FOLGORE
by Maserati
For many the arrival of electrification was initially seen as a potential recession into the soulless age of automotive. However time is a healer, and as innovation ramps up and performance improves, we’re seeing an increasing fondness and—dare I say it—excitement for what the future holds.
To none more does this apply than to the luxury performance segment, and particularly to those with a rich heritage in motor racing—such as Maserati. The Italian brand is renown for creating emotive drives, journeys where the combustive soundtrack of the engine is as much part of the experience as the handling itself.
By embracing electrification, Maserati lose the combustion engine and hence one of their key instruments, but with that comes an opportunity to birth something new, to introduce the world to the Maserati take on a luxury electric car; and so Folgore was birthed.
With the literal meaning of Folgore being “thunder” in Italian, the brand are intent in being a disruptive force in the world of automotive; the entire range to be completely electrified by as soon as 2028. To accomplish this they first needed to convince the stalwart of existing Maserati fans that the soul of Maserati lives on.
This week at the heart of Motor Valley in Rimini, Maserati hosted their inaugural Folgore Day, taking place on the 110th Anniversary of the brand, to celebrate the future of the brand and introduce new electrified models. The first Folgore model to launch was the GranTurismo Folgore, which launched last year, introducing customers to their electric vision for the first time. A natural progression, this year the GranCabrio Folgore was unveiled at the event, along with the Grecale Folgore SUV; two cars at the opposing sides of the lifestyle spectrum but both truly representative of the modern Maserati customer.
Along with the two standout electric vehicles comes a new type of product, a Maserati Tridente all-electric motorboat, created in collaboration with the Modena-based Vita Power. The 10.5meter length dayboat is the first of it’s kind for the brand, made of carbon fibre and finished by nautical artisans at Hodgdon Yachts.
The overarching story of Folgore Day however is not one of the new releases—even with the boat—but one of Maserati’s commitment to their future. The classic Italian automotive brand are re-telling their story in a new way, one that respects their past while inviting new Maserati enthusiasts to embrace their future. Folgore could well be the thunderous dawning of a new day that the automotive space has been waiting for.
