The Maserati MC20 super sports car has been revealed, bringing with it a new era for its Italian automaker. Its name is a combination of “Maserati Corse” and the last two digits of its debut year – 2020. It’s aerodynamic, powerful, and rife with thoroughly modern technology.
With the car’s design, Maserati’s team looked to imbue elements of history and athleticism into a vehicle of modern mechanics and functionality requirements. Part of that was the installation of butterfly doors. Other nods include visual and connceptual likes to the MC12, the car that marked Maserati’s racing comeback in 2004.
The company has installed butterfly doors on the model.Photo courtesy of Maserati S.p.A.
The Italian automaker has fine-tuned the car’s dynamics using a Virtual Vehicle Dynamics Development system. It uses a mathematic model to perform 97 percent of the dynamic tests required for a new vehicle to become production-ready, shortening development time.
It took 2,000 man-hours to fine tune the design of the vehicle using Maserati’s Dallara Wind Tunnnel and an additional 1,000 hours of computational fluid dynamics simulations. The car comes in a rear-wheel drive configuration and features a rear limited slip self-locking mechanical differential. An electronic differential is available.
Concealed under the hood is a twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 engine that achieves 630 horsepower and 538 pound-feet of torque. The car can acceleration from zero to 62 mph in 2.9 seconds, the same as the McLaren 620R. With a curb weight of under 1,500 kg, the model has the best power-to-weight ratio in its class. The engine was designed and engineered in Italy by Maserati and paired with an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission.
The MC20 has been created to enable convertible coupé and convertible versions and the ability to have a fully electric powertrain in the future.
The purposefully laid out interior features a driver-centric orientation with minimal controls and few creature comforts. Simple forms and lines dominate the the design.
In front of the driver and at the center of the dashboard are two 10-inch screens. The driver’s information screen provides a fully digital look at the car’s speedometer, odometer, and tachometer, among other functions. The infotainment touch screen on the dashboard joins a host of convenience and performance technology including a wireless phone charger, drive mode selector (GT, Wet, Sport, Corsa, and ESC Off), two speed selection buttons, and power window controls in the cabin.
The MC20 will be connected at all times with the Maserati Connect program. The range of services includes connected navigation, Amazon Alexa, and a Wi-Fi hot spot. That functionality can be managed via the screen, a smartphone, or smartwatch app.
The car’s center console is clad in carbon fiber.
The MC20 will be available in six paint jobs at launch: Bianco Audace, Giallo Genio, Rosso Vincente, Blu Infinito, Nero Enigma and Grigio Mistero. Each color is new for the Maserati brand and they have been conceived, designed, and developed exclusively for the car.
Production of the model is schedule to commence at the end of the year. Orders are currently being accepted.
