Maserati MC20 Cielo 2022 review

We already love the Maserati MC20. For its wild twin-turbocharged V6 that squeezes 621bhp from just 3-litres; for its fresh, intriguing shape; for the simplicity of its interior (some people don’t like the minimalist feel. We assume they’re the sort who put up 3000 lights, a sleigh and some plastic reindeer in their front garden in September); for its chassis that can be easy going one second and completely locked-down and engaging the next. But most of all we like it for its sense of identity. Somehow, from the chaos of Maserati’s history the MC20 finds a pure, distilled essence of what a car wearing the Trident should be all about, with confidence, understatement and a sense of humour, too. Now there’s a Spider version called the Cielo, simply ‘sky’ in Italian.

It costs from £231,885, which is some £25,000 more than the coupé, but promises almost identical performance (0-62mph in 2.9-seconds) and Maserati has worked hard on keeping the weight increase to a minimum whilst strengthening the carbon chassis with different weaves and more material in certain places, too. Even so, this is no lightweight at 1560kg (dry), which doesn’t compare favourably with the hybrid McLaren Artura or Ferrari 296 GTS. 

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The roof itself is powered electrically (lighter than electro-hydraulic) and can be raised or stowed in just 12-seconds at speeds of up to 31mph. Unfortunately, it’s activated via the central touchscreen and you have to press the little arrow graphic for the entire duration. The roof's glass panel uses polymer-dispersed liquid crystal and can switch between opaque or clear instantly. Maserati has also used the aluminium stowage area as a structural part to increase rigidity. Even so, springs and dampers have been retuned to account for the extra weight and the decrease in torsional stiffness. 

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On the move, so much of what makes the MC20 coupé special is evident. The steering has just the tiniest bit of play around dead centre but is deliciously accurate once you have lock applied, the engine is gruff but fairly well-mannered at low speeds but then morphs as you up the commitment and makes all sorts of fantastic turbo shrieks and the chassis is terrifically poised. There are Wet, GT, Sport and Corsa mode plus a separate damper button to increase or decrease the rate of damping (in GT mode it increases stiffness from Soft to Mid, in Sport mode a press reverts to Soft and in Corsa it decreases from Hard to Mid), and on bumpy Sicilian roads the Sport/Mid combination is excellent. However, jump up to Corsa and you do benefit from a much more lenient setting for the traction and stability control, which works brilliantly. 

Where the MC20 Cielo really scores is by genuinely balancing different personalities. So often a car claimed to be a GT car one second and supercar the next just feels compromised and never hits either target. The Cielo, however, nails both. There’s a little more texture through the steering on poor surfaces and you do sense it’s slightly heavier and less controlled than the coupé at times, too. However, it rarely detracts from the sheer excitement this car can serve up. The engine and 8-speed dual-clutch ‘box are superb, they really are. Only the strangely long brake pedal that requires plenty of firm input erodes confidence. Roof down it’s pretty calm in here, too. 

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So, the MC20 Cielo remains a beguiling, fascinating car that’s packed with character and has an innate charisma that’s hard to convey. It’s just really bloody cool. The fact it can face the likes of Ferrari and McLaren in terms of sheer dynamism too, is quite incredible. The only real gripe is that the cost of options is very Ferrari-esque and £231,885 soon balloons to a lot more should you want, for example, carbon fibre wheels (£19,250) or the exterior carbon pack (£36,240). Even the electronic limited slip diff is £2150, which seems vaguely criminal when you’re talking about a near £250,000 supercar… 

Maserati MC20 Cielo specs