Maserati may be one of the most prestigious racing brands of the 20th century, but it's been a long time since the Italian automaker made anything truly special. It's not that the marque is incapable of producing a halo car, but since the Maserati MC12 15 years ago, there hasn't really been all that much from Maserati to get our hearts pumping in the same fashion. Fortunately, that all changed earlier this year when we saw spy shots of the new Maserati MC20. Today, the new mid-engined "super sports car" is finally revealed for all the world to see, confirming that the leak from earlier today was genuine.
The first thing that most of us are interested in is what powers the new beast. Named the Maserati Nettuno, a new 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 provides the rear-wheel-drive car with an astonishing 621 horsepower and 538 lb-ft of torque. Unlike motors of recent times, this is the first engine in more than 20 years that Maserati has produced on its own - no Ferrari involvement here.
Not that Maserati seems to need Ferrari's assistance as the new engine has a best-in-class weight/power ratio of 5.3 pounds/hp. This is achieved without electrical assistance, although the composite monocoque of this car has been designed to create a coupe, a convertible, and a new electric model in the future. The tech in this engine is called Maserati Twin Combustion and has only previously been seen in Formula One.
Maserati didn't just create the world's most powerful six-cylinder and take lunch either. The design took a full two years with over 2,000 man-hours expended on wind tunnel testing alone, with more than 1,000 CFD simulations created before any sort of real-world testing happened. The result is a remarkably clean and fluid body that has no protruding spoilers or sharp edges. Despite this, the car is capable of hugging the road while achieving a top speed in excess of 202 mph. 0 to 60 mph is achieved in under 2.9 seconds, and there are numerous driving modes and settings for the throttle response, suspension, and the eight-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox. A low curb weight of just 3,306 lbs also helps.
Pop the butterfly doors and look in the cabin, and you'll find two 10.25-inch screens that handle driver info and infotainment. The purity of design exhibited on the exterior carries over to the cabin with as few buttons as possible making the interior exquisitely pretty. Since the dash doesn't have the trademark analog chronograph, Maserati designed the drive mode selector to mimic a watch instead. In addition, you can check up on your MC20 through a smartphone app or even through Amazon Alexa or Google Assist. More hi-tech innovation is exhibited in the frameless rearview display that takes the place of a traditional mirror.
Even the paint has been completely reimagined for this car. Six new hues were specially developed: Bianco Audace, Giallo Genio, Rosso Vincente, Blu Infinito, Nero Enigma, and Grigio Mistero. Each is made in Italy and has a special connection with landscapes, commodities, or lighting that you may encounter in the Italian countryside. Along with plenty of standard and available luxury and convenience features, the MC20 will also focus on getting back into racing. Maserati is currently working on a race version of the car codenamed M240. Along with the new model comes a new corporate identity as the famous Trident logo and Maserati script are also being refined for the first time in 15 years. Maserati is back at last.