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2023 Maserati MC20 Cielo First Drive Review: Fine-tuned from the top down

CATANIA, Sicily — “We wanted to give the Cielo the same behavior and character as the MC20 but with the sharp edges made a little smoother,” explained Federico Landini, the man in charge of the MC20Â’s development. Cielo is the name Maserati chose for the convertible MC20 — it means “sky” in Italian and sounds less generic than Spider, Spyder or another arachnid-inspired label. This new version of MaseratiÂ’s first supercar in over a decade slots in the range as a softer, more touring-oriented alternative to the coupe. While the two MC20s look a lot alike, Maserati ensured the Cielo has its own personality. Same heart, different bones Like the MC20 coupe, the Cielo is powered by MaseratiÂ’s excellent 3.0-liter Nettuno V6 engine, which is twin-turbocharged to develop 621 horsepower at 7,500 rpm and 538 pound-feet of torque from 3,000 to 5,500 rpm. While 600+ horsepower is par for the course in this segment, achieving that number with six cylinders is rather unusual. The engine develops 207 horsepower per liter of displacement. If every engine offered this level of power density, weÂ’d have a 414-horsepower Volkswagen Golf GTI to play with. This engine also powers variants of the Grecale SUV, though the MC20 models use a dry-sump lubrication system. Landini told me Maserati felt confident sending a V6 into a ring dominated by rivals with eight or more cylinders because it fitted the engine with both direct and indirect fuel injection systems. This innovative technology — which traces its roots to Formula One racing — adds pre-chambers inside the cylinder head and a second set of spark plugs to the 90-degree V6 to provide a 100-horsepower boost. Mid-mounted, the Nettuno spins the CieloÂ’s rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission linked to a pair of steering-wheel-mounted shift paddles. Maserati quotes a 0-62-mph time of a little under 3 seconds and a top speed of approximately 199 mph, so the coupe is slightly quicker and faster. Giving up two or three tenths of a second to highway speeds and forfeiting a few miles per hour at the top end is a fair trade for unlimited headroom. Going topless also makes the Cielo about 143 pounds heavier than the coupe: it tips the scale at roughly 3,400 pounds, which remains reasonably light.

Autocar compares new Maserati Quattroporte to Jaguar XJ

Autocar's Steve Sutcliffe took the 2014 Maserati Quattroporte on a spin along snowy mountain roads to test it for a specific brief: as a limousine for the chauffeured class. It's sporting credentials are impressive: Twin-turbocharged 3.8-liter V8, 532 horsepower, 475 pound-feet of torque in casual circumstances that rises to 532 lb-ft in overboost, a 0-to-60 mile-per-hour sprint of 4.7 seconds and a top speed of 191 mph.
However, citing Maserati's desire to not just increase its sales to 50,000-per-annum by 2015, but to sell many more of its cars in China, Sutcliffe wanted to find out if the livery side of the Quattroporte could match its sport sedan side. So after taking the pilot's seat and trying out the sport settings, Sutcliffe hops in back to test out the CEO's seat.
Then he compares the Quattroporte against the long-wheelbase Jaguar XJ with its supercharged V8, a sedan that's 15,000 pounds less expensive than the Maserati. It doesn't take long for him to find that one of them is a clear winner when it comes to transporting VIPs. To find out which one, enjoy the video below.

2017 Maserati Levante is somewhere under all that cladding

There's an influx of crossovers coming from high-end European marques in the coming years – and we've already seen most of them in one form or another. One of the few exceptions is the forthcoming Maserati Levante, and if you can believe it, this is the best look we've had at it yet. Like the Bentayga for Bentley, the F-Pace for Jaguar, the DBX for Aston Martin, or the Urus for Lamborghini, the Levante will be Maserati's first crossover. It was previewed by the Kubang concepts of 2003 and 2011, but the closest we've gotten to the finished product so far has been some test mules running under modified Ghibli sedan bodywork and a series of purported patent drawings. Mind you, these spy shots don't show us a whole heck of a lot either, as heavily camouflaged and cladded as this prototype is. But under all that padding is what appears to be the bodywork that we'll be seeing on the production version once it makes its debut sometime next year. Look for the Ghibli's twin-turbo V6 engines to propel Maserati head-first into new territory, and likely pave the way for an Alfa Romeo crossover to follow. All we can see for the time being, really, are the exposed wheels. But if those giant brake discs filling their spokes are anything to go by, the Levante ought to represent the Modenese automaker well in what's becoming an ever-pricier, more performance-focused, and more competitive market segment. Porsche and its trendsetting Cayenne ought to take notice. Related Video: