Description
This is a 1975 Maserati Khamsin RHD finished in sky blue with a maroon leather interior. The clock shows 19, 000 miles.
The Khamsin was introduced on the Bertone stand at the November 1972 Turin Auto Show. Designed by Marcello Gandini, it was Bertone’s first work for Maserati. In March 1973 the production model was shown at the Paris Motor Show. Regular production of the vehicle started only a year later, in 1974. The Khamsin was developed under Citroens ownership for a clientele that demanded a front-engined grand tourer on the lines of the previous Ghibli, a more conventional proposition than the mid-engined Bora. In 1977 a mild facelift added three horizontal slats on the Khamsin’s nose to aid cooling. Inside it brought a restyled dashboard and a new padded steering wheel. One Khamsin was delivered to Luciano Benneton in 1981. Despite the many improvements over its predecessor, the Khamsin did not replicate its success, partly due to the ongoing fuel crisis that reduced demand for large-engined grand tourers. Production ended in 1982, with 435 vehicles made, barely a third of the Ghibli’s production total of 1295.
Mechanically quite similar to the Ghibli, the Khamsin has a 4, 930cc V8 engine and Citroen’s hydraulic technology was used to power the brakes and steering as well as to raise the concealed headlamps. Debuting at the 1972 Turin Motor Show the Khamsin entered production in 1974. The unitary construction with its 2+2 hatchback body was of all steel construction. The front engined Khamsin featured state of the art independent, double wishbone suspension, similar to that of the Bora and Merak. At the time, the Khamsin was Maserati’s largest engine and most expensive offering at the time of its introduction. Like its sisters, the Khamsin was named after winds—one that blows from the southeast across northeast Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.
The Khamsin represented 1970s Italian GT perfection. You really wouldn't want to change a thing. Unless, of course, you were one of those car-mad members of the Brunei royal family who didn't merely want exotic cars and lots of them, but cars so exotic that no one else could possibly have anything the same . Which is why these pictures show a Khamsin like no other - a one-off that shamelessly breaches every rule in the originality rule book not by being merely 'modded,' but by being comprehensively 'resto-modded'. What's wrong with making a Khamsin more usable, more powerful, quicker, better handling and more pleasant to drive than a standard version? As for looks - well, they are always subjective, but we reckon the extensive bodywork modifications carried out on this car have brought it into the 21st century (or near it, at any rate), albeit at the expense of that distinctive, glass rear panel.
This unusual example drives beautifully and has been built to a staggeringly high standard. Like most of the Brunei cars, there is no official record of what was done or when because the family didn't like such information to become public. For similar reasons of discretion, many of their cars were sent to New Zealand for modifications and restorations, and that's where this one came from. It has been fitted with a modern Holden V8 engine and automatic gearbox and seems to have had numerous other upgrades to take the extra power into account - and the body modifications are incredible. They're not just the result of a stick-on kit, but hours of workmanship. The car actually looks as though it was created that way from new.
This is a completely unique car; the combination of traditional exterior styling with high quality modern modifications and mechanics makes this a useable one-off and a huge head-turner.
