Background
‘Reputations go down in the lift, but up on the stairs,’ as the saying goes. And Maserati's reputation for building astonishingly beautiful supercars – Bora, Ghibli – soon got trashed as it developed successive generations of cars which resembled Hyundai Stellars with interiors that looked like a DFS clearance sale. Signs that Maserati was starting to regain the plot came with the launch of the Ghibli models, but it wasn't until late 1998 that a truly desirable Maserati reappeared, the 3200GT.
The car was originally called the Mistral but it quickly lost that moniker when Maserati realised the VW Group now owned the name. Instead it was sold as the 3200GT, in homage to another beautiful Maserati, the 3500GT of 1957. As the first Maserati to be built under the auspices of new owners Ferrari, the 3200GT had to have instant visual impact, and when it was unveiled no one argued that it hadn’t managed this. Only ardent Maserati fans could love a BiTurbo, whereas the 3200GT could park next to a Bora without feeling self concious.
In June 1999 the standard six-speed manual version of the 3200GT was joined by a 4-speed automatic option, which helped see UK sales reach a record 352 during 2000. The 2001 model year car saw a number of detailed changes aiming at making it easier to drive. This 3200GT boasted a massively improved steering system, with a re-geared rack to combat the nervousness of the earlier cars with just the right amount of heft and feel. The engine management system was also radically overhauled.
Turbo lag was still present, but the throttle became something that could be modulated, making the 3200GT a far more fluid performer. In 2002 the 3200GT was replaced by the 4200 Coupé and Spyder, cars that looked superficially similar but were actually quite different beasts altogether. For a start, the lingering tie to the BiTurbo era, the force fed engine, was finally retired.
Both models now used the naturally aspirated F136 RV8 belonging to the Ferrari/Maserati F136 engine family. This flatplane crank equipped engine displaced 4,244 cc and produced 385bhp at 7,000 rpm with a peak torque of 332 lb-ft at 4,500 rpm. This replaced the 3200’s twin turbocharged engine and made for a far smoother power delivery, making the new model much easier to drive than the laggy, somewhat on or off, 3200 unit.
The 32-valve quad-cam V8 uses chain-driven, twin-overhead camshafts per bank, with the intake valves having variable timing. The Ferrari engine (for that’s what it is, of course) is all alloy in construction so has a relatively light weight of 184kg.
The silhouette of the Coupe was similar but look a little closer and the changes were manifest. The LED boomerang style lights were replaced by more conventional units and the electronics were a whole lot more sophisticated. Spyder open-topped models and semi-automatic options were also offered. The marketers branded fixed and open-topped variants simply as the Maserati Coupé and Maserati Spyder.
The tin top Coupé had a slightly longer wheelbase and a slightly lower kerb weight (that roof mechanism is weighty) but the soft-top means you can cruise about and everyone will know it’s you in a Maserati.
Even when open the Spyder is a very safe car, featuring roll-over bars behind each seat as well as the same range of dynamic aids and interventions as the Coupé. The roof is also deployed electronically for extra style points, taking around 30 seconds each to raise and lower. Lowered, it tucks behind a very neat metal cover, giving the Spyder clean lines.
Both models feature Brembo disc brakes on all four corners, and a light alloy double-wishbone suspension system, including the wonderfully named and well regarded Skyhook computer-controlled damping system, which was available as an option. Vehicle attitude is gathered from several sources including six vertical and lateral body-motion sensors, as well as throttle position, brake application, and vehicle speed (plus transmission mode on Cambiocorsa-equipped cars). An ECU then constantly adjusts shock damping values and is able to do so 40 times a second. The balance of the suspension system is composed of forged aluminum upper and lower control arms with anti-roll bars. Brembo vented disc brakes, standard ABS, stability and traction control, and power rack-and-pinion steering round out the running gear. Cambiocorsa, by the way, is Maserati for paddle shift semi-automatic.
Traditionalists might prefer an old-fashioned manual gearbox controlled by a gearstick, but the 4200 F1-inspired paddle change works very well and got good reviews in contemporary road tests.
In its most aggressive mode, Cambiocorsa can execute a shift more than twice as quickly as can Maserati's most competent test driver – in just 25 milliseconds. In sport mode, it snaps from gear to gear, firmly but not jarringly. Downshifts are magic, each accompanied by a throttle blip and perfect rev matching. So good is the system, that 80% of all 4200s built were ordered with it.
It helps make the car very quick too, with 0-62mph dispatched in fewer than five seconds and a top speed of 176mph. The 4200 got a mild facelift in 2004 and was built until 2007, by which time nearly 4000 Spyder's and just over 6400 Coupés had been built.
