Hello Pascal! Wonderful to have you join us: welcome! Doug Blair my co organizer will organize a convoy though not everyone from the UK is leaving the same day. Emailing you in one minute! -Many thanks Carmine I am far from the only one who will appreciate it. -Al keep up the good work! best regards, Marc
I got details of the original colour of my car via the factory: Oro Longchamps (Salchi code 106Y23). Got the sample from the paint shop which was quite dark compared to my car. We used a sample from the car which is nearest to an old Renault colour! I have decided to do a complete respray on the car as there are a few bits all over the car which need touching up or would need work in the next couple of years Does anyone have a pic of a car in that original colour? I am toying with a complete change to a different colour as I do like the deep burgandy colour I have seen I had posted earlier about the chocolate coloured dash top. Is it Alcantara? Any ideas how to re colour it? Or colour code? Paul
Hi Paul, I too think the Khamsin looks great in a shade like Rosso Rubino and was toying with changing the colour on my car. Great choice as it will look good with your interior. I think pictures of Khamsins in Oro Longchamps have come up on this thread before, isn't the car owned by Cameron Millar in that paint, I'm sure Marc has posted pictures? Also think it was the original colour of 409 above. Al, 409 looks good though red wouldn't have been my choice it is down to the customer in the end. Great work. Bal
Hello Paul and Bal: Yes Bal great guess #325 the late Cameron Millar's car is oro longchamp, I never thought that far. Here is a Bora in that color: http://www.motorcargallery.com/car_06.html Paul in my humble opinion you should keep it in that color (or go for oro chiaro which is sublime, like #004 was initially (and will be again soon!). It is such a rare color and so many k's that were gold have been repainted in plain colors...as a matter of fact yours 381 and 325 Are the only K's in Europe in gold along with 256 at the Manro Classic museum in Austria, another mystery car in Budapest and in the US there are or were just two left in gold, my ex car 1242 -oro kelso which is darker-and another which I never saw, even in photo. There were other US gold cars but repainted eons ago.There is one in Oz, 353, and that is it. Yes rosso cordoba is gorgeous as is any shade of Burgundy and you bal would do really well to go for that color as there are sooo many silver cars (no offense meant) Again the last thing I would want to do is to impose my views since I can't stand anyone telling others what to do but it is just my 2 cents. best regards, Marc
Here is AM120353 owned by Dilip Sen in Australia, photo courtesy him and MIE/VCM. best regards, Marc Image Unavailable, Please Login
hi Marc/Bal Not made any decision on the colour change. these cars seem the same shade as mine although the sample from the paint supplier was clearly darker and the paint shop have found darker paint under the top coats when doing repairs I think i will stick with the current colour which although lighter possibly shows the lines off better Am always open to suggestions and advice! i give advice for a living so cant refuse to listen to what people say to me! lol I drove the car to the garage with the windscreen out! Certainly hear the engine! It does have a small miss which sounds like a plug lead shorting? noticed this a few times but thought was just dampness and had discussed this with Bal I take it the plug leads are standard and nothing special needed? The old girls will be off the raod for a month or so getting the paint done and the repairs Will post pics as she progresses Paul
I recall when 5 MPH bumpers became law in the USA, so I understand the bumper changes. But what was the factory's reasoning for relocating the tailights out of the glass panel and onto the sheet metal bodywork for USA cars?
Looking at differences between cars in photo's I notice that some have mechanisms that make the wipers move parallel, whilst others have wipers moving to and fro from each other. What I can't figure out is when which was used. Same goes for outside rear-view mirrors, I see a few different styles. Which were the factory-styles, did this differ per market? Waiting for all the parts to arrive to assemble the replacement a/c compressor, so I can finally go fetch my car, I'm getting somewhat anxious by now. All the waiting is becoming quite frustrating. Missing out, beautiful driving weather here in the fair Cape, and roads beconing!
