Maserati MC20

Maserati MC20 at a glance

The MC20 sits above the GranTurismo in the Maserati range; all models are in the Maserati catalogue. The story of the brand is told in our history of Maserati.

History: from test mules to the MMXX launch

MC stands for Maserati Corse, the company's racing department, and 20 for 2020, the year the car appeared. Development took place at the Maserati Innovation Lab in Modena. In late 2019 test mules based on an Alfa Romeo 4C, with a much longer rear and wider track, were seen on the road; Maserati said they were used to develop the new powertrain. The first real prototype was ready in March 2020.

On 13 May 2020 a prototype was shown in a livery honouring Sir Stirling Moss, who had died a month earlier. The date was chosen because the Maserati 420M/58 "Eldorado" had made its debut on 13 May 1958 at the Race of Two Worlds at Monza. The public debut, first planned for May, moved to 9–10 September 2020 in Modena, together with a new brand identity. A racing version was announced at the same time.

The open MC20 Cielo followed in May 2022. An all-electric MC20 Folgore with three motors was tested in 2023 but cancelled in 2025. In the same year the car was renamed MCPura and shown at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, with revised front and rear bumpers, slightly changed seats and more paint options.

Design and cabin

The MC20 was designed by Klaus Busse at the Centro Stile Maserati. It is a mid-engined shape with butterfly doors. In 2021 it won several design awards: "Most beautiful supercar of the year" at the Festival Automobile International and "Product Design of the Year" at the European Product Design Award.

Inside, the driver holds a steering wheel made largely of carbon fibre with Alcantara details. A 10.25-inch digital instrument display sits behind it and a second 10.25-inch screen runs the infotainment. The seats combine leather bolsters and headrests with an Alcantara centre.

The car uses a carbon-fibre chassis, which Maserati says is shared by the coupé and the Cielo.

Nettuno engine

The Nettuno V6 was announced on 1 July 2020. It was designed at the Maserati Innovation Lab and in the workshops of Maserati Corse, and it is built at the Engine Hub on Viale Ciro Menotti in Modena.

The engine is a 90° V6 of 2,992 cc (bore 88 mm, stroke 82 mm) with two turbochargers mounted at the sides, double overhead camshafts with variable valve timing and dry-sump lubrication. It weighs less than 220 kg. Its key feature is a pre-chamber combustion system with twin spark plugs. A small chamber between the central spark plug and the main combustion chamber is linked to it by special holes. The mixture ignites in the pre-chamber first, and the flame jets spread through the main chamber for a faster burn. A second, side spark plug keeps combustion stable when the pre-chamber is not active. Maserati says this technology comes from Formula 1 and was used for the first time on a road-car engine.

Fuel is delivered by direct injection at 350 bar combined with port injection at 6 bar, which reduces noise at low revs and helps emissions and consumption.

Road & Track noted that the Nettuno shares some basic features with Ferrari's F154 V8 and the Alfa Romeo 690T V6: the 90° angle, the bore and stroke, the firing order and the 8,000 rpm limit. The cylinder heads, however, are new and developed by Maserati.

MC20 Cielo

Cielo means "sky" in Italian. The spyder was presented in Modena on 25 May 2022. Its two-piece folding hard-top includes an electrochromic glass panel that can switch from clear to opaque (PDLC smart-glass technology) and opens or closes in 12 seconds. The Cielo weighs 65 kg more than the coupé and keeps the same engine.

MCXtrema, GT2 Stradale and special editions

MCXtrema (2023). A track-only car limited to 62 units. Power rises to 544 kW (740 PS), and the target dry weight is 1,250 kg — more than 250 kg less than the MC20. It uses a six-speed sequential gearbox with a mechanical limited-slip differential, double-wishbone suspension with adjustable dampers and Brembo carbon-ceramic brakes.

GT2 Stradale (2024). A road-legal car derived from the racing MC20 GT2, shown at Monterey Car Week in 2024, with 477 kW (640 hp) and 60 kg less weight than the other versions.

Special editions. The MC20 Icona and MC20 Leggenda recall the liveries of the MC12 Stradale of 2004 and the MC12 GT1 racing car. The Fuoriserie programme has produced one-offs such as a car for Alberto and Ettore Maserati in Blu Infinito and the hand-painted MC20 Cielo Opera d'Arte. There is also, for the centenary of the Mille Miglia, the MCPura Cielo Mille Miglia Centenario in Rosso Vincente. In October 2025 the Carabinieri received a specially equipped MCPura.

Racing: MC20 GT2

The MC20 GT2 racing car was announced before the 2022 24 Hours of Spa for the 2023 GT2 European Series and shown publicly at Spa in June 2023. It has a large rear wing, a new diffuser, a roof scoop, a single seat, a roll cage, a six-speed sequential gearbox and 18-inch forged wheels, and it keeps air-conditioning. On its racing debut, in the final round of the 2023 GT2 European Series with LP Racing, it took pole position and finished second and seventh in the two races. In 2024 several teams, including LP Racing, raced the car.

Legacy

The MC20 brought Maserati back to the mid-engined sports car class for the first time since the MC12, and with the Nettuno V6 it gave the company an engine of its own design, built in Modena. As the MCPura, the car continues in production from 2026, with the coupé built in Modena. For an earlier chapter of Maserati's sports cars, see the Maserati 3500 GT.

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