Maserati Karif

Saturday 23 March 2013
The Maserati Karif (Tipo 339) is a luxury coupé produced by Maserati between 1988 and 1992. It was designed to be luxurious but also sporty and agile to allow the driver to "feel like a racing driver again or for the first time". The Karif uses the same shortened chassis as the Zagato-bodied Maserati Spyder model, leading to a somewhat truncated look in the sideview. It was met with mixed reviews as it did not live up to expectations of another Bora.
In a reversion to Maserati's earlier naming practices, the car was named after the wind called "Karif" which blows South West across the Gulf of Aden at Berbera, Somalia.
The Karif had an engine it shared with the Maserati Biturbo, the AM473, a 2.8 L V6 engine with 3 valves per cylinder. It produces 285 brake horsepower (213 kW) at 5500 rpm which can take the car from 0–97 km/h (0-60 mph) in 4.8 seconds and up to a top speed of 255 km/h (158 mph). Other sources claim 248 brake horsepower (185 kW), and 224 bhp (167 kW) for the catalyzed model. With these lower power outputs, claimed top speeds were 233 and 230 km/h (145 and 143 mph) respectively.



Technical data:
- engine: V6
- capacity: 2800 cc
- horsepower: 285 HP
- gearbox: 5+1
- top speed: 255 km/h

Maserati Mistral

Monday 01 February 2010
The Maserati Mistral (Tipo 109), named after a cold northerly wind of southern France, was the successor to the iconic 3500 GT, it was also the first in a series of classic Maseratis to be given the name of a wind. It was offered both in Coupe and Spyder form. 830 coupes and 120 Spyders were built in total. The Mistral is the last model from the "Casa del Tridente" or “House of the Trident” to have the famous straight six cylinder, twin-spark, double overhead cam engine, as fitted to the Maserati 250F Grand Prix cars that won 8 Grand Prix between 1954 and 1960 and one F1 World Championship in 1957 driven by Juan Manuel Fangio. The engine also featured hemispherical combustion chambers and was fed by a Lucas indirect fuel injection system which was novelty at the time for Italian car manufacturers. Although the Lucas fuel injection system enhances performance, quite a few owners, especially in the U.S. have converted their cars to Weber carburetors due to difficulties in tuning the system properly. Maserati subsequently moved on to V8 engines for their later production cars. There were three engine variants fitted to the Mistral; 3500, 3700 and 4,000 cc. The most sought after derivative is the 4000 cc model. Only the earliest of the Mistrals were equipped with the 3500 cc engine. Unusually, the body was offered in both aluminum and steel but no one is quite sure as to how many of each were built. Use of the aluminum body panels had no effect on the performance of the Mistral. The mixture of the aluminum body on a steel substructure can lead to corrosion due to the dissimilar metals. The automobile was standard with a five speed transmission from ZF and also had four wheel solid disc brakes. As was Maserati's practice at the time the front suspension was independent while the rear made do with a solid axle. Speed for the 3.7 liter engine and the 4.0 liter engine was around 7 seconds or a little better and the top speed was around 140 mph (225 km/h) to 145 mph (233 km/h). The body which had been designed by Pietro Frua was first shown in a preview at the Salone Internazionale dell'Automobile di Torino in November 1963. The Maserati Mistral is generally considered as one of the most beautiful Maserati of all time. It is also often confused to the very similar looking but larger and more powerful AC Frua, which was a Frua design as well.


Technical data:
- engine: 6 cylinders
- capacity: 3500 cc
- horsepower: 235 HP
- gearbox: 5+1
- top speed: 230 km/h

Maserati 3500 GTI

Tuesday 27 January 2010
Maserati's chief engineer Giulio Alfieri developed the two 2+2 prototype 3500GT, revealed at the Salon International de l'Auto in Geneva, March 1957. Both had a 2,600 mm (102.4 in) wheelbase and aluminum bodywork; one a superleggera body by Carrozzeria Touring of Milan, the other by Carrozzeria Allemano. The design incorporated Maserati 350S-derived straight-six cylinder, DOHC 3485 cc litre 42 DCOE Weber carburetor engine (220 bhp at 5500 rpm), mechanical Magneti-Marelli ignition, dual spark plugs and dual fuelpump, 4-speed ZF S4-17 gearbox (2.98:1, 1.99:1, 1.34:1, 1:1), Girling 12" turbofinned drum brakes front and rear Borg & Beck-made single-plate dry clutch, live rear axle, differential (mechanics) by Salisbury,
suspension by Alford & Alder: Front wishbone and coil-springed suspension; rear semielliptic springs, 16" steel wheels with 6.5" Pirelli Cinturato diagonal tires.
Minor design changes were done before production of the 1,420 kg (3,131 lb) Touring-based body started late 1957. Front disc brakes and limited slip differential became optional in 1959, standardized in 1960; rear discs became standard in 1962. Borrani knock-out wire wheels complemented the standard steel wheels, as well as wider 185x16" radial tyres. All cars had leather interior and Jaeger-LeCoultre instruments. Power windows was added as standard. In 1959 the Maserati 5000 GT was introduced, using the chassis of the 3500GT. Two steel-bodied convertible prototypes by Carrozzeria Vignale and Michelotti were developed in 1959 and shown at the Salon de l'Auto in Paris 1959. A spider made by Carrozzeria Vignale went into production in 1960, as the 3500 GTs or just «Vignale spider», and had a shortened 2,499 mm (98.4 in) chassis weighing 1,380 kg (3,042 lb). The 3500 GTi was introduced in 1961 as the first fuel-injected Italian production car. It had a Lucas fuel injection (235 bhp). A 5-speed ZF S5-17 gearbox was now standard (3.02:1, 1.85:1, 1.29:1, 1:1, 0.85:1), as well as disc brakes all round. The body had a lowered roofline and become somewhat longer; minor outward changes appeared as well (new grille, rear lights, vent windows). The rather similar Maserati Sebring (3500 GTiS) also a 2+2 coupe entered production in 1962. The first year (1958) sold 119 cars, 1961 was the best-selling year totalling 500. All together, 242 Vignale convertibles and nearly 2000 coupes were manufactured, of these, 1973 being Touring coupe, the rest were bodied by other coachbuildes, Carrozzeria Allemano (four coupes, including the 1957 prototype), Zagato (one coupe, 1957), Carrozzeria Boneschi (two cars; 1962, 1963 Salone dell'automobile di Torino, 1962); Salon International de l'Auto in Geneva, 1963), Pietro Frua (two or three coupes, one spider) and Bertone (one coupe). The last was a coupe by Moretti (Salon International de l'Auto in Geneva, 1966).

