Good things...
...come to those who wait. Italy’s sleeping giants wake for 2020
It’s alive! And now it’s mid-engined MASERATI ALFIERI: HYBRID V6 PACKS 600BHP!
If you’d given up on Maserati ever building its stunning 2014 Alfieri concept, fear not – Modena is set to make an exciting high-performance car a reality, if with a radical twist. Where the concept was a front-engined V6, the production model will feature a twin-turbocharged and hybridised V6 with circa 600bhp. Not only that, but it will be mid-engined too, making the new model more supercar than sports car, and the first midships Maser since the 2004 MC12.
Maserati let the cat out of the bag with an official teaser image of a powertrain test mule, which appeared to be based on the recently discontinued Alfa 4C (built at Maserati’s Modena plant) with a wider rear track and enlarged side intakes to cool the larger, more potent motor.
The new Maserati will not be based on an evolution of the Alfa’s carbonfibre platform, but on all-new underpinnings, and the V6 will be the first of a new generation of Maserati engines as its supply deal with Ferrari phases out.
The Alfieri (the name remains subject to confirmation) is thought to have been slotted in to the Maserati product plan at short notice, following the recent cancellation of the stillborn, mid-engined 8C from FCA stablemates Alfa Romeo. Positioned above the next-gen GranTurismo, the supercar will cost a little under £200k – making it the most expensive Maserati, and a direct rival to the Ferrari 488 GTB. A Spider follows in 2021.
NEED TO KNOW: MASERATI ALFIERI
What is it? Maser’s supercar Tech specs Twin-turbo hybrid V6, 600bhp Ferrari 488 GTB, McLaren 570S/720S Why we’re excited Mid-engined poise. Six years of tease
Saviour utility vehicle ALFA TONALE: THE CRUCIAL CROSSOVER
It’s apt that the Tonale has a squat, muscular stance – it has some heavy lifting to do. Alfa Romeo’s first compact SUV is the keystone in its plan to double sales to 400,000 cars a year.
A smaller sibling to the Stelvio and a rival to the likes of the Range Rover Evoque, BMW X2 and Audi Q3, the platform is based on that of the Jeep Compass and Renegade. That means the line-up will kick off with front-drive low-power models, but a plug-in hybrid version (Alfa’s first) will bring the rear wheels into play via a rear-axle e-motor.
As is the Alfa way, the Tonale is being developed on a tight timeframe, with work on the design having begun in earnest in December 2018. While still smooth-surfaced, its metalwork will be more angular than the curvaceous Stelvio, the car that warmed the world up to the idea of an Alfa SUV (without setting it on fire with sales…).
Much of Alfa Romeo’s future plans will hinge on post-merger strategy. Parent company FCA is teaming up with Groupe PSA (owner of Peugeot, Citroën, DS, Opel and Vauxhall), creating the third biggest car maker in the world. Of the 15 marques in the conglomerate, Alfa Romeo will be one of the smallest. It’s thought that PSA will wear the trousers in terms of leadership, and Alfa Romeo’s books will doubtless come under renewed scrutiny. The Tonale has to perform – on the road and in the sales charts.
NEED TO KNOW: ALFA ROMEO TONALE
What is it? Stylish, small-ish SUV Tech specs Front-drive Jeep platform, all-wheel-drive hybrid option Rivals? BMW X2, Audi Q3 Why we’re excited The car to re-energise Alfa