Wrote this...

Nayf

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Wrote this for the issue of the mag that's out now.
If you do check it out bonus points for spotting the two errors, one from the research (oops), the other from some subbing error...
The winner will receive a warm beverage upon meeting.
 

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Contigo

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I've got the mag but not read the article. From reading that scan it looks good to me but I don't know the years just the story of how the Argentine came along at a really poor time in history for the economy etc... A real geek might be able to spot the errors but nothing glaringly obvious to me.
 

dickyb

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432
I've only just managed to get a copy of this and it was nice to see such a comprehensive article on the Biturbo.

Here's my entry for the error spotting warm beverage prize (apologies but you did ask):

Whilst you are correct in saying that the Biturbo engine was based on the engine fitted to the Citroen SM, this was in turn derived from the Merak engine, in fact a prototype Merak Biturbo was built and can be seen at the Panini Maserati Collection in Italy. It is rumoured that the Merak engine was itself derived from the V8 fitted to the Bora etc but with 2 cylinders lopped off which goes some way to explain the slightly unusual 90 degree configuration on a V6.

The Chrysler Maserati TC didn't have anything in common with the Biturbo, it was basically a posh Le Baron with some aspects assembled and trimmed by Maserati. The tie in was something to do with Lee Iacocca - he and Alejandro De Tomaso became friends when Iacocca was at Ford. De Tomaso was developing the Pantera which used Ford engines and was sold through the Lincoln Mercury dealer network in the USA. Iacocca later moved to Chrysler and then approached De Tomaso to collaborate once again, this time in a rather less successful capacity. The engines on the early cars were a 2.2 litre 4 cylinder and were built by Maserati hence the name on the cam cover but Maserati had no part in the design, they were derived from a Chrysler unit, supposedly with some involvement from Cosworth. Later cars used a Mitsubishi V6. The bodies were assembled by Innocenti, another company owned by Alejandro De Tomaso. It is interesting to note that once again Maserati and Chrysler are together as they both now form part of the FCA Group.

It was good to see that you didn't fall for the hype regarding power figures for the Karif but the performance figures you quote, whilst commonly seen, are somewhat an urban myth. The story goes that Alejandro De Tomaso wanted the Karif to make a big impact with the press when it was launched and the cars made available to journalists were "massaged" for additional power. These press cars had somewhere around 285 bhp and the performance figures commonly published relate to these press cars. It is rumoured that these "massaged" engines didn't last very long. The production cars had the same engine and power output as the standard export 2.8 engine so around 250 bhp for the non-catalysed version and around 225bhp for the catalysed version, so the commonly published 0-60 time of 4.8 seconds only applies to the early press cars with the higher output engines. Supposedly the high output engine was available on request but it came with a huge number of caveats and the same warranties were not offered, as a result there was a minimal uptake on this option. There is a small section in the owners' manual with regard to the optional high powered engine which gives instructions on additional maintenance and care required.

The power figure quoted for the Ghibli Cup is perhaps slightly low, Maserati claimed 330 bhp at launch.

The photo of the interior on page 68 mentions that the Racing used Koni electronic suspension. In fact all models had this suspension system from 1989, it was first made available with the launch of the 2.24v and was also fitted to subsequent models such as the 222 4v, 418v, 4.24v, 430 4v, late Spyders etc all the way through to the Ghibli II. It was however a no cost option to delete this and have conventional suspension. The interior photo you have on this page is not from a Racing - a Racing would have a full leather interior in either grey or black, the interior in the photo has alcantara bolsters in a different colour to the leather centres and is probably the interior of a 2.24v. The Racing would also normally have grey dashboard inserts rather than wood although perhaps 5 or 6 cars out of the 230 Racings built were specced with the wood finish.

racing4.jpg

You're correct in saying the Racing was "the hottest of the lot", but only just, the export version, the 222 4v was very similar in performance with only 4 bhp less and is actually far rarer with only 130 built compared to 230 Racings. The 4 door 430 4v was also pretty close and rarer still.

Production of the Shamal was never stopped and restarted, this only occurred with the Ghibli GT and Quattroporte IV after Ferrari took control in 1996, by which time Shamal production had finished. The factory was shut down and production lines were modernised before production started again, the Quattroporte IV was heavily revised with a number of updates and became the Evoluzione, controversially some aspects of the interior were cheapened, the Lassale clock was replaced with a cheap digital clock and some of the interior wood trimming was deleted. The 2.8 version was dropped from the UK market and only the 3.2 V8 Evoluzione was available here, the 2 litre and 2.8 litre versions continued in Evoluzione form for other markets. The Ghibli received a few minor updates and quality control improvements and a further couple of hundred or so cars were built. You can identify a post Ferrari take over Ghibli by the high level 3rd brake light which was fitted to the top of the rear windscreen, pre-Ferrari takeover Ghibli GTs have the 3rd brake light mounted at the base of the rear windscreen.

