Details:

Oldtimer Australia is delighted to offer for sale a 1979 Maserati Khamsin with a 4. 9 litre engine and the desirable 5-speed manual gearbox.

Information on file confirms this Maserati Khamsin is a UK delivered, factory right hand drive example. Maserati only built 430 Khamsins of which incredibly 71 were factory right hand drive. This particular car produced on 31st October 1979 and delivered in ‘oro longchamps’ (metallic gold) with a ‘fungo’ (beige) interior.

People in the know consider the Khamsin a well kept secret. They consider the Khamsin to be quite simply the most refined, satisfying, competent grand tourer of its day. It has better handling than its predecessor, the Ghibli, an almost perfect 50/ 50 weight balance per axle. It is very agile for its weight and very forgiving when the limit is reached. It is incredibly comfortable to drive, tracks arrow straight on the motorway at any speed and will be happy on the German Autobahn at 230 km/ h all day with bursts to 270 km/ h. Its top speed is only limited by the gearing.

This particular car was first registered in the UK on 1st May 1980. Its very early history is not known. On the 5th September 1984 the car was acquired by Chorley Motors in Coventry, UK. It is understood the car was repainted in what we understand was a colour very similar to its current colour in their ownership. The chassis was also painted and the engine bay was coated with a heavy duty enamel paint, we assume for corrosion protection. They kept the car until the 14th April 1988, when it was sold to Roger Stones from Windermere, UK. In March 1989 the car passed its annual MOT and there is a certificate on file confirming the odometer read 27, 306 miles at that time. Stones only kept the car for just over a year before selling it to Pamela Faulkner from Northampton, UK on 27th June 1989. In March 1990 the car passed its MOT again and the mileage was recorded as 27, 934 miles. Faulkner sold the car through an RM Sotheby’s auction in May 1992 to Richard and Louise Crane from Leicester, UK. The Cranes enjoyed their Khamsin for seven years before selling it to the current owner in August 1999. An MOT certificate from 30th March 1999 confirms the mileage as 29, 417 miles at that time.

When the current owner acquired the car, he applied for an import approval and subsequently imported it into Australia. There is a copy of the import approval on file dated 2nd November 1999.

The car arrived into Australia in early 2000, joining an extensive and eclectic collection. It was essentially kept as part of a static collection and never registered or driven in anger on the roads in Australia.

As with all the cars in his collection, the condition of the car was assessed upon its arrival in Australia and a decision was made that it should be repainted. It is understood that this car was repainted some fifteen years ago.

Even though the car now carries what is now considered to be an older repaint, the paint still presents exceptionally well. As a result of the car not being driven since it was repainted, the paint has never been exposed to the harsh Australian sun. The colour is ‘just stunning’ and presents quite differently depending on the light. In a certain light the car presents as magenta with quite a pink tinge, quite similar to the period Maserati colour of rosso fuoco or rossa grenada. In other lights it presents as a darker maroon or burgundy.

All the exterior trim, which is quite minimalistic on Maserati Khamsin, is in good condition and appears to be all original

The glass, which is all etched ‘Saint Gobain’, is generally in very good condition and most likely original. It should be noted that the front windscreen is showing some minor delamination in the bottom right corner. The unique see through section at the rear of the car can easily get scratched but it is in good condition on this car.

The wheels present well and are shod with period correct Michelin XWX tyres. The tyres still look good but they are date stamped 492 (week 49, 1992) and therefore should be replaced based on age.

Open the door and you are welcomed by a good looking and quite sophisticated interior. The colour combination of brown with beige really suits the car.

The seats are all in very good condition and there are no rips or tears evident in the leather. The driver’s seat does show some patina consistent with age, which could easily be rectified by a good ‘leather doctor’. The rear seats appear to have hardly been used. The door cards, centre console and boot area in good condition, though the door cards do show some small marks where the door card meets the top of the dashboard when the door is closed. Again, a good ‘leather doctor’ could easily fix this. The carpets generally present well. The Maserati embossed kick plates on the sill on both sides of the car show some wear.

All the instruments are clear and these along with the switches present well. All the symbols on the switches are clear and clean. There is a period correct Philips radio installed. This car is also fitted with air conditioning.

Today the odometer reads 29, 763 miles which, based on the information on file, is most likely genuine.

This car has been part of a static display since arriving in Australia back in 1999 and It will therefore require recommissioning. Unfortunately, the engine does not turn and it will need to be rebuilt. The positive is that this takes the guess work out of what may be required after sitting for all those years.

Accompanying the car is some historical documentation, an import approval, an original spare wheel and a wheel brace.

Highlights:

- Rare car, being one of only 439 Khamsins ever built and one of only 71 factory RHD examples.
- Desirable 5-speed manual gearbox.
- STUNNING colour scheme.
- Matching numbers chassis and engine.
- A rare car in Australia.
- Beautifully presented.

Price: AUD $209, 950


Background:

The Maserati story is a fascinating one. It is the story of a family with daring, courageous and forward-thinking ideas. The story starts with Rodolfo Maserati, a railway engineer who was employed by the Italian monarchy and the father of seven sons who all had a passion for engine design and racing cars. The Maserati brothers all became involved in the automotive industry in some way or another, however, it was on the 1st of December 1914 that Alfieri, Ettore and Ernesto Maserati officially opened Alfieri Maserati Workshop in Bologna, Italy.

Maserati chose the trident logo to adorn its cars. Its design was based on the Fountain of Neptune in Bologna’s Piazza Maggiore. The colours chosen for the logo were also the colours of Bologna, red and blue.

The business was focused on repairing, servicing and preparing cars, however, the World War cut business short and it wasn’t until 1926 that Maserati built its first car, the Tipo 26.

It was all about motorsport back then and in 1937 the Orsi family acquired ownership of Maserati which was in desperate need of financial backing to be able to survive. During the Orsi years Maserati grew from a boutique but very successful race car builder to one of the world’s leading manufacturers of hand-built sports and GT cars.

Maserati built its first road car in 1946 even though times were tough in post War northern Italy. The car was the Maserati A6 – where ‘A’ was for Alfieri and ‘6’ for the number of cylinders. The initial reception of the car was positive and a ‘production’ Maserati A6/ 1500 was then shown at the 1947 Geneva Motor Show.

This was a significant milestone in the Maserati legend and subsequent models included the A6G/ 2000, 3500 series cars, 5000GT, Mistral. Quattroporte, Mexico, Sebring and Ghibli. Maserati also continued to build very successful race cars that dominated tracks around the world including the 250F, 300S, 150S, 450S and the Birdcage.

Orsi sold to Citroen in 1969. Maserati built some fabulous cars during Citroen’s ownership (including the Indy, Bora, Merak and Khamsin).

The Maserati Khamsin was first introduced at the Turin Auto Show in November 1972. Interestingly it was shown on the Bertone stand as a concept car, not on the Maserati stand.

Maserati showed the production model at the Paris Motor Show in March 1973. Production started in 1974. Unfortunately, the ongoing fuel crises had significantly reduced the demand for big engined grand tourers and when production of the Khamsin finished in 1982 only 430 examples had been produced. This comprised 204 left hand drive cars for the European market, 155 left hand five cars for the American market and 71 right hand drive cars, which were predominantly for the UK market.