Does Gas Still Thrill More Than Electric?

Among the criticisms diehard “gearheads” throw at electric vehicles is that they lack passion. Complaints revolve around the absence of noise, no gear changing, and the reduced driver involvement from both. Having tested a lot of very fast EVs in my time as an electric car journalist, I thought it was high time I investigated how it feels going back to a great combustion engine car again. The vehicle in question was the Maserati MC20, one of the best supercars currently on the market.

The MC20 I had was the Cielo version, which is Italian for sky. This denotes the spyder rather than the coupe. While the coupe came out in late 2020, the Cielo arrived two years later. However, this is no ordinary spyder. The Cielo has three roof modes rather than two. You can have the hard top up or down, but this is in fact glass equipped with Polymer-Dispersed Liquid Crystal (PDLC) technology, which can change from clouded to clear with an electrical input. The panoramic roof on the BMW iX can offer this feature, but Maserati’s version is more extreme, going from completely opaque to transparent with the press of a button on the LCD panel.

This is a useful halfway house because above about 60mph the Cielo is very noisy, so you won’t have much luck listening to music, talking to your passenger, or hearing satnav directions. Turning the glass transparent instead gives some of the open top experience in a form you can enjoy at motorway speeds. On a sunny day during a jaunt around the countryside you’ll want the roof down, though, so you can savor the roar of that glorious fossil fuel engine behind you, and the appreciative comments of passersby. One kid on a bike caught up with me when stopped in an urban traffic light line just to tell me how much he liked the car (he even knew what model it was).

Maserati MC20 Cielo: A True Racer At Heart

The MC20 Cielo is no poseur’s fashion accessory, however, even if it has incredible visual presence. The three-liter V6 “Netuno” twin-turbo motor pushes out a whopping 630hp at 7,500rpm and 730Nm of torque from 3,000rpm – entirely through the rear wheels. The transmission is an eight-speed oil-immersed dual clutch system with six power and two overdrive speeds. While cars in every class have been getting heavier, the MC20’s body is made of carbon fiber and composite materials, keeping the curb weight down to an impressive 1,540kg. The roof only adds 65kg to the weight compared to the coupe. This means the official 0 to 62mph sprint figure is quoted as “under 3 seconds” with a top speed of “over 199mph”.

As I drove the MC20 Cielo exclusively on public roads, it wasn’t possible to go anywhere near its limits. But it’s brilliant on undulating British A roads, albeit very difficult to remain inside legal limits. A rotating knob in the central console provides access to five drive modes. There’s WET for slippery conditions, while the default mode is GT. Then there’s SPORT mode, which speeds up the automatic shifting, stiffens the suspension and tweaks the traction control. Above that, CORSA mode increases the engine turbo boost, makes the shifting even faster, and further adjusts the suspension for racing. Beyond that, you can choose CORSA with the Electronic Stability Control turned off completely, which wasn’t something I wanted to try on public roads in a car with this much power.

However, I did try the other modes, and the most obvious difference is the throttle response. In GT mode, the power comes in relatively gradually. The accelerator invokes a quicker return in SPORT mode, and quicker still in CORSA. The latter also enables the Launch Control button on the dashboard, which is where you can enjoy the full experience of that sub-three seconds 0-62mph acceleration. You can use the steering wheel paddles to drop down gears for quicker response during overtaking. The car will then return to auto mode after a brief period. Even in CORSA mode, however, the engine torque doesn’t kick in as immediately as the fastest EVs I’ve driven. When it does arrive, though, it’s just as brutal, and comes alongside an engine wail that is sure to put a smile on your face.

Considering how powerful this car is, it’s also surprisingly easy to drive under “normal” conditions, thanks to the dual-clutch robotic manual gearbox. Even in stop-start traffic, you can relax and let the car take over, although you might need to deploy the electric parking brake if stopped on a hill. However, this is no cruising GT car in supercar clothing. It’s a proper racecar for the road. Although I didn’t get to drive it on a track myself, last year I was lucky enough to be driven up the Goodwood hill climb in the very same car by a professional racing driver, and in wet conditions. It was very clearly a monster on the track.

