Maserati Levante SUV to get plug-in hybrid version via Pacifica minivanMaserati Levante SUV to get plug-in hybrid version via Pacifica minivan

At the 2016 Detroit Auto Show, Fiat Chrysler unveiled its first production plug-in electric model, the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivan.
Perhaps not surprisingly, its plug-in hybrid powertrain won’t be unique to the Pacifica, though.
In fact, the electrical components (if not the minivan’s V-6 engine and front-wheel drive) may soon end up in a rather different type of vehicle.
DON’T MISS: 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid: Plug-In Minivan Offers 30 Miles Of Electric Range
That would be the Maserati Levante luxury crossover that debuted last week at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show.
Maserati has been considering adding a plug-in hybrid, but doesn’t have the resources to develop a powertrain on its own, CEO Harald Wester told Motor Trend in an interview at Geneva.
So Maserati will borrow components from the Pacifica Hybrid, which is expected to go on sale later this year.
2017 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid
The minivan uses a 16-kilowatt-hour battery pack, containing lithium-ion cells from LG Chem, which Chrysler says will allow for 30 miles of electric-only range.
That fairly large pack and other electrical components could be teamed with one of Maserati’s own gasoline engines, rather than the Chrysler 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 used in the Pacifica.
In the U.S., the Levante is expected to launch with a 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged gasoline V-6. A 3.0-liter turbodiesel V-6 will also be available in Europe.
MORE: ‘Most’ Of Fiat Chrysler’s U.S. Vehicles Will Be Hybrid By 2025, CEO Says (Nov 2015)
The Levante plug-in hybrid will reportedly arrive in later calendar year 2017, or early 2018.
Production of conventional gasoline versions for the U.S. starts in July, with the first deliveries expected in August.
When it eventually does arrive, the Levante could be just the first of many plug-in hybrids from this storied Italian carmaker.
2017 Maserati Levante
Maserati will introduce plug-in hybrid versions of virtually every model it makes in order to meet stricter emissions standards, CEO Wester told Britain’s Autocar earlier this year.
At least some of those models will arrive by 2020, Wester said at the time.
That stance reflects the attitude of FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne, who has discussed adding more hybrids across the Italian-American carmaker’s many brands.
Last November, Marchionne said “most of the fleet” of FCA vehicles will be hybrids by 2025.
Beyond the Pacifica and now Levante plug-in hybrids, there hasn’t been much concrete discussion of other models, though.
A much-rumored Jeep Wrangler mild hybrid could be the next electrified FCA model, followed by a mild-hybrid version of the Ram 1500 pickup truck.
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