tommallett

Last year I had a number of blasts out in Maserati’s new Gran Turismo MC Stradale and each time I jumped out grinning from ear to ear. Just like Ferrari’s 360 Challenge Stradale and the 430 Scuderia the Maserati feels transformed by a small increase in power and a crash diet.

The MC Stradale ‘only’ has 444 bhp, which is only a marginal increase on a normal 4.7 litre Gran Turismo, meanwhile it weighs in at 1710kg, a reduction of 110kg. This may not seem like a huge amount, but it does wonders for the car. The MC Stradale will never have the ‘sledgehammer’ acceleration of Porsche’s 911 Turbo, but it feels plenty quick enough on an English ‘A’ road.

The chassis is also a gem. You can have fun at more socially responsible speeds than in a Nissan GT-R or Porsche’s 911 GT3. The chassis is set to understeer, but only marginally, and this can be dialled out with a dose of the throttle. It also relaxes into a pleasant gait on longer distance trips, enjoying a relatively compliant ride for such a hard core beast. That the MC Stradale has one of the best exhaust notes this side of a racing car is a bonus.

The MC Stradale is a car for the connoisseur, it is a slightly left-field choice, but that will be part of the draw for many Ferrari and Maserati fans.
Prices of Ferrari’s lightweight 360 and 430 variants have stabilised, and they are a relatively safe place to store £100,000 or so. The Maserati should do the same, continuing the trend set by well sorted Italian specials. However, the price will be lower. I reckon a good time to buy in will be when they hit £60,000.