Maserati Khamsin

Hello Candide, Bob, Roger,

Have been traveling for two days just got back will answer tomorrow in a separate thread, no Ghiblis or Boras here please sacrebleu donnerwetter mammamia!

Best regards,

Marc

 

Oh please Boras and Khamsins are almost like twins ... exceptional displays of the Citroen high pressure hydraulic technology ... except for that horrific steering ...

Just keeping you honest Marc.

Merry Christmas!

 

Hi all,

Bob good to see you here after sharing comments in what I would call the basement of Fchat, but let's not talk about that the air is far nicer to breathe here and let's stay on topic

Candide, I could have written this last night but after 2 days of driving my Princess "my Khamsin in Louboutins" through France on family visits including hospitals in rain wind sleet and snow and very very nearly spinning on a patch of snow on the autoroute last night -left right left right and left again, don't know how I saved it- and sooo close to hitting a snowplough on the Bellegarde bridge after leaving Geneva and dropping her off -closest call in 20 years!- my eyes weren't facing straight anymore but anyway....

Since you are apparently getting my book for Christmas, since it has the definitive chapter on Bora Gr4's including what Bob and Roger mentioned but also important interviews and research and less importantly my driving impressions of both cars -and I left nothing out- I will let you read it all and, once you have done so, digested it all and recovered from Christmas and new year dinners, if you have any questions we can dig up the old threads about these cars to continue in one of them and NOT be off topic HERE which is the Khamsin thread. Also please call me office hours to discuss your other question.

That being said a very merry Christmas and happy new year to all Khamsinistas and Maseratisti with lots of charismatic miles/kilometers behind the wheel on the right roads!

Here a cute Christmas photo sent to me years ago from Caroline in Cologne who has AM120308 and once said to me: "My Khamsin is female because she is bitchy!"

Marc
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Almost makes me pine for a Khamsin ...

 

I note you have already started on the Eggnog: leave some for me;-)

 

No eggnog, I'm intoxicated by Maseratis

 

I have a Khamsin parts manual reprint and a Maserati promotional pocket book, offered free of charge to any local F-Chatter. Might mail it also. (Downsizing).

PM me.

 

Hi Ivan,

I hardly ever look at these pages these days but saw your remark unanswerred on retard or advance of the ignition at idling: it is retarding and only there to avoid the popping of the exhaust in the overrun.

BTW: Good work! Finally somebody that wrote a in clarifying piece on the K's vacuum system.
On the vacuum vent system: years ago I spent a load of time getting it to work properly in my previuosly owned Khamsin T-Top. It is one of the first mechanically operating temerature controls. When you get it functioning it is a delight!

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Merry X-mas,

Bart

 

Hi Bart,

Good to see you visit here, I love the photo of your Christmas tree delivery vehicle

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Marc

 

Attached a picture of the special dash lay out in the T-Top Khamsin; slightly more in harmony...

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Hi Bart

Thank you for the clarification as I was not aware the retard was to avoid popping. My K pops a little so I will reconnect the retard and play with the timing.

Merry Christmas to all !

Ivan

 

Well that's not what it's for Ivan but it does have the side effect and it makes your idle very smooth. It's to reduce emissions. I see it as an abomination towards the natural performance of this engine. Properly connected and working it will make your car accelerate more slowly. You may notice the advance coming on rather oddly as well when the vacuum bleeds down just off idle. Try it out as see if you agree. It's rather easy to defeat if you don't like it.

 

Listed on BaT, AM120US 1224
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1977-maserati-khamsin/

 

I decided to try Bring a Trailer (BaT) as I believe this type of online auction, where the community gets to comment on the car, has the potential of becoming big in the future.

I would encourage all Khamsins owners to post their comments on BaT during this auction. Most people on BaT have never driven nor perhaps seen a Khamsin in person, and have no idea just how good these cars are. Positive comments from current owners help continue the long process Marc started of changing the image of the Khamsin.

Ivan

 

Good morning Ivan, all,

Happy new year to all Khamsinistas, with many spirited miles ahead: seek the best twisty roads or take it on long Grand Touring trips, that is the spirit

Well certainly there was a lot to be done but articles like this one commenting on your BaT auction which appears to have been written by a wet around the ears teenager do absolutely nothing positive:

http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/classic-cars/a14751934/1977-maserati-khamsin-for-sale/

The writer contributes nothing just parrots hearsay and copied data. Here is what needs to be said again and again. Citroen did not in any way force hydraulics upon Maserati, it was head engineer Giulio Alfieri who saw the hydraulics as a way to make the brakes very powerful, efficient, safe and lasting: even on track they don't fade and are vastly more powerful than feeble Ghibli brakes. The hydraulic steering clutch and brakes also mean that the car is very very easy to drive in traffic with light controls try that in a Trucktona sorry Daytona and you will want to shoot the Ferrari in traffic: I did, really wanted to, many times.
Reliability: as long as you don't give your K to be serviced by bubba shade tree Nascar mechanic it is perfectly reliable. They don't like to sit for months at a time but a simple service with the right competent shop (there are enough) will sort it out and you are ready for the longest trip.

Fact not rumor: during the largest Gathering of Khamsins ever, KHAMSIN QUARANTA which we co- organized, my editor Doug Blair and I in Burgundy June 2012, there were 27 K's. 4 came by trailer, so 23 were driven from as far as Oslo Norway, Vienna, London, Birmingham, Modena, Zurich, all corners of Germany etc thousands of kilometers/miles and only one car had a couple of minor problems. The full time mechanic we had on hand told me he had a boring weekend That is FACT.