Anyway, I sound like a proper pedant and overall it was a very nice article, and it was nice to see an attempt to dispel a lot of the myth surrounding the Biturbo era cars. Yes the early cars were a bit rubbish but every year they were revised and updated and when Maserati finally introduced fuel injection and improved their quality control they became excellent cars. Unfortunately it all came a bit late for the US market where they still have a terrible reputation which is largely unfair. Perhaps it would also have worth mentioning the continuous development of the Biturbo engine, in the mid 1980s they built a version known as the 6.36 which featured six valves per cylinder and used some patented technology on the valvetrain. They managed to extract more power from 2 litres than contemporary Ferraris were managing from 3 litres :)

It is interesting to note that Maserati remain in a state of denial and embarrassment with regard to the Biturbo era, whenever you see an official event with the launch of a new model, Maserati will wheel out some of their past masters in the lineup, but never a car from the Biturbo era. If you look at this photo of the factory for example you will see past models proudly displayed on the building but where is the Biturbo? :(

2019-Maserati-17.jpg
 
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Scaf

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6,512
Well if ever I go on who want to be a millionaire and a question about Maserati come up - you guys can be my “phone a friend” some peoples detailed knowledge astounds me -
Well done to the OP on the article and to you for the refinement of some of the detail - hats off to you both !
 

Nayf

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2,734
Thankyou for the extra detail, and you more than qualify for a warm beverage . I’m sorry I didn’t pick up on your reply at the time, which is odd as I have the notifications switched on. You picked up on the stupid mistake I made - regarding the TC Maserati’s engine. I’ve a vague memory that this was lurking in a book on DeTomaso that was rather old.
Some of the extra detail would have been good to include but space dictated some cutting (particularly with regards to - as it happens - the QPIV and Karim bits; those details were in but alas...).

The Shamal production bit was picked up from Car’s trip to the factory when they went to pick up the UK press car.

The Racing interior was a picture from Maserati themselves, so oops.

I’m glad you enjoyed it - it was good to dive into the history but, as you can imagine, with such an unchampioned era of Maserati researching it was quite a challenge. Even the experts I talked to disagreed on certain aspects (Gandini’s involvement in the Biturbo’s facelifts, for example).

There’ll be more Maserati stuff soon, with a certain couple of very special 2000s cars around the corner. And hopefully some more Biturbo era stuff later in the year.

I
 

lifes2short

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5,821
If you look at this photo of the factory for example you will see past models proudly displayed on the building but where is the Biturbo? :(

the biturbo will have it's day, just look at the Ferrari Dino, always looked down on as a poor mans Ferrari and not even considered a true Ferrari for many years, now it's up there with the best of them
 

Nayf

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2,734
the biturbo will have it's day, just look at the Ferrari Dino, always looked down on as a poor mans Ferrari and not even considered a true Ferrari for many years, now it's up there with the best of them

For the right car, they’re already growing in value on the continent. I still think the styling is an acquired taste, one that I have, but the Dino is a Ferrari (even if they weren’t badges as such when new) as well. Increasing values might mean I’m priced out, but at least they’ll be saved. I doubt they’ll reach Dino levels though :)

Cups have been around this price for really nice ones. If not more. But I’ve not seen a GT this high... My favourite colour, with a manual, arguably the best non-Cup/Primatist version...
Maserati Ghibli GT - 6 speed manual - full history - low mileage

https://www.autoscout24.com/offers/...ine-blue-920d2376-6606-4514-a389-2f987c855a39
1551993445961.png
 
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Ewan

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£35k for a 35k mile Ghibli GT. You’d not not get anywhere near that here in the UK for an equivalent RHD variant. Not even £25k. But their time will come.
 

dickyb

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432
Thankyou for the extra detail, and you more than qualify for a warm beverage .

The Shamal production bit was picked up from Car’s trip to the factory when they went to pick up the UK press car.

The Racing interior was a picture from Maserati themselves, so oops.

Even the experts I talked to disagreed on certain aspects (Gandini’s involvement in the Biturbo’s facelifts, for example).

