High on the highway: With a top speed of 301kph and impressive handling, the Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale guarantees driving pleasure

Loud. Brash. Top technology, valid maybe for a month or two until a competitor comes out with better technology. That, in short, is the supercar club. And let’s face it, buyers who spend a fortune on one of these cars are looking for nothing less than the aforementioned qualities.

Maserati, comparatively, has been one of the silent participants in this league. It possesses a certain nonchalance that is uncharacteristic of Italian carmakers. However, precious few know of its historic association with Formula One and other motor sports. And a bare minimum remember its arsenal of mid-engined supercars of yesteryear like Sebring, Mistral, Ghibli, Khamsin, Merak or Bora. But the company has often been in financial turmoil and has changed hands sooner than a Victorian era corset.

While Fiat bought over Maserati way back in the 90s, it was Maserati’s association with Italian Big Daddy, Ferrari, that led to its resurrection. Ferrari shares most of its components with Maserati, along with its much-respected ethos, and though Maserati has now been clubbed with Alfa Romeo, its proximity to Maranello remains.

No longer content to nestle in Ferrari’s shadow, Maserati is now looking at taking things to the next level. And that includes making cars like the GranTurismo MC Stradale, currently its fastest and most powerful car — a car aimed as much at the race track as the open road.

It certainly looks purposeful with its lowered suspension, race car-inspired front splitter and gorgeous 20-in wheels finished in matte black. Not that the regular GranTurismo is difficult on the eyes, but this baby just seems to have that ‘it’ factor. This is more apparent in that nose with its protruding section that reminds you of the 250F Formula One car of the 1950s, famous for being one of the sweetest-handling single-seaters ever.

The Stradale has very attractive interiors too. Alcantara-lined race seats, generously splattered carbon fibre trimming and a partial roll-cage make this car feel like serious fun on the inside. And surprisingly, there’s plenty of space here. Maserati has also managed to knock off a significant 110kg of this car’s weight. The Stradale tips the scales at a mere 1770kg, which is light for a car of this size carrying a V8 in its belly.

And what a V8 it is! Based on one of Ferrari’s finest, this F430-based motor spins to 7500rpm, makes a potent 450bhp and, in the right mode, with baffles in the exhaust open, rasps and yowls as menacingly as anything. It doesn’t have that Ferrari-like high-pitched trumpeting blare or feel as frenzied towards the top of the power band, but there’s plenty to love about this motor.

I took the car out on to Shanghai’s F1 circuit for a real no-holds-barred blast. I drove the standard GranTurismo around just before the Stradale and immediately, the contrast is huge. These cars may be mechanically similar but on the track, they feel as different as chalk and cheese.

While the GT rolls quite a bit, the Stradale feels tight and focused. The steering feels much more direct, the nose jumps to attention as soon as you tweak the wheel and, like all neat and tidy handlers, the Stradale’s rear falls perfectly in line with the car’s front wheels. Tighter springs, tauter fixed-rate dampers, thicker anti-roll bars as well as minor camber and castor changes are responsible for turning this reasonably fit car into an athlete. And the invitation to ‘play’ is writ large all over this car.

With its highly responsive throttle and meaty mid-range, this motor only encourages you further. Selecting race mode tightens things. Gears now shift up with a pleasing ‘bang’ in 0.06th of a second, 0-100kph can be blitzed through in 4.6 seconds. Keep your right foot in and you’ll eventually cross the 300kph barrier.

The talkative steering moves well on long corners, the slightly rear-biased 48:52 weight distribution makes this car feel deliciously well balanced and the MC Stradale just loves being steered on the throttle. Also very impressive are the standard carbon ceramic brakes, which have a short and firm pedal travel, delivering a huge amount of confidence.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have the entire race track open to me but Maserati, being Italian, left the most difficult and fastest parts in. So it was flat out down the start-finish straight, way past the ‘off throttle’ board, and into a corkscrew-like tightening corner. Then hard left again followed by a crest and a high-speed left and right section further up the course. And that was good enough to mark this car out as something really special.

The MC Stradale will be around 35 per cent more expensive than the standard GranTurismo. That makes it an expensive car whose price isn’t really justified despite the increase in power and performance. Without any rear seats, it fails in practicality too. What you do get however, is an unquantifiable and unfathomable amount of driving pleasure. The Stradale’s tightened chassis gives it a huge jump in agility and the handling is more progressive.

This Maserati is a piece of art too. It’s more involving, more rewarding to drive and more complete, which makes it the best Maserati to hit the roads in a long time. The best part however, is that the car rides well on Indian roads too. Yes, it’s quite expensive. But then, you do get a lot of car for that kind of money.

spec check

MASERATI GRANTURISMO MC STRADALE

Price: Rs 1.37 crore (est, ex-showroom Delhi)
Top speed: 301kph
0-100kph: 4.6 seconds
L/W/H: 4933/1915/1343mm
Kerb weight: 1770kg
Turning circle: 10.5m
Engine: V8, 4691cc, petrol/ front, longitudinal
Power: 450bhp at 7000rpm
Torque: 52kgm at 4750rpm
Gearbox: Sequential robotised manual gearbox