Technical data:
- engine: 6 cylinders
- capacity: 3458 cc
- horsepower: 220 HP
- gearbox: 4+1
- top speed: 220 km/h

Maserati Khamsin

Thursday 26 November 2009
The Maserati Khamsin (named after the Khamsin, a hot, violent wind in the Egyptian desert) was a sports car introduced as a Bertone prototype in 1972 at the Turin Auto Show. The next year it was on display at the Paris Motor Show, badged as a Maserati. Production started in 1974. The car sported a front mounted 4.9 litre V-8 delivering 320 hp, housed in bodywork that resembled a lower, flatter Ghibli, designed by Bertone. Production of the Khamsin ended in 1982, with only 430 vehicles produced. The Khamsin had several unusual features, such as DIRAVI power steering, with higher than usual assistance for parking, decreasing with speed, and a glass rear panel (between the taillights) below the rear window, giving reverse visibility surpassing most cars, especially similar sports cars.

Technical data:
- engine: V8
- capacity: 4930 cc
- horsepower: 320 HP
- gearbox: 5+1
- top speed: 280 km/h

Maserati Biturbo

Friday 23 October 2009
The Maserati Biturbo is a sports car introduced by Maserati in 1981. The Biturbo was a two-door, four-seater notchback coupé (of somewhat smaller dimensions than the BMW 3 Series of the time) featuring, as the name implies, a two-litre V-6 engine with two turbochargers and a luxurious interior. The car was designed by Pierangelo Andreani, an engineer from the De Tomaso team, somewhat influenced by the design of the newer Quattroporte III (Italdesign Giugiaro), as can be observed on the front fascia. Export versions came initially with a 2.5L V6, after 1989 it was enlarged to 2.8 Litres, while for Italy a two-litre high-performance version was originally produced (to avoid the 38% sales tax imposed at the time on cars displacing more than 2000 cc). The aluminum 90 degree SOHC V6 engine was roughly based on the 2.0L Merak engine. Itself based on earlier V8 Formula One Maserati engines, designed by Giulio Alfieri (1924 - 2002). The carbureted 2.5L engine produced 185 hp (138 kW) and 208 lb·ft (282 N·m) of torque in North American spec and slightly more elsewhere. Fuel injection was fitted in 1987 raising power to 187 hp (139 kW). In 1989 the 2.8L engine bumped power to 225 hp (168 kW) and 246 lb·ft (334 N·m) of torque for North America and 250 hp (186 kW) for Europe. All Maserati models from the Biturbo's introduction in 1981 until 1997 (except the Quattroporte) were based on the original Biturbo architecture, among them the four-door 420/425 and 4.24v, the Spyder, the Karif , the 228 and 2.24v, the Maserati Racing and the later Shamal and Ghibli II.

Technical data:
- engine: V6
- capacity: 1996 cc
- horsepower: 180 HP
- gearbox: 5+1
- top speed: 215 km/h

Lancia Delta HF Integrale

Thursday 15 October 2009
The first Delta was a five-door hatchback designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro and released in 1979. For a period of time, it was also sold in Sweden by Saab Automobile, badged as the Saab 600. Saab assisted with some areas of the car's design and as a result the Delta was better suited for colder climates and less prone to rust than other Lancias.[citation needed] Key competitors were the Volkswagen Golf, Opel Astra/Kadett and Ford Escort. For a few years after its launch, the Delta was one of the most contemporarily styled cars of its class in Europe and was voted Car of the Year in 1980. While the majority of Delta models were ordinary small family cars, the most famous model was the Delta HF Integrale, a four-wheel drive hot hatch with a powerful turbocharged petrol engine. A tweaked version of the HF dominated the World Rally Championship, scoring 46 WRC victories overall and winning the Constructors Championship a record six times in a row from 1987 to 1992, in addition to Drivers' Championship titles for Juha Kankkunen (1987 and 1991) and Miki Biasion (1988 and 1989).

Technical data:
- engine: 4 cylinders
- capacity: 1995 cc
- horsepower: 181 HP
- gearbox: 5+1
- top speed: 215 km/h