Photo: Maserati
Even if the weather in various parts of the world would have you believe otherwise, the spring of 2024 is nearly upon us, bringing with it all the hopes and expectations that torment us all after what turned out to be a very long winter. What better time than now for carmakers to feel the warmth too, and release into the wild open-top variants of their most successful cars?
A couple of days ago the Brits from McLaren did just that, and unleashed the Spider version of the Artura, marking the arrival into this world of the company's first-ever hybrid convertible.
We officially don't know the price of the McLaren Artura Spider, but it is probably in the same ballpark as its conventional sibling, which sells for around $281,000... That's a great price for a supercar, but it may prove to be a bit too much for many people who are in the market for a high-performance car that can occasionally drop its top down.
If you don't mind downgrading from a supercar to a very potent grand-tourer, then the brand new Maserati GranCabrio might be the right way to go. The car was just announced by the Italians, so we don't exactly know its price either, but given the MSRP of the car it is based on, the GranTurismo (roughly $160,000), it could prove the more sensible choice for some of us.
Dating back to the mid-2000s, the GranTurismo established itself as one of the most compelling choices for people looking for somewhat of a niche car that has all the makings of a real head-turner and is at the same time immensely satisfying to drive.
Responsible for that are the iconic design of the Trident machine, and the engine that animates it. The powerplant, Maserati's iconic Nettuno, is in its current configuration the most powerful ever built for the car, cranking out no less than 542 horsepower – to continue our rather forced comparison with the McLaren Artura, that's just below what the British supercar developed in its first incarnation (in the meantime McLaren took Artura's power levels from 577 hp to 690 hp).
The same 3.0-liter Nettuno engine of the GranTurismo powers the GranCabrio as well, in a version called Trofeo Spyder. The design of the two is about the same as well, but what sets them apart is the fitting of a fabric roof that gets out of the way when needed.
It takes the roof 14 seconds to fold itself somewhere in the trunk of the four-seater, and it can do that even when the car is moving at speeds of up to 31 mph (50 mph). The command for it to remove itself is made by pressing a touch button on the car's central display.
For the comfort of the passengers Maserati included in the standard offering a neck warmer, but supplies the aptly called wind stopper, a device meant to reduce the creation of turbulence inside the cabin, as an option.
There is no mention made by the Italians of when the Maserati GranCabrio will become available or how much it will cost. We do know, though, that the soft top of the thing will be available in five color choices.
We officially don't know the price of the McLaren Artura Spider, but it is probably in the same ballpark as its conventional sibling, which sells for around $281,000... That's a great price for a supercar, but it may prove to be a bit too much for many people who are in the market for a high-performance car that can occasionally drop its top down.
If you don't mind downgrading from a supercar to a very potent grand-tourer, then the brand new Maserati GranCabrio might be the right way to go. The car was just announced by the Italians, so we don't exactly know its price either, but given the MSRP of the car it is based on, the GranTurismo (roughly $160,000), it could prove the more sensible choice for some of us.
Dating back to the mid-2000s, the GranTurismo established itself as one of the most compelling choices for people looking for somewhat of a niche car that has all the makings of a real head-turner and is at the same time immensely satisfying to drive.
Responsible for that are the iconic design of the Trident machine, and the engine that animates it. The powerplant, Maserati's iconic Nettuno, is in its current configuration the most powerful ever built for the car, cranking out no less than 542 horsepower – to continue our rather forced comparison with the McLaren Artura, that's just below what the British supercar developed in its first incarnation (in the meantime McLaren took Artura's power levels from 577 hp to 690 hp).
The same 3.0-liter Nettuno engine of the GranTurismo powers the GranCabrio as well, in a version called Trofeo Spyder. The design of the two is about the same as well, but what sets them apart is the fitting of a fabric roof that gets out of the way when needed.
It takes the roof 14 seconds to fold itself somewhere in the trunk of the four-seater, and it can do that even when the car is moving at speeds of up to 31 mph (50 mph). The command for it to remove itself is made by pressing a touch button on the car's central display.
For the comfort of the passengers Maserati included in the standard offering a neck warmer, but supplies the aptly called wind stopper, a device meant to reduce the creation of turbulence inside the cabin, as an option.
There is no mention made by the Italians of when the Maserati GranCabrio will become available or how much it will cost. We do know, though, that the soft top of the thing will be available in five color choices.
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