I love Maseratis and news of a new one always makes my heart flutter, a little. Maserati has released information on a new derivative of the GranTurismo which is to go on sale in the first quarter of 2011. This piece of news as released via their media centre should be part of its viral marketing campaign that should tie in with its official unveiling at the upcoming Paris Motor Show. The new Maserati GranTurismo MC Stradale is what its called and it will be the fastest, lightest and most powerful Maserati on sale at this moment in time.

The GranTurismo MC Stradale is inspired by the Maserati Trofeo GranTurismo MC and their race winning GT4 models. The Maserati Trofeo is a one make, one type series for the GranTurismo and the GT4 is the FIA sanctioned GT4 class where the GranTurismo seems to be doing pretty well recently.

The MC Stradale, in which the 'MC' stands for Maserati Corsa (Maserati Racing) and Stradale, meaning road, clearly states its race origins and its purpose as being a road legal version of the full Corsa version that runs around race tracks. It adds to the GranTurismo experience by incorporating handling and aerodynamic additions that Maserati have learnt from the three racing programs it enters. The first two programs are those stated above and the third is that of the FIA GT1 Championship series.

The MC Stradale now produces more downforce without the extra aerodynamic drag. From the looks of the MC Stradale, it seems that most of the aerodynamic work must come from that redesigned front bumper. The grille with the trident now looks very pronounced and separate from the lower lip portion. It looks like an interpretation classic Maserati Birdcage front end suitably modernized for current consumption. Very aggressive looking when coupled to that front fenders that have air vents and outlets to channel air away from the tires (creating less aerodynamic drag and less air pressure).

The rear is also touched by the addition of a very aggressive looking rear diffuser and integrated exhaust setup. I also suppose that this exhaust setup and some engine fettling by Maserati has also enabled the Maserati 4.7-litre V8 to produce 450bhp yet still consuming the same amount of petrol as the regular GranTurismo.

Maserati has not revealed any other details as to whether the suspension is special for the car or how much lighter the car is even though it states the car is lighter and does not sacrifice the regular car's ride quality. I suppose they're saving the extra details for the Paris Motor Show. And this car is soooooo much nicer than that tuned Mansory version that I wrote about recently.