Maserati has given us our best look yet at its MC20 supercar, and pays tribute to the late Stirling Moss
Maserati has paid tribute to Stirling Moss with a new camouflage livery on its latest MC20 test mule. The new images also give us our best look yet at the upcoming supercar ahead of its September launch. Set to be the marque’s flagship machine, the new model will pave the way for a number of new cars, and will take Maserati back to the circuit.
The mule shown in these latest images features a design harking back to the Maserati Eldorado, a single-seat racer driven at Monza in 1958 by British motorsport icon Stirling Moss. The 13 May release date isn’t a coincidence either, as it’s the date Moss saw victory at the Monaco Grand Prix in 1956, at the helm of the Maserati 250F.
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Aside from a name, details on the MC20 are still few and far between. The brand has now confirmed that the model will feature the very first engine designed, developed and produced solely by Maserati. However, details on its layout are yet to surface. Rumours point towards the use of a mid-mounted V8 or plug-in hybrid V6, but we’ll have to wait to find out for sure.
The new images do reveal the use of intakes behind the windows, suggesting the use of a mid-mounted engine, and central, 488 Pista-esque dual exhaust tips are also clear to see. Whatever the choice of powertrain, with the MC20 described as a ‘natural evolution of the highly successful MC12‘ of 2004, it’s safe to assume it’ll be quite a performance machine, in both road-going and track-only forms.
Earlier this year, a comprehensive investment plan detailed a slew of new models set to join Maserati’s line-up, including not just SUVs and EVs, but the aforementioned super sports model. This renewed investment comes after parent company FCA’s merger with French conglomerate PSA late last year, with Maserati now forming the flagship brand across the merger.
Starting in late 2020, Maserati will commence production of its all-new petrol-powered super sports car based on the Alfieri concept shown way back in 2014. This model will be built in Modena alongside an update to Maserati’s Viale Ciro Menotti central plant to facilitate the new model, including a new paint shop.
Maserati’s main points of investment will be put into its two other manufacturing plants, the first an €800million redevelopment of the Mirafiore facility, which will be Maserati’s electric vehicle manufacturing hub dedicated to EV-only production. The first model to be built in the revitalised plant will be an all-new GranTurismo and GranCabrio, both featuring four seats, a sleek two-door body and a pure-EV powertrain in 2021.
A second block of €800m is to be invested into FCA’s Cassino plant, which is primed to build Maserati’s second SUV model on a new production line alongside current production of the Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio models. Construction of the new line is planned to commence in the next few months, with pre-production versions of this new midsize SUV to follow in 2021.
It would be remiss of us if we weren’t a little skeptical of Maserati’s grand plans for its next rebirth, but with a much larger and more confident conglomerate behind it in both FCA and PSA, plus a more defined role not only as a luxury flagship brand, but also as a technical leader, it could finally be the jump-start Maserati has been crying out for.
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This article originally appeared at evo.co.uk
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