Maserati Stages Worldwide Paris Premiere for the GranTurismo MC Stradale - VIDEO ENHANCED

MODENA, ITALY- September 30, 2010: The new Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale will be the fastest, lightest and most powerful car in the Maserati range when it goes on sale in the first quarter of 2011. Inspired by the Trofeo GranTurismo MC and the race-winning GT4 motorsport models, theMaserati GranTurismo MC Stradale will have more power, less weight, razor-sharp handling and a top speed of over 300 km/h.

The Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale responds to demands for a GranTurismo which can balance on-road driving needs with race-driving desires and it incorporates the handling and aerodynamic lessons from Maserati’s three racing programs. It produces more aerodynamic down force without producing more aerodynamic drag, it produces more power without using more fuel and it is more agile without sacrificing the GranTurismo S’s highly praised ride quality.

Click PLAY to watch highlights from the Maserati Press Conference

With 330kW (450 horsepower), the Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale generates more power (7 kW, 10hp) from the 4.7-litre V8 engine than the GranTurismo S, while its 510Nm of torque is a further 20Nm improvement. Its race-bred heritage is highlighted by a 110kg weight reduction from the GranTurismo S, down to 1770kg. It mirrors Maserati’s racing advantages by retaining an optimal 48 : 52 weight distribution, ensuring balanced handling and even tyre wear.

The Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale uses advanced electronics to cut gear-shift times from the upgraded MC Race Shift electro-actuated transaxle gearbox to just 60 milliseconds. This all helps to slash the 0-100km/h sprint time, which the Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale covers in just 4.6 seconds.

The Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale is also the first Maserati in history to have a dedicated Race mode alongside the upgraded Auto and Sport modes in its simplified dashboard layout.

With the removal of the rear seats, the Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale becomes the first two-seat Maserati since the MC12. The GranTurismo MC Stradale has also benefited from new Brembo carbon-ceramic brakes, custom-developed Pirelli tyres, a unique suspension layout and rigid, light-weight, carbon-fibre race seats.

Click PLAY to watch promo video

The push for the GranTurismo MC Stradale came from existing Maserati customers who wanted a road-legal super sports car that looked and felt like the GT4 and Trofeo race cars. The GranTurismo MC Stradale also provides the latest step in the well-trodden path between Maserati’s racing programs and its production road cars and, often, back again. In the 1990s, the Ghibli Open Cup race car gave birth to the Ghibli Cup and a decade later the Trofeo GranSport gave birth to the GranSport MC Victory. At the pinnacle of recent Maserati’s road-to race story, the FIA GT-winning MC12 was developed directly from the MC12 Stradale.

With a unique body design that is based around the requirements of the track, the Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale has borrowed heavily from its racing car stablemates, the Maserati GranTurismo MC, both in the Trofeo and GT4 configurations. It has a new front splitter, bumper, bonnet, front guard panels, sills, exhausts and even a new rear bumper. To emphasize the harder-edged nature of the GranTurismo MC Stradale, Maserati even offers the car with an optional roll cage and a four-point racing harness.

Yet it was also designed to be easy to drive, so it retains all the inherent ride, handling and stability benefits of the GranTurismo S’s long wheelbase. It has the speed to be a road-legal racing car, yet it has the progressive handling to be considered an extremely usable super-sports car.

In this configuration, the Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale will be on sale in February 2011 in all major markets, with the exceptions of the USA, Canada and Korea.

A dedicated website is already online at www.maseratigranturismomcstradale.com

Maserati GranTurismo MC Trofeo Championship
With its return season to one-make championship racing fast approaching its climax, Maserati has already confirmed its full backing for the Trofeo GranTurismo MC program in 2011. The Trofeo has successfully fulfilled its dual purpose: by giving Maserati’s gentleman-driver customers close, fair racing with no off-track organizational pressures; and it has been the perfect test and proving ground for the GranTurismo MC Stradale road car.

Maserati has dominated the FIA GT championship with the MC12 and its FIA GT4 GranTurismo customer car took victory on its debut, and it sees the Trofeo championship as a natural extension of these categories, allowing as many drivers as possible to enjoy and benefit from Maserati’s motorsport expertise and experience.

With only the final round at Tuscany’s demanding Mugello circuit remaining, a handful of drivers are still in contention to claim the first Trofeo Championship in the GranTurismo MC Trofeo racing coupe.

Developed in-house by the factory’s own racing division, Maserati Corse, the GranTurismo MC Trofeos have proven to be both fast and reliable. Like all Maseratis, they are also built on the production line in Viale Ciro Menotti in Modena.

The single-make championship began at the historic Monza Grand Prix track in May, followed by rounds in Brands Hatch in England, Brno in the Czech republic, Oschersleben in Germany and, most recently, Valencia in Spain just two weeks ago.

With two races, two free practice sessions and two qualifying sessions per weekend, the cost of racing in the championship has been €162,000 (plus VAT), or €168,000 (plus VAT) for a team with two drivers sharing a car.

A Spectacular Year for the GranCabrio
Acclaimed by the motoring press as one of the world’s most-beautiful cars, the Maserati GranCabrio – on sales in certain markets with the name GranTurismo Convertible - has been a sales success in every market, meeting or exceeding its sales targets worldwide.

The GranCabrio has the longest wheelbase (2942mm) in its segment, yet boasts class-leading structural rigidity, providing added safety, comfort and handling ability. A universally acclaimed full four-seat convertible, it lacks neither space nor luxury, with a smooth, fast, six-speed automatic transmission and 323 kW (440 horsepower) available from the 4.7-litre V8 engine.

