Maserati is one of the oldest Italian brands, with a history of producing beautiful cars but failing to unleash the full potential of the holy trident brand.
Under the management of the FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles), the Maserati brand is said to have suffered from the latter. With the FCA itself struggling financially, Maserati was endowed with an undeserved amount of funding.
The distribution range revolves around older models, including the GranTurismo coupe and Quattroporte and Ghibli, as well as the slightly newer Levante SUV that has managed to compete with everything from the Porsche Cayenne to the Jaguar F-Pace.
With the FCA also controlling Alfa Romeo and Ferrari, Maserati found himself sandwiched in an awkward middle position.
It’s impossible to compete directly with the Prancing Horse brand, and with FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne trying (and failing) to revive Alfa Romeo as a direct competitor to Audi’s trio of Audi, BMW and Mercedes. Germany, the Trident brand has been disqualified.
Thankfully, under current Stellantis ownership, CEO Carlos Tavares has committed to revitalizing the Maserati brand, and the MC20, along with the Grecale SUV, is the first fruit of this commitment.
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With Ferrari now independent, Maserati is classed as Stellantis’ only ‘luxury’ brand, ranked above the ‘premium’ Alfa Romeo, DS and Lancia brands, and has the opportunity and resources to re-establish itself as a true Porsche. competitor.
Named wisely, the MC20 is meant as a spiritual successor to the MC12 and ushers in the brand’s return to the dedicated sports car segment, without having to perform two duties as one. GT car (a task to be taken up by all new GranTurismo).
Mechanically, it also marks a new era for the brand with the inclusion of a new ‘Nettuno’ (Neptune) V6 engine, Maserati’s first in-house production engine in over 20 years.
Design philosophy: Sculpture technology
Many sports car manufacturers like to claim that their design aesthetics are the result of nothing but function, and Maserati is no less than claiming that the MC20’s exterior is a pure sculpture. drug – driven by aerodynamic considerations.
Maserati Head of Design Klaus Busse says the MC20’s design is a tale of two halves, with “the upper part of the MC20 representing human touch, while the raw bottom is about technology”.
Maserati thus combines Italian sculpture and high performance.
The engine is rear mid-mounted and has a carbon fiber composite unibody that can accommodate Open variant ‘Cielo’ recently revealed – as well as the upcoming battery-powered version of the MC20 – this approach to exterior design is perhaps best exemplified by the limited use of air vents and active aerodynamic features.
The MC20 has no deployable front or rear fenders, nor does it have oversized bands or vents on the side panels of the vehicle. Maserati claims that the absence of these features demonstrates the thoroughness of its wind tunnel testing, while maintaining styling integrity regardless of vehicle speed, while keeping weight to a minimum.
Maserati models traditionally have had a front end consisting of three separate air intakes, with the front grille often accompanied by smaller, separate left and right air intakes.
Since the engine is located at the rear of the vehicle, this is not necessary for the MC20, and so on the standard coupe, the rear windshield and air intakes combine to create a refined trident design. realistic, abstract when the car is viewed from a top-down perspective.
Instead, on the Cielo convertible (with a retractable glass roof), the dual flying boot forms an important aspect of the design, and thus a decal is used to inform more directly related to the Maserati trident.
More importantly, the rigidity provided by the carbon fiber monocoque and the absence of external vents also allows the Trident brand to implement the attention-grabbing butterfly doors on both the Coupé and Cielo convertible variants. of MC20, for easier entry and exit. Sensors fitted to each door ensure they do not collide with any surrounding obstacles.
Interior: Spartan with authentic materials
Arguably one of the real gifts at the heart of a car is how sophisticated its interior is.
Luxury cars and large touring vehicles will generally feature a wide variety of technologies and materials, often including wood, metal, and smooth leather to ensure that all passengers are comfortable. feel comfortable.
Meanwhile, dedicated sports cars can utilize a more austere, more driver-focused cabin without any extraneous screens, buttons or materials, with a focus on providing the driver the essentials to maximize the vehicle’s performance.
MC20 clearly follows the second approach. Despite its exclusive price tag, the steering wheel appears to be borrowed from (or inspired by) the Alfa Romeo Giulia, whose almost identical aluminum gearshift paddles are permanently attached to the steering column, helping the driver easy gear shifting. regardless of steering wheel position.
Meanwhile, the infotainment system, dubbed ‘Maserati Touch Control Plus’, is essentially the same as the Android Automotive-based UConnect 5 system available overseas on the new Fiat 500 EV.
The overall design of the dashboard and center console, while using premium materials such as Alcantara, carbon fiber and leather, remains simple in its overall architecture.
Other convenient details
One of the most impressive technical details concerns the MC20 Cielo’s retractable glass roof.
The Trident brand claims that the Cielo is the only model in its class to feature a retractable glass roof that doesn’t compromise on storage space, and importantly, it’s designed to open or close within 12 seconds. at speeds up to 50 km/h. , in temperatures from -30 to 85 degrees.
More impressively, it is the first to use advanced Polymer Dispersive Liquid Crystal (PDLC) technology. Appearing elsewhere on models such as the BMW iX, PDLC technology allows drivers to instantly change the roof’s transparency, from transparent to fully translucent to block out harsh sunlight or to add more visibility. private.
Digging design pieces this weekend? More can be found here:
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