real quality work, wonderful
Thanks for the link, Love the detail pictures of bumper referbishment. I am amazed they managed to paint it without removing the trim inside and out. Graeme
Graeme, That's what I call an army-paintjob: just smear glycerine on all glass, paint, wash and done. Wouter went a little further correcting that, wonderful job.
Greetings from rainy le mans, 2 k's here, 008 & 124, Marius and René were here friday with me and should reach Oslo tomorrow eve after another 1900kms on 008! By the way we had excellent reliability at k40 so that lays to rest a myth, maintain it use ànd it will be fine! Will post pix when i get home. Best regards, Marc
Thanks for your hospitality in Burgundy and Le Mans Marc! K008 has now met his twin in Denmark, and we will head for Norway in seven hours. The detour via Le Mans gave us some extra distance for the trip back home, so K40 added 5200 kms. to 008's clock in just three weeks. We had no trouble with the car. Like I said in my short speech at Gilly "It's a classic Maserati, what could possible go wrong?". The car next to 008 is in a different league, and John is building a car that's totally new. The work is carried at to the very highest standards, and will for sure be one of the best Khamsins when completed. Also a big thanks to John and his family for taking us in for the night. Hope your test drive will be an inspirations for many long hours in the garage. Best regards Marius and René Image Unavailable, Please Login
hello Marius, René, all: Just back from Le Mans, home in Burgundy, you are most welcome, I really enjoyed our time and it was very nice to see you exchange information with the French owner of 124 at LMC, very different people fron different countries united by one passion and yes John in Copenhagen must have been very happy to ride in/drive your car, the best possible motivation to continue his amazing work not that he needs motivating! I hope you got safely home to Oslo tonight, I will post photos in a day or three of 321, whose owner lent me some shots at Le Mans Classic, a car that has not been seen at all as far as I know. It is right hand drive but lives in Paris owned by David Karslake one of the French Jaguar club directors. I had the nice surprise of meeting Anthony owner of 409 at LMC it was great to see him again after K40 and it was funny to suddenly recognize him -there were 107000 people!- and to notice he was wearing his K40 polo shirt! best regards, Marc
This is the same one that had floor damage and rear suspension arm damage but at a much higher price isn't it? I'm sure this was on bringatrailer.com
Indeed it was, and the sales link was (and is) hemmings: http://bringatrailer.com/2011/10/19/1975-maserati-khamsin-fixer/ Price dropped from $35k/negotiable October 2011 to $22k/negotiable now. Someone offer the guy $20k and restore it already ;-)
This is Carmine's car: he has been through more important things than old cars recently...he and this K deserve a solution. MS
Hey! I know that car! Mitch, It was nice talking with you. Thanks for the offer. I'll consider what we said. Yes. The previous owner bottomed it out and the floor pans under the driver's and passenger's feet are dented in. Also, the left rear lower control arm is a bit bent. Can likely be straightened, but may have to be replaced. A few months ago, I thought I might recover what I've got into it. I think the asking price now is more realistic. Thanks, Marc. You see, while you fancy Euro guys were cruising around Dijon, drinking wine and enjoying the beautiful French countryside, I've been here trying to get my kid through college, pay the rest of the child support to his Mom, and get my business back on track after the slowest period of work I've had in thirty years. By the way, somebody post more photos and videos of K-40 so I can Photoshop myself into one. I think I would like to be standing between Marc and Sr. Gandini with our arms on each other's shoulders. I've got a bit of business lately and feel that things may be picking up a bit. If I can get through the next two years, I will be okay. If I keep the Khamsin, I will do a complete restoration at that time. If I've sold it before then, I will pitch a tent on the bank of a remote and quiet trout stream and nobody will ever hear from me again ... Image Unavailable, Please Login
Carmine, you could do worse than a remote and quiet trout stream. I'd like to find one of those myself... Best of luck with your business and I hope you can hang on to the car and restore it to its former glory - and enjoy it.
