Driven! The Maserati MCPURA Might Be the Smartest Buy in All of Supercardom

admin Posted on 3 months ago 7 minutes read

What’s in a name? In the case of the 2026 Maserati MCPURA, it doesn’t appear to be much more than new front and rear bumper facias inspired by the race-face GT2 Stradale version, a new signature color called AI Aqua Rainbow, an interior now more fully wrapped in Alcantara, and a new steering wheel. Otherwise, the MCPURA is virtually identical to the MC20, a car that when it launched in 2020 was Maserati’s first mid-engine supercar since the 1972 Merak.

As our 2024 track test revealed, the MC20 fell short of the more cohesive handling rivals from Ferrari and Lamborghini in terms of raw numbers. On the road, however, where you are rarely on the limits of adhesion, chasing those last few tenths of a second through a corner, we found the MC20 to be an unexpectedly likable machine. It came across as an easygoing mid-engine sports car you can drive every day, a bit like an entry-level C8 Corvette Stingray, but with bodywork that’s more Michelangelo than Motown.

Not unexpectedly, perhaps, the MCPURA has the same character. Whether you choose the fixed-head coupe or retractable hardtop Cielo convertible model, this Maserati is a supercar with a smidgen of grand tourer thrown into the mix. It’s cut-and-thrust quick when you want it to be and calm and relaxed when you need it to be.

What the Mid-Engine MCPURA Is All About

A quick technical recap: The MCPURA is powered by the dry-sumped version of Maserati’s acclaimed 90-degree 3.0-liter twin-turbo Nettuno V-6. The engine develops 621 horsepower at 7,500 rpm and 538 lb-ft of torque, peaking from 3,000 rpm to 5,500 rpm, and drives the rear wheels through an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission.

Its chassis utilizes a central carbon-fiber monocoque with aluminum structures bolted at either end to anchor the front suspension, steering components, rear suspension, V-6 engine, and transmission assembly. The monocoque was designed from the outset to facilitate a convertible version with only minor tweaks. As a result, the MCPURA Cielo weighs just 259 pounds more than the coupe, the extra weight mostly due to the retractable glass roof and the mechanisms that stow and retrieve it from a compartment above the engine.

The Cielo’s compact multilink suspension and Brembo carbon-ceramic brakes are also shared with the coupe, but the stiffness of the rear suspension has been increased slightly to account for the extra mass of the roof on the rear axle. The convertible’s e-diff has also been recalibrated to be less reactive, easing the load on the steering.

Maserati offers four drive modes (Wet, GT, Sport, and Corsa) for the MCPURA, the latter of which is only activated if you twist and hold the large rotary controller on the center console for a few seconds. You need to perform said twist and hold in large part because Corsa mode switches off the stability control.

Two shock settings are available in each mode. There’s soft and mid in Wet and GT, with soft being the default setting; soft and mid in Sport setting, with mid being the default setting; and mid and hard in Corsa, with hard being the default setting. The settings are changed via a swipe across the glass touchscreen surface of the rotary controller on the center console. A separate button on the center console allows you to switch the transmission between automatic and manual in all modes.

Supercar Quick With Moves to Match

Maserati claims the MCPURA will sprint from 0 to 60 mph in 2.9 seconds en route to a top speed of 202 mph. But given that the MC20 Cielo we tested last year took 3.5 seconds to get to 60 on the way to posting a quarter mile of 11.7 seconds at 124.7 mph, we’ll take that claim with a pinch of salt until we’re able to put the MCPURA through our full range of performance tests.

Numbers aside, the MCPURA feels exceedingly quick on the road, helped by the well-spaced gearing of its quick-shifting eight-speed transmission, and the strong, linear power delivery of the Nettuno V-6, which emits a menacing snarl once you get it zinging above 4,000 rpm (a good thing, too, because at low revs on light throttle it sounds like a walrus gargling a gallon of bourbon). Will it hang with an expertly driven Ferrari 296GTB on a mountain road? No. But nobody’s going to be thinking about that when they watch you pull into valet parking. Look! It’s a mid-engine Maserati!

The MCPURA Cielo is similarly light on its feet, especially in terms of steering response and lateral acceleration through a series of corners. But it doesn’t always feel light under foot: It takes a surprisingly big stomp on the brake pedal to wake up the Maserati’s Brembos when they’re cold. So much so that the first time you rush into a corner at speed and brush the brake pedal without some heat in the carbon-ceramic rotors, you wonder for a split second whether you’re going to get the car slowed in time.

A Purely Gas-Powered, Mid-Engine Italian Bargain

What’s in a name? Yes, the MCPURA is essentially a face-lifted MC20. But there is perhaps some deeper meaning in the new nomenclature. The MC20’s chassis architecture was originally designed to accommodate an electric powertrain with electric motors at the front and rear axles and active torque vectoring. But the electric Maserati supercar, originally scheduled to appear in 2022, has been quietly shelved for good. What’s more, Maserati sources say they are working on ensuring the Nettuno V-6 can stay in production until the mid-2030s without the need for hybridization to further reduce emissions. Maserati’s mid-engine supercar will thus arguably have (ahem) a purer sports car powertrain than its hybrid rivals.

The MCPURA will be built in limited numbers, as production at the storied Maserati factory at Viale Ciro Menotti in Modena—where Maseratis have been built for more than 80 years—is limited to about 1,700 cars a year. The first MCPURAs are scheduled to arrive in the U.S. in December with prices starting at $246,000 for the coupe and $281,000 for the Cielo. Sure, that’s a lot more money than you’ll spend on any C8 Corvette, new ZR1 included. But if you want an exotic Italian mid-engine supercar, in the context of the $333,000 Ferrari now charges for the 296GTB and the $389,000 Lamborghini is asking for its new Temerario, the Maserati MCPURA starts to look like a bit of a bargain.