Audi RS Q8 vs Maserati Grecale

What's the difference?

The Audi RS Q8 is every bit as competent as it is striking to look at - and it’s plenty striking to look at. It surely won’t appeal to everyone, but if you’re in the market for a big, boisterous SUV, the Audi ticks plenty of boxes. 

And if you happen to be in the market for a Lamborghini Urus, be sure to drive this before signing on the dotted line...

In its surprisingly crowded premium performance SUV segment, the Maserati Grecale Trofeo offers something different. Next to the X4s, GLCs and Macans of this world, it's quietly confident and charismatic with the performance, practicality and value to back up its distinctive good looks. Despite some gripes around warranty, fuel consumption and ride compliance, it's a compelling alternative to those more predictable choices.

It looks plenty striking, the RS Q8, especially dressed in the bright green paint work of that harks to its Lamborghini sibling.

There are the massive black-on silver alloys, the bright red brake calipers the size of dinner plates, and the body creases that bulge out over the rear arches like a 1950s’ pin-up model. All of which looks great.

Step around to the rear of the vehicle and you’re greeted with twin exhaust exits bookending a massive textured diffuser, a single light LED that splits the multi-globe LEDS, and the slick roof spoiler.

It’s the front-on view, though, that’s the most imposing, with a black meshed grille that looks as big as a hatchback, two LED-filled slimline headlights and massive side venting.

Climb into the cabin and you’re met by a wall of leather and technology, not to mention a sense of immense space.

Everything is digital and touch activated, of course, and yet it doesn’t feel garish and overdone.

At close to 4.9m long, a fraction under 2.0m wide and less than 1.7m tall, the Grecale is a 'large' medium SUV with a robust, thick-set look and a low-key design approach relative to its often more overtly muscular competitors.

Signature Maserati elements include a trio of porthole vents in the front fenders, the broad vertically-slatted grille with trident emblem sitting proudly in the centre, and a smaller version of Neptune's weapon of choice adorning the broad C-pillar.

There's also more than a touch of MC20 around the raked headlights (including the DRL signature), a pronounced splitter-style nose piece and broad intakes on either side.

Staggered 21-inch rims fill the arches perfectly, while pronounced side skirts and a gently sloping turret also dial up the sporty look.

The rear is sleek, but again relatively low-key, the major clues to the car's performance potential being the quad exhaust outlets and the carbon nose panel, side skirts and diffuser.

The interior feels sleek and VIP special thanks mainly to the multi-tier dash design, quality of the materials used and multiple screens.

A central 12.3-inch multimedia touchscreen sits above an 8.8-inch 'comfort' screen devoted mostly to heating, ventilation and vehicle settings.

They're tied together in a single, angled panel that looks like an oversized foldable smartphone. Very cool.

The 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster is configurable through multiple custom set-ups and this time around the distinctive dashtop clock is in fact a small screen switchable through classic and contemporary faces.

It can also emit a response signal when it receives a voice command or morph into a G-meter.

From there, the double saddle stitched perforated leather trim, exposed carbon-fibre elements and brushed metal finishes complete a highly polished cabin environment.

Very damn practical, actually. Which is no great surprise, given the size of the thing, but still impressive when you consider the performance it can conjure. 

It stretches more than 5.0m in length, and those dimensions translate to an absolutely massive cabin, which is actually most noticeable in the backseat, which is gigantic. You can essentially park an Audi A1 back there, such is the space on offer, but you’ll also find two USB ports, a 12-volt power outlet, digital air-con controls and leather as far as the eye can see.

There are two cupholders up front, another two in the pull down divider in the rear, and bottle holders in all doors, as well as ISOFIX attachment points for child seats. 

Storage? Well, there’s lots… The backseat slides forwards or backwards to prioritise space for either passengers or cargo, unlocking 605 litres of luggage room, but with them folded flat, the RS Q8 will deliver 1755L of space. Which is a lot.

At close to 4.9m long and nearly 2.0m wide, the Grecale is a big medium five-seater and with a 2.9m wheelbase to play with, interior space and practicality are more than respectable.

There's plenty of space up front and in terms of practicality, decent door bins, two cupholders in the centre console, a lidded oddments tray in front of them (housing USB-C and USB-A sockets), a large lidded box between the seats (which doubles as a centre armrest) with a 12-volt outlet lurking inside as well as a generous glove box.

Sitting behind the driver's seat set for my 183cm position, there's plenty of head, leg and foot room, not to mention a surprising amount of breathing space in general.

Enough width for three adults on short journeys and up to teenage kids will be fine. When it comes to baby capsules or child seats, you'll be good with two but three is a bridge too far.

For storage, there are door bins with room for large bottles, hard-shell maps pockets on the front seatbacks, adjustable ventilation as part of the three-zone climate control system, a fold-down centre armrest including two cupholders and a slot for a phone in between as well as another pair of USB (A and C) sockets.