Sorry to hear of the circumstances...its not easy making those kinds of decisions. Hope you get to keep it and get to see it restored to its former glory
If I had a spare $22K I'd be buying this today. I really believe that the Khamsin has all the ingredients to be a great investment [ now I do appreciate thats not why you actually have one but its still nice to know you're not just pouring money away when you restore it ] The Ghiblis are now going through the roof , the Boras that I was dreaming of buying 8 years ago are now double in price and Khamsins are a rare beast and the last old school V8 Maserati with fabulous looks. So if you can hold on I would be surprised if this doesn't double in the next few years
Hi Julian, Although we have these cars for reasons of passion, of course it's nice to know that it could be worth something also. I don't quite understand why the Ghibli is so highly valued while the Khamsin -- a much rarer and more technically sophisticated car -- is much less so. I expect that this might change at some time in the future. I really like the car and it's not costing me much to store it. So if I can't sell it for enough to help out other things in life -- I'd prefer to keep it. (Actually, in any case I'd prefer to keep it). I am trained as a machine designer and my business is process plant systems. I also have a small machine shop. I am a nit-picker and I like to explore complicated systems. So I really want to do a complete restoration and really come to understand every aspect of the car. Regards, Carmine
Carmine, Sorry to hear about your quandary, I hope it all pans out in the end. Suggestion: Why don't you start improving things on the car that are within your capabilities? A lot of things require just elbow-grease. Straighten that rear wishbone and start hammering the floor straight. Once it's roadworthy, it has already doubled in value. Good luck, Jack.
Hi Jack. Everything always works out well at some point. I seen enough of the world to understand that my life is very easy. Thanks for that thought. Funny you should say, because right now I am working on replacement door handles. I've seen two Khamsins with broken hinges on the handles. The plastic housing seems to be a weak point, (likely since it was sourced from a car with much lighter doors). I am working on dies to stamp those parts from steel or aluminum.
That's the spirit Carmine! I know how you feel having had to decide I had no choice but to sell my car in 2007. We look forward to your thoughts on door handles and anything else and as Jack says elbow grease is free! Getting it mobile is not costly -before anyone shoots me down I wrote mobile not Pebble Beached!- and will greatly improve its attractiveness to buyers...and more importantly to...you. That has an energizing effect as I can attest from K40 and from le Mans Classic where I was smiling in the rain at 4am seeing icons slosh and roar past! Plenty more K40 photos coming don't worry! K40 participants: I am about to send you the email contact list for those who wanted to be included and I am also about to start sending out CD's by post with personalized content, sorry for the delay but swamped with work, need a holiday but no time for it! best regards, Marc
Hi, Here is a video we shot on our return of K008 from Dijon, via Le Mans Classic, back home to Norway. [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gho7iCOhLao[/ame] Next time we will use an external mic. Best regards Marius
Hello Marius, Thanks for posting, very nice, these little cameras do a great job, I was amazed to see that half the cars at le Mans Classic had them. I think the Gendarme at 2.02 minutes must be thinking "Ahah proof that UFOs are from Norway I always knew it sacrebleu!" Nice overtaking at 10.08, you learned French driving quickly External microphones....wind noise when a camera or microphone is outside can be seriously unpleasant, witness this video (not with a Khamsin but with a Lamborghini Islero) which I did last year: put your fingers in your ears first and don't repeat my mistake! I certainly won't be holding a small camera outside a car window again. [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iv1mx3pJ9Hc&feature=plcp[/ame] Putting the camera on a car following and leading the K on a nice twisting road, keeping 3 to 5 meters away should give great results...hopefully with short tunnels best regards, Marc
Hi Carmine Given they are Montreal handels its worth the trouble to get them made. May I suggest cast in stainless Regards Graeme
Hi Graeme, You have very good taste. I have in mind to form the black plastic part from light gauge steel plate and machine the handle from aluminum bar stock. The steel plate: probably send out for media blast and powder coat satin black. The handle: high polish finish. Then maybe silver powder coat, (which can appear to be almost chrome). Carmine