So How Does The MC20 Compare To The Fastest EVs?

The Maserati MC20 Cielo fits the bill as a high point in combustion driver’s car technology, but is it better than the best EVs? A couple of things that EV sceptics criticize are electric’s silence and lack of gears. The MC20 certainly has noise aplenty, making its internal combustion engine well known to everyone around from the first push of the Start button. However, performance cars of this caliber generally have the “flappy paddle” robotic manual gearboxes these days, like Formula 1 cars, because they’re quicker than using the clutch yourself. The Maserati’s auto system is so good that you will only be bothered to change gears yourself on a racetrack. So the driving style isn’t that different from a gearless EV a lot of the time.

However, as enjoyable as the MC20’s huge power is, the throttle isn’t as immediate as the fastest EVs I’ve tried, even in CORSA mode. The Tesla Model S Plaid can deliver instantaneous acceleration sufficient to make you physically ill. The ZEEKR 001 FR, which I drove round a racetrack in China a few weeks ago, is about as extreme as a roadgoing EV can be. It may be a “shooting brake”, but it sports a whopping 1,247hp and a 0 to 62mph sprint of 2.07 seconds. The ZEEKR 001 Performance has two Guiness World records, including fastest drift for an electric car. It even has a “Raikkonen Mode” developed with the help of 2007 Formula 1 champion Kimi Raikkonen. Despite its size, the 001 FR masters a racing circuit with aplomb. This is amazing considering it weighs over 2,400kg.

Despite the wizardry the ZEEKR performs to hold corners, however, there’s no escaping the extra 8-900kg it has over the MC20, meaning the latter will turn in and hold a corner at much higher speeds. Maserati’s own all-electric Gran Turismo Folgore is faster accelerating than the MC20 in a straight line, too, hitting 62mph in 2.7 seconds. It does have 751hp, after all. I’ve been driven in that car around the Misano racetrack before the Formula E race weekend by a racing driver, and the acceleration is ungodly, making you lightheaded off the line. But GranTurismo Folgore is only 70kg or so lighter than the ZEEKR. It tackled Misano at incredible pace, but the driving style was about slowing down sufficiently to get the weight around the corner, and then using that monster acceleration. This is a similar strategy to driving a Porsche 911.

The electric car I’ve done the most track laps in is a Polestar 2 at the main Goodwood circuit (not the hill climb). The biggest difference to combustion cars I’ve experienced on track is how the regeneration sits in between hard acceleration and conventional braking. Formula E drivers like the predictability and progression of the regenerative braking on their cars, but on a road EV where the regen kicks in as soon as you take your foot off the accelerator, it takes a bit of a knack to get the balance right. Driving a combustion car fast on track basically involves accelerating between corners, braking as late as possible to make the corner, maintaining speed as you go round, then accelerating out of the apex. The MC20 is a classic example of this, and during my Goodwood hill climb experience the backend was twitching out satisfyingly but the car made every corner at exceptional speed.

Combustion Versus Electric: Horses For Courses

The Maserati MC20 Cielo is a fantastic vehicle. The regular version has rightfully won multiple accolades, including Evo’s Car of the Year 2022, and the Cielo adds the extra joys of the open air to the equation, without sacrificing that superb racing pedigree. It’s a demon on the track you could comfortably use for an everyday commute if you’re very rich and a bit insane. That does come at a price, with the car I had for testing priced at over £322,000 ($409,000). That’s more than, for example, a McLaren Artura Spider, but you don’t buy a car like this on value for money.

No car I’ve driven has elicited as much love from friends and passersby as the MC20. It’s incredibly beautiful, particularly in the “Rosso Vincente” red of the one I borrowed. Whereas a Ferrari or Lamborghini is a bit obvious, the Maserati MC20 also has a rarity and class about it, even if those scissor doors are somewhat ostentatious. My own very fast EV did feel mundane after driving the MC20, as you’d hope it would, although its immediate torque is a little more usable for getting ahead on public roads. There’s an electric version of the MC20 on the horizon though. If Maserati can keep the weight down while delivering acceleration even better than the GranTurismo Folgore, that’s going to be an absolute beast. I can’t wait.