The GranCabrio’s body was re-engineered to ensure Maserati’s trademark handling and agility remained intact, even as it exploited the long wheelbase to provide class-leading safety and comfort. The GranCabrio also boasts special materials in its triple-layer cloth roof to ensure thermal and sound insulation, regardless of the outside temperature. The roof mechanism itself is strong and, at 60kg, light, and takes just 20 seconds (28 seconds, if the four independent window movements are taken into account) to fully fold back into its compartment.

The GranCabrio’s early sales have been strongly backed up by the mainstays of the Maserati product range; the GranTurismo coupe and the Quattroporte.

Continued Success: Maserati GranTurismo …
Highly praised as one of the most beautiful cars of its generation, the Pininfarina-designed Maserati GranTurismo is also the car that rewrote the rulebook for fast, comfortable sports cars that could carry four full-sized adults. Now in its third full year of production, the GranTurismo has capitalized on all of Maserati’s known qualities, from design to performance, from handling to luxury and from passion to practicality, and encased them in a timelessly sleek package.

Powered by a 4.2-litre, all-alloy V8 engine producing 405 horsepower at 7100rpm, the GranTurismo sprints to 100km/h in 5.2 seconds and can reach speeds of up to 285km/h. The GranTurismo S takes the strengths of the GranTurismo and adds Maserati’s 4.7-litre all-alloy V8 engine and the electro-actuated six-speed transaxle gearbox.

The GranTurismo S Automatic combines all of the advantages of the GranTurismo S’s 4.7-litre V8 power plant with all the comfort advantages and silken gearshifts of the 4.2-litre GranTurismo’s six-speed automatic transmission.

The GranTurismo range can be tuned to a more sporty edge with the MC Sport Line package, first launched in 2008 and now further enriched with new contents. Coming directly from Maserati motorsport expertise, the MC Sport Line offers GranTurismo buyers the chance to upgrade the exterior and interior of their cars, with extensive use of carbon fibre elements.

The MC Sport Line package includes also a stiffer suspension set-up for the GranTurismo S, which further improves handling performance.

… and Quattroporte
The celebrated award-winning Maserati Quattroporte continues to be a strong and consistent performer, both in its sales and in its on-road performance. Crowned by the successful debut at the Geneva Auto Show in March, 2010, of the special edition Quattroporte Sport GT S Awards Edition, born to celebrate the Quattroporte’s 56 major international design and automotive awards, the range begins with the Quattroporte, moves into the Quattroporte S, with its 4.7-litre V8 engine, and is headlined by the flagship sports sedan, the Quattroporte Sport GT S.

The performance flagship of the four-door range is the Quattroporte Sport GT S. With its sports exhaust system freeing up more power, the 4.7-litre V8 boasts 323kW (440hp) of power at 7000rpm, the Quattroporte Sport GT S retains the Quattroporte S’s 490Nm of torque, but directs its performance more aggressively.

FIA GT1 World Championship
With three rounds remaining, Maserati is in the midst of a close fight to maintain its dominance of the FIA GT World Championship for the sixth consecutive successful year in the world’s leading sports car racing championship. Leading the way in the 2010 championship race have been the two green-and-black Vitaphone Racing MC12s, with the driving staff headlined by reigning champions, Andrea Bertolini and Michael Bartels. Another two MC12s are running under Hegersport Triple H team colours.

The championship spreads across four continents, and the Maseratis have already raced in Abu Dhabi, England, the Czech Republic, France, Belgium, Germany and Portugal. The next rounds will be in Navarra, Spain, on October 24, Interlagos, Brazil, on November 28 and San Luis, Argentina, on December 5, but Maserati is confident the racing pedigree of its MC12 will maintain its position at the head of the championship fight.

The V12-powered MC12 has won 12 championship titles since its 2004 debut in the FIA GT Championship, including four drivers’ titles, five Team titles, two Constructors’ Cups and one Citation Cup, plus three victories in the Spa 24 Hour race.

Maserati was a racing brand long before it built road cars, with its first car, the Tipo 26, winning its class on debut at the Targa Florio in 1926. Other racing highlights over Maserati’s 94-year history include back-to-back Indianapolis 500 wins in 1939 and 1940 and Formula One World Championships with Juan Manuel Fangio in 1954 and 1957.

Maserati financial results for the first semester 2010
Q2 2010
For Q2 2010, Maserati reported €174 million in revenues, up 56.8% over the same period in 2009.

This increase was attributable to outstanding performance for both the Quattroporte and the new GranCabrio.

A total of 1,697 cars were delivered to the network during the quarter, a 45.2% increase over the same period in 2009.

Trading profit came in at €8 million (4.6% of revenues) for the quarter, improving significantly over the €2 million figure for Q2 2009.

H1 2010
Maserati reported €301 million in revenues for H1 2010, up 33.2% over the same period for the prior year.

Sales to the network totalled 2,902 units for the period, increasing 24.8% over the first half of 2009 with a significant contribution from the GranCabrio.

Maserati increased sales volumes in almost all markets, with particularly notable performances in North America (+45%), in the UK (+92%) and China (+147%).

As a result of the strong revenue performance and efficiencies achieved, trading profit came to €12 million (4% of revenues), more than double the €5 million in operating profit for the first half of 2009.