It is in the port of Saint-Tropez that our heart starts pounding when a ‘Bianco Audace’ white Maserati MC20 is parked in front of our nose. Under the Mediterranean sun, the color seems to change to mother-of-pearl, with reflections varying between blue and a silver-purple. Frankly breathtaking, like so many other elements of this four wheeled gem…
Text Anja Van Der Borght – Pictures Antonin Vincent and WOWwatchers
The gullwing doors that make it easier for us to get in, and we are engulfed by the black sports seats with blue stitching, overwhelmed by the magnificent alloy wheels, or the brake light that looks like a row of glittering diamonds up close. And then is there is still the subtle spoiler on the tailgate where sits the V6 Nettuno engine. Pure class.
The Maserati-developed 630 hp engine is equipped with an innovative combustion system derived from Formula 1 engines, and it initially sounds a bit less raw than we had expected. The engineers indeed paid a lot of attention to the sound insulation around the supercar, to make it comfortable for everyday use. When not much later we hurtle through Forêt Domaniale de L’Estérel to Fréjus with our hands firmly holding the thick but good communicating steering wheel, we are very impressed with the comfort of this supercar. Even when we press the accelerator a little deeper, this supercar behaves more civilized than its rivals. The eight-speed gearbox with double clutch also shifts particularly smooth. Together they take the MC20 from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 2.9 seconds. The top speed is 326 km/h.
Maserati Racing 2020
The MC20 – short for Maserati Corse 2020 – is a Maserati pur sang with which the Italian brand returns to a segment in which it has always played a prominent role: that of super sports cars. The legendary Tipo 63, the first mid-engined Maserati, was an example of how its imposing design combined ideally with impressive aerodynamic efficiency. Of course, the air intakes as well as the air slots in the form of the trident logo in the rear window also contribute to this, but also happen to completely obstruct the rear view. That’s why Maserati mounted a discreet camera just above the brake light that projects the rear view to the rearview mirror. It takes some getting used to. A bit like the effect of your brain having to adapt when you put on 3D glasses, but after looking in the mirror a few times, we’re used to it, including the effect of the carbon-ceramic Brembo brakes. We also fell in love with the phenomenal handling of this supercar, and last but not least the fact that during our test drive it mainly reveals itself as an extremely pleasant GT, easy to drive and quiet inside. It’s the car with which you can have fun on the track, but with which you would also like to spend a weekend in the Champagne region. However, you have to taste that Champagne on the spot because with a trunk space of 150 liters you are of course limited in taking some of it along. We are already looking forward to a test with the newly introduced Maserati MC20 Cielo, the spyder version of the MC20, which promises to be an even more exhilarating experience with its open roof.
Price Maserati MC20: € 223.200 BTWi
Price Maserati MC20 Cielo: € 267.650 BTWi