I

These are prime examples of how much Maserati really know (or care) about the Biturbo era. The Shamal restarting production in 1996 is nonsense, the entire factory was shut down in 1996 when Ferrari took control. The factory was thoroughly refurbished and production lines reorganised, only the Ghibli and Quattroporte IV continued when the factory was re-opened later that year. The Shamal went out of production in 1996 so its impossible to believe that they would have included a new production line for the Shamal in the refurbished factory only for it to cease production a few months later. Also bear in mind that Maserati only sold around 60 Shamals per year worldwide and it was never updated throughout its life, so the factory closure was the ideal time to cease Shamal production.

The photo of the supposed Racing interior is yet another example of Maserati not knowing or caring about the Biturbo era, perhaps they should have used these photos which were taken from their own brochure for the Racing!

racing brochure2.jpg

racing brochure.jpg

Gandini's involvement in the Shamal is very clear as this interview with him shows (min 4:07, sorry its in Japanese and Italian but you might get the gist).
The car features a number of his trademarks such as the slashed rear arches and spoiler at the base of the windscreen. The Shamal was based on the Biturbo platform and shares the doors and floorpan so it makes sense that a lot of Gandini's features were transferred over to the rest of the Biturbo range. All the facelifted Biturbos from around 1992 feature the same headlights as the Shamal as well as the spoiler at the base of the windscreen and a similar bumper treatment. Whether or not these were suggested by Gandini or just copied onto the rest of the range is not absolutely clear, but if you bear in mind that Gandini also designed the Maserati Chubasco concept, and the facelift for the De Tomaso Pantera in Si form, it is clear that he was heavily involved with Alejandro De Tomaso and his companies.

I think it is likely that only the later Biturbo era cars will see an increase in value in the coming years, asking prices in Europe have pretty well doubled in the last few years although whether any of them are actually selling at these inflated prices remains to be seen, certainly some cars have been for sale for years. The £35k Ghibli GT is probably a little optimistic when compared to perceived UK prices but unfortunately there are very few decent UK supplied examples left here so its difficult to have a direct comparison. As we know, the prices of Cups have increased dramatically in recent years, even more so in Europe, there is currently a Cup for sale in Italy at 85000 Euros. I know of a very nice 2 litre Ghibli GT for sale at around 25000 Euros and when compared to the Cup its very good value, with a Cup you're effectively paying 60000 Euros for an extra 24 bhp, some lowering springs and some cosmetic trinkets (and in the case of a European spec Cup, a numbered plaque). Primatists have also gone crazy (from an asking price point of view anyway), some years ago I looked at a slightly scruffy example priced at 17000 Euros, there is now one for sale in Japan for £80000!
 
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zagatoes30

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20,764
I have always like the Biturbos from a style perspective and would love one as a daily driver but I just think the build quality is not there, especailly cars that have lived in the UK. I have a QP IV Evo which I had plans to sort out but there are just to many areas of weakness so I have decide to restore my Alfa 155 Q4 instead which has similar issues but parts availability and build is slightly better.
 

Nayf

Member
Messages
2,734
These are prime examples of how much Maserati really know (or care) about the Biturbo era. The Shamal restarting production in 1996 is nonsense, the entire factory was shut down in 1996 when Ferrari took control. The factory was thoroughly refurbished and production lines reorganised, only the Ghibli and Quattroporte IV continued when the factory was re-opened later that year. The Shamal went out of production in 1996 so its impossible to believe that they would have included a new production line for the Shamal in the refurbished factory only for it to cease production a few months later. Also bear in mind that Maserati only sold around 60 Shamals per year worldwide and it was never updated throughout its life, so the factory closure was the ideal time to cease Shamal production.

The photo of the supposed Racing interior is yet another example of Maserati not knowing or caring about the Biturbo era, perhaps they should have used these photos which were taken from their own brochure for the Racing!

View attachment 55136

View attachment 55137

Gandini's involvement in the Shamal is very clear as this interview with him shows (min 4:07, sorry its in Japanese and Italian but you might get the gist).
The car features a number of his trademarks such as the slashed rear arches and spoiler at the base of the windscreen. The Shamal was based on the Biturbo platform and shares the doors and floorpan so it makes sense that a lot of Gandini's features were transferred over to the rest of the Biturbo range. All the facelifted Biturbos from around 1992 feature the same headlights as the Shamal as well as the spoiler at the base of the windscreen and a similar bumper treatment. Whether or not these were suggested by Gandini or just copied onto the rest of the range is not absolutely clear, but if you bear in mind that Gandini also designed the Maserati Chubasco concept, and the facelift for the De Tomaso Pantera in Si form, it is clear that he was heavily involved with Alejandro De Tomaso and his companies.

