The bloomin’ hecks files

Exploring Britain’s own Area 51 in the latest flying object from Modena will cause a stir. STEPHEN DOBIE braces for close encounters

- STEPHEN DOBIE

Do you believe? YouGov surveys suggest three-quarters of British people adjudge that alien life exists somewhere in the universe, while a whole third think those extraterrestrials have visited earth at least once. Seven per cent of our population say they have seen a UFO. But I’d happily wager those figures swell at least a little in this hilly, happy valley in West Yorkshire. The market town of Todmorden is the unofficial UFO capital of the UK – think Area 51 with less Nevadan desert and more craft shops.

It’s the perfect place to introduce Maserati’s latest land-borne craft to British roads. The MCPura represents a nip, tuck and light rebrand for the wondrous MC20 supercar after five years on sale. To the eyes of dedicated car folk, little has changed – reprofiled bumpers and new wheel and paint options summarise its visual makeover – but this car will remain a UFO (unusually fabulous object) to many onlookers. Not least with its dihedral doors and the hugely theatrical folding roof of this Cielo cabrio, it makes even its everyday manoeuvres resemble the extraordinary.

Its dynamic elements are unchanged, a carbon tub at its core and a 621bhp twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre V6 perched beneath its pert, Trident-stamped deck. It drives the rear wheels only through a snappy eight-speed dual-clutch transmission. The MCPura feels distinctly old-school for its lack of hybridisation and there’s naturally an awful lot to like about that – particularly on roads as stirring as these.