There can’t have been a week this big for Maserati on PH. In addition to a first drive of its best SUV yet and one of the very best convertible supercars out there, we now have less tremendous news: the final Maserati V8 will be made this year.
Currently found in the Levante, Ghibli and Quattroporte Trofeo, the 580hp, 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 was nothing if not a memorable powertrain, endowed with bountiful reserves of power and torque - as well as a rousing soundtrack - making cult classics of quite average cars. It would be hard to recommend one of the V8-powered cars against more capable German rivals, but instant legend status was guaranteed for anyone brave enough to take the plunge.
Now, however, the 3.8 is ‘becoming part of the history of mobility’ - that’s Maserati’s way of putting it - with production coming to an end before the year is out, and the final cars being sold in 2024. To mark the V8’s passing, two special editions have been created, the Ghibli 334 Ultima and Levante V8 Ultima. So ends the story of eight-cylinder Maseratis after more than 60 years. Sob.
Those cars are coming at the Goodwood Festival of Speed; for the moment, Maserati is celebrating the V8s at the Motor Valley Fest in Modena with all three Trofeos on show as Zeda editions - ‘unique pieces celebrating the V8 engine’. It’s a big deal for Maserati, a motor show in its backyard, and so all the stops are being pulled out, with Motor Valley Fest also set to host the GranTurismo Folgore One Off Luce and the new Grecale Folgore, meaning the entire Folgore range will be shown for the very first time. And the Formula E car will be there to pore over.
While the demise of such a charismatic engine is never good news, the future is looking reasonably bright for Maserati. The brand is emphatic about its EV-only future, although you’d have to assume (or at least, hope) that the superb Nettuno V6, currently found in the MC20 and Grecale, will make it to the next generation of saloons alongside the electric variants. The GranTurismo EV has been received well, too.
But if it really must be V8 or no Maserati at all, there are some intriguing specimens in the classifieds: this Ghibli gets Fuoriserie Blu Denim paint, this Levante is more than £20k cheaper than the Grecale equivalent, and this barely run in Ghibli comes in moody MC Edition spec - we couldn’t find any QPs. They’re rare cars then, for sure, but there are a few Trofeo V8s out there if you know where to look. Expect more news on the Ultima models as July approaches.
1 / 12
