Maserati MC20 Cielo review

On the road it's £231,885. That's exactly £25k more than the coupe. How neat. The carbon-composite brakes are standard in the UK if not elsewhere, as is a tracking alarm. So is a three-year service plan.

Maserati, despite not having much experience or legacy in the supercar sector, believes it can charge Ferrari and McLaren prices. The red car in the pictures here wore over £70k of extras, of which the Rosso Vicente paint was £9,650 and the 20-inch gloss black wheels were another £3,840.

But the question you really need to ask yourself is ‘do I need carbon?’. We’d argue this more relaxed supercar doesn’t need an exterior carbon pack costing £36,240.

That said, although it’s possible to get the price significantly beyond £300k, the options list isn’t endless. Yes, there’s a lot of personalisation in the colours, liveries and decals, but after a £5,750 driver assistance pack and the £3,750 Sonus Faber hifi, there’s not too much to confuse yourself with. Matte paint is £27,000, and some of the stripes packs are another £27,000 beyond that. Gawd.

Crikey. What about running costs?

It’s arrived at an uncertain time. The days of cheap money and accessible loans are behind us, so lease costs will be terrifying. Not least because the MC20 is an unknown quantity on the used market, so no-one is sure how the residuals will stack up.

Either way the monthly repayments will dwarf any concerns owners might have about fuel costs. Economy of 24.1mpg in WLTP might be attainable if you're gentle. We’ve actually found the MC20 capable of 30mpg at a steady cruise – but also capable of chewing through it at 15mpg when the turbos are puffing hard.