rush, the demand might tend toward the four cylinder cars?

GB: That's a good question. You would think so. But this is also the first time as a brand that we've actually launched our high performance car at the same time.

Previously the one came later, maybe two or three years after. This time we are able to give the customers a full choice. 

MN: Well, there is one more to come - Grecale Folgore, the fully electric model. You say that will be here in mid-2024. Given NZ’s interest in electric cars, that must raise some good potentials, yes?

GB: Yes, very much. You guys are leading the way. Certainly we want to see that car here …we're probably 12 months away. It’s a big part of the strategy. 

But we also have mild hybrid products so that customers have a choice about if they want to go that way as well as to electric. This is the good journey that we're going on.

MN: Do you expect to find that some early adopters of the petrol Grecale might then switch to the electric once it becomes available?

GB: I think so. But if you look at what we've taken so far, it’s been a third, a third, a third, for each derivative.

MN: Can you give indication where Folgore will sit in the price band. Would yo agree that logic suggests it might be up around the V6?

GB: We’re still working on it. 

MN: Maserati says it's going be electrified by 2025 and fully electric after 2030. How does that tailor your forward planning for us? Will petrol engines be excised from that point?

GB: We will have a range of electric vehicles coming, but the Nettuno V6 has only just been patented and it has a big future. 

MN: Given how much the sedan sector has slumped, how much longer do Quattroporte and Ghibli remain in the local portfolio?

GB: We’ve had good success with those vehicles. But the segment is shrinking. If the customer still has a desire for it, we'll still order it.