Remember that video of the Yangwang U9 going around a track autonomously? Well, Stellantis looked at it and said, “We can do it, but faster (in a straight line),” before promptly setting an autonomous world speed record with the Maserati MC20 Coupé flooring it at 318 km/h – all done without any humans in the car.
The record-setting Maserati MC20 Coupé in question is a project initiated by Indy Autonomous Challenge (IAC) and Politecnico di Milano – an Italian scientific-technological university – as part of MOST, Italy’s National Center for Sustainable Mobility, which contributes to the research, innovation, and infrastructure development of eco-friendly transportation.
The project Maserati MC20 Coupé was taken to the Kennedy Space Centre to prove its might. Specifically, the Space Florida Launch and Landing Facility, which houses one of the world’s longest runways. Measuring 4.5 km from end to end, it’s the perfect playground for a test like this.
“These world speed records are much more than just a showcase of future technology,” said IAC and Aidoption BV CEO Paul Mitchell. “We are pushing AI-driver software and robotics hardware to the absolute edge. Doing so with a street car is helping transition the learnings of autonomous racing to enable safe, secure, sustainable, high-speed autonomous mobility on highways.”
The 318 km/h top speed run in the States isn’t the only autonomous world speed record the Maserati MC20 has set. Last year in November, the university had also set a previous record of 285 km/h at the Piacenza Military Airport in Italy while performing the same test.
Shortly after setting the new record, another Maserati MC20 Cielo convertible joined the 1000 Miglia Experience Florida, where the car was autonomously driven along American roads – but this time with a human in the driver’s seat. Previously, the Maserati MC20 also took part in the 1000 Miglia race where it covered approximately 60 km across Italy in its autonomous mode.
READ: Stellantis unveils their STLA AutoDrive system with Level 3 autonomous driving
On sale in Malaysia at RM2,6000,000 before taxes, duties, and other optional extras, the Maserati MC20 sports a 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged V6 engine that puts down 630 hp and 730 Nm.
Power is sent to the rear wheels via an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission, which propels the MC20 from 0-100 km/h in 3.0 seconds and 0-200 km/h in 9.2 seconds, before topping out at its maximum speed of 320 km.
WATCH: Video – Maserati MC20 Cielo, from RM1.2 million before taxes
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