The veils fall on the new family of the house of the Trident. GranTurismo Folgore carries on the Maserati electrification campaign, without however renouncing the much loved internal combustion engine, whose tradition is preserved by Modena and Trofeo. The two new thermal models from Modena are fitted with the Nettuno engine with pre-combustion chamber technology derived from Formula 1. However, compared to the debut version on the MC20, the Modenese engine has been updated and equipped with new features.
The changes do not affect the core architecture of Neptune, which continues to present itself as a Three-liter twin-turbo V6, with 88 * 82 mm as regards bore and stroke and a very respectable compression ratio for a supercharged, equal to 11: 1. Modena and Trofeo confirm the MTC technology, acronym for Maserati Twin Combustionbased on the application on the road of the combustion pre-chamber developed in Formula 1. Neptune has a double injection system, with the indirect one that allows to give life to a traditional mold combustion thanks also to a spark plug in a lateral position, while the direct one injects the fuel directly into the pre-chamber, which is equipped with a second spark plug.
When using direct injection, the amount of fuel injected is relatively low, resulting in a very lean mixture overall, which however is greasier at the local level of the prechamber. The spark plug triggers a first combustion in the prechamber and the relative explosion of the mixture pushes jets of plasma into the holes along the wall of the prechamber itself, thus propagating radially in all directions inside the main chamber. In this sense, the prechamber is like a supercandle. The high temperature plasma jets in turn trigger the combustion of the primary mixture in various points of the cylinder, so as to have the simultaneous propagation of several flame fronts, capable of covering the present volume in a short time. The result is a much faster, more efficient and more powerful combustion than the traditional one, since the constant volume process typical of the Otto cycle is better approximated, with less heat dissipation to the walls. Thanks to MTC technology, the control unit can manage the Neptune engine by opting individually for traditional combustion, pre-chamber combustion or for both combined, based on the speed and torque request from the accelerator pedal.
The real novelty of GranTurismo Modena and Trofeo, however, lies in the possibility of using the deactivation of cylinders. In partial load conditions when the required pedal power is low, the control unit can deactivate the three cylinders of an entire bank. In this way, with the same overall power, the remaining cylinders work at higher loads, with an increase in the effective average pressure which proportionally reduces mechanical losses, to the advantage of efficiency and consumption. The shutdown of the bank also includes the deactivation of the related distribution chain, thanks to a collapsible tappet system and a new oil circuit. In terms of lubrication, the Nettuno is fitted with a wet sump on the GranTurismo, unlike the dry sump of the MC20. On Modena the V6 reaches 600 Nm of torque at 3000 rpm and 490 horsepower at 6500 rpm, while on the Trofeo the power reaches 550 horsepower with a maximum torque of 650 Nm, at the same engine speed. These are lower values than the MC20’s Nettuno, which instead boasts 630 horsepower and 730 Nm. As for the GranTurismo, the 1795 kg weight implies a power-to-weight ratio of 0.27 hp / kg for Modena and 0.31 hp / kg for the Trofeo. .
The V6 is mated to an eight-speed transmission, from which power is distributed to the four wheels ensuring all-wheel drive. Worthy of interest is the architecture at the front, where engine and front differential do not overlap in height, but on the contrary they are placed on the same level. Inevitably, this has led to the lengthening of the front overhang to 949 mm, while allowing the height of both the center of gravity to be lowered, to the advantage of the vehicle’s dynamics, and of the bonnet, with benefits in terms of external aerodynamics. Both for Modena and for the Trofeo the penetration coefficient Cx is 0.28, slightly higher than 0.26 of the more advantaged electric version. The powertrain is housed in the same platform shared with Folgore, consisting of a 65% aluminum multi-material shell also containing steel and magnesium alloys. For both thermal GranTurismo the weight distribution is 52% at the front and 48% at the rear.
Like Folgore, the suspension scheme at the front is a double wishbone wishbonee, which leaves room for a multilink at the rear. The internal suspension unit is devoid of mechanical springs, replaced by pneumatic elements with electronic damping control, thus exploiting the gas compression to replicate the elastic and damping behavior. The VDCM, Vehicle Domain Control Module, a new electronic architecture developed entirely by Maserati, can control the stiffness and damping parameters of the suspension, depending on the driving conditions and the driver’s request to favor comfort or responsiveness to steering response for driving. sporty. Similarly, the pneumatic springs allow you to adjust the height from the ground according to the aerodynamic behavior, seeking efficiency or maximum downforce.
The driver can select up to four driving modes: Comfort, GT, Sport and Corsa. Going from the most moderate to the most performing mapping, the suspensions gradually stiffen, the aerodynamics go in search of more and more load, the response to the accelerator becomes more ready and the traction and dynamic controls leave the driver more and more freedom. Finally, the ESC-OFF command is present to completely disable the dynamics controls. On the performance front, GranTurismo Modena is able to cover the shot from 0 to 100 km / h in 3.9 seconds, with a top speed of 302 km / h. The 60 more horses that the Trofeo enjoys instead they cut the 0-100 down to 3.5 seconds, raising the speed tip to 320 km / h. Overall, the two thermal variants of the GranTurismo carry on the tradition of the combustion engine without particular revolutions, while making use of the most advanced techniques of the industrial panorama, in perfect Maserati style.
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