Maserati will launch its first plug-in hybrid models in the second half of 2017 - but the company boss believes the push towards the technology is misguided as a result of government legislation.
Confirming that hybrid versions of the Quattroporte, Maserati Ghibli and upcoming Levante SUV were inevitable, Maserati boss Harald Wester said to Autocar at the 2015 Geneva motor show: "I have serious doubts about what we are doing. How can it be right that a 2000kg high-end luxury car is rated at 70g/km when a small diesel supermini is rated at 90g/km?
"We're neglecting the wheel-to-well energy balance, but as a car company we are being put in a position we don't want to be in. We are shifting issuing from the cities to somewhere else - we are doing anything but save the planet."
Other manufacturers already offer plug-in hybrids, with Porsche selling part-electric versions of both the Porsche Panamera and the Porsche Cayenne. Audi has revealed its Q7 e-tron at the Geneva show.
Read more Geneva motor show news.
Read our full review as we put the Maserati Ghibli through its paces on the UK roads
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