I think it is likely that only the later Biturbo era cars will see an increase in value in the coming years, asking prices in Europe have pretty well doubled in the last few years although whether any of them are actually selling at these inflated prices remains to be seen, certainly some cars have been for sale for years. The £35k Ghibli GT is probably a little optimistic when compared to perceived UK prices but unfortunately there are very few decent UK supplied examples left here so its difficult to have a direct comparison. As we know, the prices of Cups have increased dramatically in recent years, even more so in Europe, there is currently a Cup for sale in Italy at 85000 Euros. I know of a very nice 2 litre Ghibli GT for sale at around 25000 Euros and when compared to the Cup its very good value, with a Cup you're effectively paying 60000 Euros for an extra 24 bhp, some lowering springs and some cosmetic trinkets (and in the case of a European spec Cup, a numbered plaque). Primatists have also gone crazy (from an asking price point of view anyway), some years ago I looked at a slightly scruffy example priced at 17000 Euros, there is now one for sale in Japan for £80000!
More good points, but it was the Biturbo restyles, not the Shamal, that there was confusion about between my sources. I sided with Gandini being involved, as not only does it crop up in Maserati literature (not the greatest source, admittedly) but in period road tests in Fast Lane et al.

And Car’s visit was published in mid-1992. Did a feature on the press car last year, actually.
 

dickyb

Member
Messages
432
More good points, but it was the Biturbo restyles, not the Shamal, that there was confusion about between my sources. I sided with Gandini being involved, as not only does it crop up in Maserati literature (not the greatest source, admittedly) but in period road tests in Fast Lane et al.

And Car’s visit was published in mid-1992. Did a feature on the press car last year, actually.

Yes, as I said, the Biturbo restyling incorporated a number of Shamal features such as the lights, spoiler at the base of the screen etc and I agree it is safe to assume to Gandini was also responsible for the work carried out on the facelifted Biturbos, particularly when you consider his close relationship with Alejandro De Tomaso at the time.

With regard to the production of the Shamal stopping then restarting, this is very unlikely in my opinion, there would be no reason for this to happen as sales were fairly consistent throughout the production period and the car was not updated in any way during this time. However, I am open to being proven wrong and I guess it doesn't change anything anyway :)

We still can't excuse Maserati for using the wrong photos in their publicity and being too disinterested to consult their own sales brochures for correct information!
 

outrun

Member
Messages
5,017
As an ex-owner of a first year (1982) 2.0 Italian market BiTurbo, it still saddens me that Maserati deny their existence. That car was utter rubbish - it was a very early chassis - but they got better and better as the years rolled by. My friend just bought a 1994 Ghibli II and it's lovely. So nice to look at and drives fantastically. It was criminally cheap and can only go one way in value.

I hope these have their day, they deserve it. In the end, they are a huge part of Maserati still being in existence and should be recognised as such.
 

dickyb

Member
Messages
432
Unfortunately you are quite right, early carb cars were a little problematic and poorly built, unfortunately a lot of the Biturbo's poor reputation stems from these early cars, particularly in the USA. The Biturbo series was updated every year throughout its production with each new version being better than the last and by the early 1990s they were really good cars. Unfortunately Maserati seem to feel that this period cheapened their image and would rather forget it ever happened despite the fact that Alejandro De Tomaso saved them from bankruptcy and produced cars that were right for the market at the time. Luckily there are still a small number of people/weirdos out there who love the Biturbo period, I suspect there won't be many having a similar fondness for the current lineup in the future.
 
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dickyb

Member
Messages
432
Here is a wee write up that was done on mine when it was for sale. As I said, rubbish car but I still really liked it!

https://www.taketotheroad.co.uk/ebay-find-rare-early-production-1982-maserati-biturbo/

looks like a very nice example, early carb cars are getting very rare these days.

On the subject of Biturbos - too many doors for my tastes but it looks good. I imagine the wheels aren’t original but I think they work (don’t shoot me!) https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/113670404784

Very rare to find a RHD manual 430, most were automatic and that must be lowest mileage and best condition example around. It was this car's earlier version that got me interested in Biturbos, you may remember the bad guy in the Bond film Licence To Kill had a 425i, as a teenager I thought it was really cool. :) :) no shooting required Nayf, you are quite correct, those wheels aren't original, they would normally look like this:

430.jpg