Boot volume is a healthy 570 litres with all seats up, which is 35L more than the lower GT and Modena grades because rather than a space saver spare, the Trofeo cops a repair/inflator kit. Boo...

It's enough room to fit our three-piece luggage set or the CarsGuide pram with ease, and the 40/20/40 split-folding rear seat liberates even more space.

There are seat release handles in the cargo area as well as multiple tie-down anchor points, a 12V outlet, bag hooks and a two-piece load cover set-up to deter prying eyes.

At $174,900, before on-road costs, the Grecale Trofeo sits in the middle of a pack of performance-focused mid-sized SUVs spanning a roughly $50,000 price band from around $140K to $190K.

Specifically, the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio ($162,700), BMW X4 M Competition ($185,200), Jaguar F-Pace SVR ($153,570), Mercedes-AMG GLC63 S ($191,800) and Porsche's Macan GTS ($141,700).

That's a quality competitive set and to keep its head above water the Grecale Trofeo comes with a solid standard features list.

Aside from the performance and safety tech we'll cover shortly, highlights include the 21-inch alloy rims, auto LED headlights, 14-way adjustable heated sports front seats (with driver memory function), an electrically-adjustable steering column, alloy door sill finishers, full leather upholstery, 14-speaker Sonus Faber audio (with digital radio), three-zone climate control (with rear touchscreen), a panoramic sunroof and ambient lighting.

Then there are the screens for multimedia (12.8-inch), instrumentation (12.8-inch), ventilation and vehicle settings (8.8-inch) and the multi-mode clock, as well as ambient cabin lighting, adaptive cruise control, a power tailgate (with kick control), Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity plus layers of carbon inside and out. Impressive, even in the 'around $200K' part of the market.

The Audi RS Q8’s 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 produces a monstrous 441kW and 800Nm, sent to all four wheels via an eight-speed triptronic automatic.

At more than two tonnes, it’s a lot of car, but that’s also a lot of power, and so the go-fast SUV can produce a cracking sprint to 100km/h of just 3.8 seconds. 

The RS Q8 is also equipped with a 48-volt mild hybrid system that is ostensibly designed to lower fuel use, but is actually more useful at plugging any turbo holes when you really plant your foot.

Lurking under the Grecale Trofeo's bonnet is a 'wet sump' version of the 3.0-litre twin-turbo 'Nettuno' (Neptune) V6 that also found a home between the axles of the Maserati MC20 supercar.

It produces 390kW, which is well in excess of 500hp, and grinds out enough torque (620Nm) to pull a small cottage off its foundations.

It's brimming with performance and efficiency-focused tech. Everything from twin-spark dual-chamber heads and cylinder deactivation to high-pressure direction-injection and variable valve timing.

Drive goes to all four wheels via a ZF-sourced eight-speed auto transmission and an all-wheel-drive system incorporating an electronic self-locking limited slip diff at the rear.

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, right? Well the reaction to all that power is a whole lot of fuel use. 

Audi reckons the RS Q8 will sip 12.1L per 100km on the combined cycle, but we suspect that’s wishful thinking. It will also reportedly emit between around 276g/km of C02.

The big SUV is fitted with a huge 85-litre tank.

Maserati's official combined cycle fuel economy number for the Grecale Trofeo is 11.2L/100km, emitting 254g/km of CO2 in the process.

We covered urban, B-road and freeway running, not to mention some enthusiastic driving along the way, and recorded an average of 16.9L/100km. Which is thirsty, but not outrageous relative to the competition.

The fuel tank requires 64 litres of 95 RON premium unleaded to fill it which translates to a theoretical range of around 570km, dropping to just 380km using our real-world number.

Even if you're okay with the Trofeo's hefty consumption rate, regular visits to the fuel pump will be kind of a pain.

How do you describe the drive experience of the RS Q8? Utterly, utterly surprising.

I’ll give you an example. You approach the hulking SUV, check out its massive alloys wrapped in performance rubber, and you know - just know - that it will ride like a broken billycart on anything but the most silky smooth of road surfaces. 

And yet, it doesn’t. Aided by its clever air suspension (which drops the ride height by 90mm when switching between Off-Road and Dynamic modes), the RS Q8 positively glides ever dodgy road surfaces, stifling lumps and bumps with surprising aplomb. 

So then you think, ok, we’re set up for compliance, so this big behemoth will go around corners with all the dynamism of a spilled bowl of cereal. 

But again, it doesn’t. In fact, the Audi RS Q8 attacks corners with incredible stiffness, the active anti-roll systems weaving their dark magic to keep the towering SUV straight and true, and with barely a hint of body roll.

The grip is ferocious (we’re yet to find its outer limits) and even the steering feels more direct and communicative than in other smaller, ostensibly sportier Audis. 

The result is a tech-heavy spaceship that’s surprisingly easy at slow speeds, and quiet too, even over rough roads. But one that can also activate warp speed at will, leaving smaller cars in its considerable wake on the right stretch of road. 

