The Zagato Mostro Barchetta powered by Maserati makes its début at the 2022 Concorso d’Eleganza in Villa d’Este: an open-air version of the famous coupé that the Milanese coachbuilder presented at the same exhibition in 2015 as a sports car inspired by the Maserati 450S Coupe Zagato. The latter car was built by the manufacturer in 1957 at the request of the driver Stirling Moss to participate at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and nicknamed “The Monster” by the same, given the combination of brutal power and refined aesthetics on the model. An unusual union re-proposed today in a modern key without a roof which represents, according to the designers, “a perfect mix between the technology of the present and the past”.
Produced in only 5 units all already sold, the Mostro Barchetta Powered by Maserati was in fact designed by Norihiko Harada, vice president of Zagato design, inspiring it in the proportions from the bodywork to the barchetta made by the Maserati brothers in the 1950s for the Trident brand, and for O.S.C.A. It recalls the sinuous lines of speedboats and is characterized by a small and seamless wraparound windshield. While in the cockpit, with two seats, it reveals a pure sports setting, ready to devour the curbs and chicanes of a race track.
Under the exclusive body, the Mostro Barchetta hides a carbon fiber monocoque, coupled to a steel rear subframe with the function of supporting the fuel tank and the exhaust system. In addition to racing equipment: including front and rear double wishbone suspensions with an adjustable push-rod type spring-shock absorber system. It weighs just 1,200 kilos and two Maserati engines are available: a naturally aspirated 4.2 V8 or a 3.0 twin-turbo V6 with power from 420 to 630 hp – arranged in a front-central position, so as to ensure the best weight distribution (50-50).
To give maximum freedom to the driver, the Mostro Barchetta does not employ any traction control, it also mounts a braking system with ventilated discs hidden behind 19-inch single-nut alloy wheels.
