Maserati announces limited-run 740PS track car | GRR
Maserati’s CEO Davide Grasso dropped hints of this at the launch of the company’s new ‘Fogolore’ electrification strategy, saying something of a successor to the Maserati MC12 might be on the cards, but we weren’t sure when it would surface. Today we have our answer: these are the first details of the Maserati Project24, a limited-run, track-only sportscar.
What we’ve been given so far are some sketches and technical data, not images of the actual car, but there’s plenty of good stuff to go on. There will be 62 cars only, all weighing less than 1,250kg and with an upgraded version of the MC20’s twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre V6, producing 740PS (544kW) courtesy of new turbos. There will be two seats, as well as an FIA-spec fire extinguisher and an FIA-homologated fuel tank and roll cage, but as the car is not destined to race it is free to look however Maserati want it to look.
The chassis will be made from carbon-fibre and feature onboard air jacks, while the body will be a mix of carbon and natural-fibre, the aero extreme with adjustable front and rear wing aero, there will be LED lights up front, Lexan front and side windows and an FIA-approved rain light.
As you’d expect the car will be rear-wheel-drive but the double-clutch gearbox of the MC20 is out in favour of a racing six-speed sequential ‘box and clutch. Similarly the electronic limited-slip differential of the MC20 has been dumped in favour of a mechanical limited-slip diff. The brakes are carbon-ceramics, the wheels 18-inch centre-lock items, and the tyres slicks. There are double-wishbones all the way around, meanwhile, with adjustable dampers and front and rear anti-roll bars.
On the inside you’ll find two racing seats, unless you’d rather only have one, and given that the pedal box and steering wheel are all adjustable, we’d be willing to bet the seat is fixed in place. There is, however, air-conditioning, six-point belts, an in-car camera and data system if you want them, a rear-view camera (also optional) and adjustable ABS and traction control systems.
Why buy one? Well, much in the way Ferrari will sell you an FXXK and have it ready for you at a track of your choosing whenever you’d like to go for a drive, Maserati, it appears, will do the same, offering “a unique range of services, including track specific experiences and state-of-the-art support”. No, it probably won’t sound as good as an MC12, but we’re very excited to see and hear it all the same. If only we knew somewhere it could run, perhaps a track or hillclimb…