► Maserati unveils the new MCPura supercar
► Huge fuss over arguably the lightest facelift ever
► A bewildered Jake sat in on the press conference
‘Pure emotional energy!’ exclaims Maserati at a media preview of the new MCPura supercar, ahead of its public launch at the 2025 Goodwood Festival of Speed.
‘A new milestone in Maserati’s legacy,’ enthuses head of design Klaus Busse.
‘When I sat at the wheel of the MCPura, I felt the essence of energy running from the car to myself and back again,’ smiles Maserati chief technical officer (and head of Alfa Romeo), Santo Ficili.
Phwoar… Maserati is really going for it. This must be a serious bit of equipment, then; up there with the wild MCXtrema. Never mind that it looks exactly like an MC20 coupe or MC20 Cielo convertible.
‘The badge now reads MCPura,’ says Busse, walking us through the design elements of the new car. ‘The wheels feature a double spoke pairing two axes together in a rhythm of precision.’ My mistake – there are design differences, but apparently ones only visible via a microscope. A new blue colour also launches, and there’s some new Alcantara inside.
So, it must be the electric model, right? There have been rumours it was canned, but maybe Maserati is here to prove us all wrong… ‘Maserati has invested a lot in an electric roadmap over the last few years, but unfortunately acceptance of the market of BEV cars is low,’ says engineering head, Davide Danesin. Not an EV then, with the fabled MC20 Folgore now a car unlikely to ever see the light of day.
Danesin does say this uses the Nettuno V6 – the absolute sweetheart that’s also in the MC20. ‘Three litres of capacity, delivering 630 [metric or 621bhp] horsepower and 720Nm [531lb ft] of torque.’ Like the MC20, then.
‘MCPura delivers breathtaking performance, like acceleration from 0-100km/h in 2.9 seconds and 0-200km/h in 8.8 seconds,’ he adds. Also like the MC20.
‘MCPura is a slender and energetic car with a best-in-class power to weight figure of 2.3kg per horsepower,’ he says. So does the MC20.
How does this relate to the MC20, then? ‘MCPura is the second generation of MC20, that is what we are here for today,’ says chief comms officer, Giovanni Perosino, his arms outstretching as he smiles. Oh… so this is it? I just thought we were talking about the MC20 again, for some reason.
So, as it turns out, the MCPura is just an MC20 facelift in name only. We are seemingly witnessing what could well be the most phoned-in refresh of all time, just to meet Maserati’s rod-for-its-own-back plan to launch a ‘new super sports car every year.’
At the digital press conference after the media preview, my only opportunity to ask questions is via a Q&A text box. ‘Is this all you can manage this year? Some new colours and wheels?’ I type and press send. As you can probably imagine, my disgruntled question was ignored by the moderators, Danesin, Perosino and Busse.
I can only imagine how hard it is to run a car company – now more than ever. But maybe Maserati should bin that one sports car a year plan and stop wasting our time, as well as its own, to focus on creating something more meaningful instead. It’s not like the already very lovely MC20 needed any changes anyway.