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Maserati MC20 appears in artsy, blurry teaser

Maserati said it's entering a new era. Judging by these teaser shots of the a camouflaged MC20 prototype supercar, it's clear Maserati plans to strut its way into that new era con il coraggio and braggadocio. Maserati took its future flagship to the Piazza degli Affari in Milan, for a set of mostly blurry photos in front of Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan's sculpture called "L.O.V.E." Maserati called the artwork "a symbol of Italian audacity in international contemporary art," for the sake of clarity, we'll call it a giant marble bird flipped at anyone who might ask, "You talkin' to me?" The MC20 is thought to be built around the carbon chassis laid up for the 4C, stretched lengthwise and across to create an overall larger package. We can't tell much about the real masterpiece in the photos, but it is clear the MC20 prototype has shed its gawky bodywork borrowed from the Alfa Romeo 4C to slip into something more comfortable. A very Maserati nose leads with a large grille and sits prominently ahead of the other bodywork. Behind that, an Italianate supercar form combines plenty of intakes, deep side skirts, a seamless rake to the backlight, and a short rear overhang. In back, powertrains developed at Maserati and for Maserati should make all sorts of lusty noises. The top powertrain is expected to be a hybrid V6 with three electric motors and around 600 horsepower, there's hearsay about an all-electric model, and rumors of a turbocharged V8 won't die. The only gearbox mentioned so far is an eight-speed dual-clutch shooting power to the rear wheels. Autoevolution believes the hybrid engine will translate into a sprint to 62 miles per hour in around two seconds and a top speed beyond 186 miles per hour, just the kind of giddy-up one would expect from a challenger aimed at the Lamborghini Huracan Evo. If anything, 600 hp sounds conservative seeing as the Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA gets 540 hp from its 2.9-liter turbocharged V6 without electric help. The MC20 will take on Lamborghini's championship-winning finest on the track, too, the MC20 — for Maserati Corse 2020 — surely headed for an FIA entry in track-only form. For now, the MC20 continues its driving program to prepare for its debut in May. The coupe version should come first, going on sale in Europe late this year and in the U.S. sometime next year, followed by a convertible variant.  

Maserati rules out smaller Macan rival

These days every luxury automaker is going after the Porsche Cayenne with a crossover of its own. Among those coming up is the Maserati Levante, which will mark the Trident marque's first foray into high-riding territory. But don't expect it to follow up with a Macan rival as well. Speaking with Autocar, Maserati chief Harald Wester ruled out the possibility of a smaller crossover to join the Levante in the Modenese automaker's lineup, ostensibly because doing so would step on the toes of other brands under the Fiat Chrysler umbrella – particularly with Alfa Romeo set to launch a crossover of its own. "We are an extremely complex multi-brand group and to have every doing a little bit of everything is not the right way," Wester told the British magazine. "In this business, you should never say 'no' in a dogmatic way, but my personal opinion is that Maserati wouldn't want to go below the Levante in size." And Wester's opinion goes a long way in the halls in Turin and Auburn Hills: he's head of both the Maserati and Alfa Romeo brands, and is also the group's Chief Technology Officer. That's something that has never seemed to deter the Volkswagen Group, though, where Bentley is gearing up to take on its sister company's Cayenne with the upcoming Bentayga and is also said to be considering a Macan rival. And that's to say nothing of other SUVs occupying similar size and price positions from Volkswagen, Audi and potentially Lamborghini. Which only serves to underline the different approaches taken by Europe's two largest automakers. Look for the Levante to debut at the 2016 Detroit Auto Show.

The troubled Alfa Romeo Giulia needs serious help [UPDATE]

UPDATE: An Alfa Romeo US spokesman responded to this article with the following statement: The safety concerns expressed in the story are false. The all-new 2017 Alfa Romeo Giulia is designed and engineered to meet or exceed all federal safety regulations. The Alfa Romeo Giulia will begin production for the North American market in the late second-quarter of this year. Alfa Romeo will have a full product portfolio of premium vehicles that includes plans for (8) all-new Alfa Romeo vehicles by 2020. The product launches are prioritized by segment volumes starting this year with the Alfa Romeo Giulia production for North America starting in late Q2, followed by the Midsize-UV – the 2nd largest premium segment in North America. Even on the day you dragged them kicking and screaming and gesticulating wildly to a table full of concrete evidence, Alfa Romeo executives will never admit the Giulia program is going through a tough patch. But it is. Reports say the Giulia, on the eve of production, didn't just fail one internal crash test, but failed the front, side and rear impact tests. Alfa denies it. Automotive News published a report last week saying two suppliers had insisted the Giulia, on the eve of production, didn't just fail one internal crash test, but failed the front-, side-, and rear-impact tests. A third supplier source told us the same thing. Alfa is denying it. It was due on sale in Europe late last year and was supposed to be here in the next month or two. But it wasn't, and it won't. It was to be headlined by a twin-turbo V6 that reportedly howled its way around the Nurburgring 14 seconds faster than the BMW M3 could manage. That second part is only true if you believe it's fair to compare a full lap in a standard BMW M3 with a favorable accumulation of sector times to a development prototype Giulia with 220 pounds stripped out of it and rolling on hand-cut racing slicks. No, me neither. A Promising Start The Giulia's all-new architecture was developed in just two years by a skunkworks of young engineers headed by Fiat's engineering prince, Philippe Krief, and (bafflingly) sited inside Maserati's headquarters complex in Modena, about three hours from Alfa Romeo's own Turin HQ.