So ignore the pedantic ignoramus comments typical of bring a trailer and yes if you as an owner and/or connoisseur feel like commenting correcting the BaT know it alls who in fact know nothing then please do.

Best regards,

Marc

www.maseratikhamsinregistry.com

 

PS: I overreacted a bit to this article which is in fact quite positive, to be fair to the writer. But it is just the parting line about hoping the hydraulics hold together which is damaging, unfortunate, see post above. Of course he has never driven one so is unable to explain WHY and HOW the hydraulics make it such a pleasure to drive with light controls, less than 5% of test drive articles ever published pointed that out.

Best regards,

Marc

 

Unfortunately there are always a lot of moronic, uniformed comments on BAT. Take heart. I loved your comment about it not being a good idea to record notes while driving.
With that super quick and light steering OMG!

Sam was a fun character. I met him at a few NORCAL Maserati events a lot of years ago now. I'm not sure if I ever saw the car though.
Looks good.

 

Hi all,

Bob Grossmann the late longtime Maserati US importer/east coast agent whom I had the pleasure of meeting in the 2000 Maser Miglia was also a talented artist. Someone pointed out that a Khamsin rendering by him was on Ebay, here it is, I like the rear view. I am not involved in the sale.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Maserati-Khamsin-original-art-racer-artist-Bob-Grossman-signed-14X17-/162841969151?rmvSB=true

Best regards,

Marc

 

I find it interesting that he drew a version he never would have sold from his iconic showroom back in the day in NYACK,NY. He drew beautifully The original, European version and not the altered federal bumper version
I think he was very talented and we owe him a great deal of appreciation for the hundreds of Maseratti he brought into the country,
Bob Grossmans Motors was located at the southwest corner of what is today the Palasides Mall in NYACK NY. My dad was his lawyer and he would take me there as a child and I would wander around and explore his showroom and repair/ restoration shop. How I wish we had had cell phone cameras then, and known what we know now. When he eventually moved, I saw a bulldozer bury many old and exotic chassis and parts because he did not want to move them to the hamptons, and his new dealership. I have often walked the grounds wondering what stories lie buried below.
Bob Grossman, talented, and a visionary

 

Hi There, I wondered if anyone knew anything about this advert on EBay, seems to imply he is parting out a Khamsin...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Maserati-Khamsin-AM120-Interior-Genuine-Footrest/302571807754?hash=item4672af640a:gAcAAOSwEQFZrOvT&vxp=mtr

 

Just saw this on ebay and was going to post to see if anyone knew anything about it

 

Hello all,

Mark, Richard, this parts car is in Japan as you may have noticed. This ad has been appearing for some time in fact. Also notice that the seller actually made the effort of hiding the chassis number in one of the photos... So for me to disturb my Japanese friend in Milan who did all she could a few years ago to help me identify the 31 K's sold in Japan (21 of which were automatic) to contact this no doubt rude and possibly unscrupulous breaker's yard chap to ask him the chassis number of the rusty grey Maserati is not something i am going to try, an answer will never come. If one of you wants to message him thanks for trying, I doubt he will answer and would love to be proven wrong Eventually though, I will be able to figure out which it was. Sadly that is the fate of several of them in Japan as I posted years ago here: see photo, I believe it is this one.

More importantly Andrew welcome to the thread and thank you for a beautiful post very evocative of B.G. He was a true Gentleman and it was a true pleasure to meet him during Maser Miglia 2000. In middle of nowhere Ely Nevada, a dry county we found ourselves, Italian car and culture enthusiasts with not one glass of wine allowed with dinner in a "dry county" a very bleak evening....which he saved by telling us an endless amount of great old tales

The story of him bulldozing old parts and perhaps more into the ground is not unique, when Autodelta, Alfa's competition department in Italy closed, Carlo Chiti had lots of things, parts and perhaps even engines and cars bulldozed into the ground to make room...

Best regards,

Marc

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What an absurd price. I have the same exact piece in my Bora and Espada.
You could make one of these pieces of wood with two crudely fashioned locking end caps that's covered by a glued & stapled on piece of ordinary ribbed black floor mat for thousands less ...

This had to be the same little shop in Modena making all of these maybe even Bertone?

 

Hi Bob,

Yes such pieces and countless more were subcontracted by low and high production car manufacturers in Italy more so than most other countries, all these back street shops...quality control was not what it should have been in those days either.

 

Hello all,

1140 sold for a so so price of US$125K plus auction house commission last not in the Gooding auction in Scottsdale Arizona, not a very strong price for a good car but they were never valued as highly in the US and the speculators have decamped to greener pastures. I have asked them what country or US state it went to. As mentioned here before I did the bumper conversion on that car in Ft Lauderdale in December 2006, don't like working on cars at all, just driving with gusto but to undisfigure, to de-Nader-ize a K is mentally and visually orgasmic, like removing those ugly 1970's dental apparatus one used to see in the US from a pretty girl: call it a K-gasm;-)

https://www.goodingco.com/vehicle/1977-maserati-khamsin/

In other news I am heading to Modena this coming week and will see several K's, 3 or 4.

Best regards,

Marc