Downsides? It’s not quite willing to pounce off the line. Sure, it makes up for it in the long haul, but there is a noticeable moment of hesitation, almost as though it’s contemplating its considerably weight, before it finally lunges forward. 

It’s also so competent, so efficient, that it can leave you feeling a little detached from behind the wheel, or like the Audi is doing the heavy lifting for you. 

Engage the standard launch control function, step through the blast-off procedure and Maserati says you'll rocket from 0-100km/h in 3.8 seconds, which is supercar fast.

And the way this twin-turbo V6 delivers that kind of performance is impressive; beautifully linear without a hint of lag.

Trundle along at 60km/h, pin the throttle and you'll be in 'lock 'em up and throw away the key' territory in the blink of an eye. This is a full-blown rocket sled.

All 620Nm of peak torque is available from 3000-5500rpm with maximum power (390kW) arriving at 6500rpm. No matter which drive mode you've selected (more on that shortly), thunderous performance is only an extension of your right ankle away.

And the aural accompaniment walks a perfect line between potency and civility, the signature Maserati exhaust growl stepping up a notch in the racier settings but rarely crossing over into bellicose 'boy racer' territory. We have no problem with an occasional pop and bang on the overrun!

At a touch over two tonnes, the Grecale Trofeo is far from a featherweight, but when you're racing up and down the quick-shifting auto transmission's eight ratios, it feels like one.

The elegant alloy, column- (not wheel-) mounted 'manual' shift levers add to the fun and there are five drive modes to play with - 'Comfort', 'GT', 'Sport', 'Corsa' and 'Off-road' - adapting the engine, transmission, steering and suspension.

The track-focused Corsa set-up starts to soften off some of the traction and stability controls, so we didn't go there, but can confirm off-road raises ride height by 30mm (FYI, we didn't head off-road, either).

Suspension is by double wishbones at the front and multi-links at the rear supported by active dampers and air 'springs' all around.

In the softer Comfort setting, ride compliance is on the firm side. Never harsh, but a little more communicative in terms of bumps and thumps than you might expect.

Not for the first time I found the best arrangement was Sport, dialling everything up to racier settings, and the suspension in 'Comfort' which can be achieved with the press of a wheel-mounted button.

The electrically-assisted rack and pinion steering is accurate and quick to respond with excellent road feel thrown in for good measure.

Just beware the flip side of this type of 'quick' steering rack is invariably a large turning circle, and the Grecale Trofeo is no exception.

The staggered 21-inch rims are shod with high-performance Bridgestone Potenza Sport rubber (225/40 fr / 295/35 rr) and the AWD system, complete with rear LSD, help the car feel securely planted and balanced in quick cornering.

Braking is professional grade with big ventilated and cross-drilled rotors front and rear with fixed Brembo calipers at both ends - six piston front and four-piston rear.

Maserati claims the Grecale Trofeo will slow from 100km/h to a standstill in less than 40m, which is not a lot of metres from that speed.

I had one telling 'will I, or won't I?' situation when presented with an amber light and in deciding to give the brakes a workout (there was no one behind me) was rewarded with a secure and insanely rapid stop.

In terms of general observations, the placement of the start button and drive-mode dial on the steering wheel is a nice touch, the front seats are superb in terms of support and comfort, the media interface is quick and easy to use and the only strong hint of Maserati's Stellantis ownership came in the form of familiar 'Jeep-style' audio control rocker switches on the back of the steering wheel.

No independent ANCAP safety assessment at this stage but the Grecale Trofeo is fitted with active crash-avoidance tech including AEB (with pedestrian recognition) operating from 5.0-258km/h, adaptive cruise control (with stop and go function), 'Active Lane Management' (including lane-keep assist), blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert and 'Drowsy Driver Detection'.

There's also a 'Surround View' camera system, 'Traffic Sign Assist' as well as front and rear parking sensors, and 'Rear Cross Path' (incorporating rear AEB).

If a crash is unavoidable, six airbags (dual front, front side and full-length side curtains) are onboard and there are three top tethers across the rear for baby capsules/child restraints, including ISOFIX anchors on the outer positions. There's even an emergency triangle and first-aid kit.

All Audi’s are covered by a three year, unlimited kilometre warranty, and require annual servicing. Audi will allow you to prepay the first five years of service costs for $4060.

The Grecale Trofeo is covered by Maserati's three-year/unlimited km warranty, which is off the market pace, with five years/unlimited km the expected norm. Roadside assistance is included for the duration of the warranty.

Maintenance intervals are 12 months/15,000km, and service over the first three years will set you back $4639, or $1546 per workshop visit. Not cheap, but again, not out of line for a performance model in this part of the market.

Maserati also warrants the body for "perforation by rust corrosion" for four years, extendable up to eight if vehicle maintenance, from an authorised dealer, is up to scratch.