Hello all: In haste: Paul: Yes current color looks great! Driving w/out wshield that's a new one: the true Khamsin wind experience! Good luck with the work, keep us informed! The plug lead question is not for me: Graeme, anyone? Carmine: it was not Maserati but the US regulators who mandated that the rear lights could not be in the glass. There is no doubt about that. Whether it was because they did not want them inset in the glass or because they had to be at a certain height does not really matter, that is how the US version ended up because of them. Graeme: No I do not have Dilip Sen's coordinates, will ask MIE since he has dealt with them, back to you by PM with result. Jack: Sorry about your delays but your first drives will make you forget these hassles entirely Wipers: I spent quite some time looking at the problem and going through my entire Registry files for the book chapter. There is no logic is the answer! All US cars were crossed wipers, In Europe it is not so simple, a mix of parallel and crossed wipers. best regards, Marc
Graeme: No I do not have Dilip Sen's coordinates, will ask MIE since he has dealt with them, back to you by PM with result. Hi Marc I am interested to know who now owns the car. Cheers Graeme
The plug lead question is not for me: Graeme, anyone? best regards, Marc[/QUOTE] Hi Marc Plug leads best awnsered as to what I know. The original plug leads are solid copper leads with ceramic/micata suppressors which are a light brown colour. They had white plug lead numbers on them. MIE sell them and the chrome supports and there have been some on Ebay from time to time. If they are copper they may well be braking down though age and the suppressors have a life. Personally decent induction wound leads are far better but they to have a life. Regards Graeme
Hi f308jack, The mirrors was often supplied by the dealers, so you will see all kinds of mirrors on Maserati's from the 70ies. One exception may be the electrically operated Vitalonis with the small joystick. It was a lot of minor changes between the first cars and the later ones, and I'm tempted to state that it was three "models". The differences between "S1" and "S2" Wipers folding together, different carpets, other front seats, slimmer "B-pillars" and structure under rear side windows (speakers not pointing forwards), different padding for the center tunnel, missing description for the many knobs on the center console, missing tow hooks front and rear. Because of this the rear seat on "S1" is wider, but the leg room is even smaller than "S2" because the seat frames around the bottom of the seats. In addition the early cars had closed nose without the slats, but many was retrofitted and few "closed nose" cars are left. The third model is the US version, and it`s interesting to note that all the US versions had the "S2" specification, except for the wipers, even the ones produced in -74 (or early -75). The "S1" model must have been produced for quite some time as I have seen cars with chassis numbers starting with 100. It would have been interesting to know when the "S2" was introduced, and if any "S1" cars was built after that, but I suspect nobody knows for sure. The oldest production Khamsin (008) and the first US model (US1000) has been in the same garage most of this winter, so we had the opportunity to compare the two. Best regards Marius
Interesting answers, thanks. Of course I asked for a reason, as 435 has the bowl-shaped mirrors on both doors (I believe these are seen on many earlier K's?) and the crossed wipers, just details, but to me they make the car more attractive: I had the flappy mirrors (Vitaloni) on my 308 and hated them, they just never looked right to me. Few cars, if any, in 1982 had the drossed arm wipers, and although I won't see them in motion a lot, again just a detail I really like. Marc, Yes, I'm sure that you're right in saying that the first drives will make up for all the waiting and anticipation. She's finally mine (you know how long it took) and I really want her home now! Btw, can I download or purchase a parts-book and workshop manual anywhere?
Hi Jack, My car too has the bowl shaped mirrors on both doors with the crossed wipers (it's one chassis number earlier than yours). Though I agree with the comments that the mirrors were down to the dealers. Paul, When I had my engine rebuilt last year I had to replace the leads and ended up buying a set from McGraths. As tested at least three of my car's leads had poor readings when tested on a multimeter. The new set whilst not exactly the same as original (i.e. red leads with rubber seals at the spark plug end) at least did the job. Like the guys say they are the same as those sold by MIE and Jacques and sometimes come up on EBay. All the best with the paint work, look forward to the results. Bal
Bal, If no Khamsins left the factory with mirrors (hard to believe, in many countries they were mandatory, at least on the drivers door) the dealers who delivered our cars new had good taste Why doesn't our good man Ivan have the parts- and workshop manuals on his site? Do they even exist in digitized form?
Manuals used to be on the factory site, no longer apparently, I just checked. I am surprised when you say Ivan does not have them on his site: have you looked at this page? http://www.thecarnut.com/maseratimanuals.html Failing that you can buy a reprint from MIE. best regards, Marc
Just an FYI.... There are actually two parts manuals for the Khamsin... The first is the main parts manual showing all the parts involved in each of the major systems... The second is the USA 75 parts manual that shows additional/different parts for USA versions... You may need/want both, depending on where your car came from.... Hope this helps... Mike
f308jack: "Btw, can I download or purchase a parts-book and workshop manual anywhere?" abarth69: "I could use the parts book and shop manual also". Guys, Reprints of many of the parts and owner's manuals are available from MaseratiNet.Com. Carmine
I have the original factory Parts book and Maintenance manual both in pretty good condition, if any one is interested
You're probably right Jack in that they must have had at least one, but dependant on target market. pdf versions of the user manual were available on Maserati's site a long while back for free. Ivan has most models. The parts manual wasn't available anywhere in pdf form when I searched. But as the guys say MIE sell them and I've seen copies appear on ebay in the past. I'l have to scan my copy when I get a new scanner just in case. Bal
