In November I bought a 1960 Maserati 3500 GT owned by one family for the last 48 years. This is an incredible original time capsule that runs as well as it looks. The car carries its original paint, leather, carpets, door and trunk rubber, glass, and all of its original chrome. It only has 32,000 original miles. Last weekend I entered he car in the Desert Concours here in Palm Springs and won first place in the preservation class. This was the first time out for the car. I will not restore the car, nor chrome anything, it must be left totally original. The factory told me that there were only three 3500's painted this special color "Grigio Nembo" (cloud grey) My first venture into Italian cars was in 1976 when I bought a red 3500GT. I have now come full circle. The history of the car is amazing as well. All you need to do is google "2901 Broadway San Francisco" and you will see the carriage house where the car sat for most of the 48 years. If you are in the desert please send me a pm. Ciao, FGM Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Documents that came with the car show the following. AM101.708 Carrozzeria Touring Number 6823 A one family owned car since April 20,1962. A true time capsule. Totally original. According to Fabio Colina at Maserati SpA Historical Dept. The car was ordered in November 1959. The first request of the Customer was to have the external colour "Grigio Fumo", but later he asked to change the colour. So the car was produced with external colour "Grigio Nembo" (code Savidin 4710) a very unusual colour. The interior were "Neutra" leather (white) (code Connoly PAC.1544). The car was equipped with front brakes disks, disc rims Borrani, manual gearbox, seat belts (driver and passenger). The engine was equipped with Weber 42 DCOE6 carburetors. The instrument cluster was "Smiths" type. The car was dispatched to Mr. Stanley W. Good Jr. in California on late December 1959, and on February 1960 the Customer received the car. We believe Mr. Good was a dealer who ordered the car for Dr. Henry C Portalupi On April 20 1962 the car was Purchased by SF Businessman Mitchel L. Mitchell from Mary E. Portalupi the wife of Henry C Portalupi, of San Francisco. Mary E. Portalupi had recently acquired the car in a divorce settlement with Henry C Portalupi, MD. Mitchel L. purchased the car with 3500 miles on the odometer. During the time Mitchel L. owned the car, it was always garaged at 2901 Broadway SF. Mr. Mitchel L. Mitchell, passed away in April 1987. On December 24th 1987 the title to the car was passed to his now 70 year old daughter Gladyne K. Mitchell. The car sat in the garage at 2901 Broadway until 1997 (10 years) when it was put into storage in Sonoma Wine country for 13 years. Then in Sept 2010 Tony Mitchell the grandson of Mitchel L. Mitchell and son of Holbrook T Mitchel (Mitchel L Mitchell son) took the car out of the storage and got it running in order to sell. Tony said he had driven the car to the Concorso Italiano and had parked the car in the corral when the show was at Quail. On Oct 29, 2010 Gladyne K. Mitchell sold it through Gull Wing Motor Cars - a NY broker - to Francis G. Mandarano. Upon Googling Mrs. Gladyne K. Mitchell, Mandarano discovered she is a San Francisco socialite who still owns her fathers home which can only be described as a Renaissance Palace built in 1927 on the gold coast hilltop in San Francisco The address is 2901 Broadway in San Francisco. Please see a copy of the title of the 3500 GT which clearly shows the 2901 Broadway address and Gladynes signature. It appears her father was a car guy who owned many cars over the years. Check out the following links to see this amazing home which is currently on the market for $45 million dollars. If you google 2901 Broadway San Francisco you will get 147,000 hits. http://www.redfin.com/CA/San-Francisco/2901-Broadway-St-94115/home/1419428 The most amazing find was in the original owners manual that came with the car. There I found where Mitchell L. recorded every service all the way up to 36,700 indicated miles. I bought it with 36,750 miles. Because the speedo is off by 18% the car actually has less than 33,000 miles. Ciao, FGM
Great car. My father was just down there at the Desert Classic and sent me the first draft of his article. He's bringing me the photos tomorrow so I can go through both and we can put together the coverage, which for the last two years has gone into Hemmings Motor News. I've always loved the 3500. Such a pretty car, although when it was new, it wasn't the most notoriously reliable car. My favorite 3500GT story is that my father had three friends (one of whom was the man who introduced my father to my mother) who all bought new 3500GTs in Seattle all around the same time. In a couple years of ownership, AT NO TIME were all three cars on the road. Granted, this has more to say about the quality of the mechanics and the parts availability than the actual car, but I always thought it was funny. Look forward to seeing it at Exotics At Redmond Town Center! (At which time, if my father sees it before I have a chance to make it up there, I'm sure he'll retell his three 3500 story.) Enjoy it and congrats on the trophy.
Absolutely stunning car Frank. Congrats on that find, and the trophy! I hope that you hold on to this as long as possible, to add another beautiful piece of tapestry to the already remarkable history of 708. I hope to see it in person some day. Please find some interior photographs to attach. I would love to see Connolly "Neutra".
Here are a few more photos. Ciao, FGM Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Fabulous car. I wish more owners would keep their cars original. Thank you very much for doing so. History can not be replicated nor restored.
Here is the other thread about finding the car and bringing it home, http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=304861&highlight=2901+Broadway+San+Francisco
These are some of the photos in which i made the decision to purchase the car instantly. I Just paid the price and wired the $$$. Ciao, FGM Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
You going to bring it back up north after having fun down there in the desert Frank? If do it will be nice to check it out in person some time! Congrats again on the buy, it looks like it's in great shape for being all original! You know what they say.....it's only original once!! John
Yes, I plan to truck it back to Mercer Is in May/June depending on the weather forcast. I also plan to drive it up to Vancouver with the Club in June. Ciao, FGM
Frank buys Concours Italiano Frank buys Barn Find Maserati Concours Italiano starts new featured judging category: Barn Finds Front page of website: http://www.concorso.com/ I wonder if Roy will be a sponsor? Concours Italiano to Celebrate Originals and Barn Finds Celebrating Originals & Barn Finds As the saying goes, “You can only have an original car once.” This year we are delighted to be honoring these great survivors and recognizing those owners who have helped to preserve their originality and have resisted the temptation to restore, and in a worst case scenario, over-restore. Concorso Italiano has a long history of recognizing great Italian cars as they are. Our qualifications are simple, “Just wash it, and bring it.” We want your Original and/or Barn Find Italian Car to be featured at this year’s show. To qualify for our Centerpiece Display you will need to have an original un-restored 1973 or earlier Italian car. This means, original, or 80% original paint, original chrome, original interior, including leather and carpets. Mechanically the car can, of course, have been serviced, and should be in operating condition. Modern tires are acceptable if they are of the size originally equipped by the factory. You must be able to document the originality of your car. Some exceptions may be allowed. To apply for consideration in the Centerpiece Display please send a description of your car along with some digital photos. Please type “centerpiece display” in the subject line. The Centerpiece Display will feature a fascinating exhibit of a broad range of cars from all Italian Marques. Cars will be selected from the Centerpiece Display for presentation on stage based on several criteria including uniqueness, interesting find story, etc. All applications will be reviewed and a limited number of participants will be selected. Don’t delay. Contact us right away. ~ Concorso Italiano
Uhhh if you look at the bottom of the page you will see that Cats Exotics is already an "associate sponsor". So I guess the answer to your question is Yes, Roy will be a sponsor.
