Maserati Bora - Picture Thread

I was inspired - or maybe just ashamed of my lack of progress, but here's another one that is being rejuvenated. In this case, it started with a bad water pump, but now is an engine rebuild (partly so I can paint the heads properly), hydraulic system renewal, finishing the Euro bumper conversion in the rear, R134 A/C, and cosmetics. No paint work other than the new valance panel. This one is US974.
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GLB.
Great. I will be removing engine / gearbox tomorrow.
R u building your engine to stock standard ?or beefing it up a touch.
I hope to get some higher compression pistons . I anyone has a contact for engine internals to increase horespower i would appreciate the details.
Greg

 

In the late 1990s I made contact via a friend who used to sell vintage Maserati parts as a business with a guy who built race engines. He did a lot of drag engines. He worked over a Bora for a wealthy customer and they spent a lot of money that resulted in an engine with something just under 400HP maybe high 380s? Mostly it was done via better air flow as I remember it. I have no idea how it actually ran in the car except that he told me it was a much thirstier car after this. He didn't recommend I do it.

With more power you will get even more heat and yes you can improve the radiator and even use an electric water pump but the problem of poor airflow in that engine compartment remains unless you start modifying the car in ways that will spoil the originality. Look at the two Thepenier Boras. I don't think you're going to be doing that.
If you drive the car briskly for extended periods in hot weather eventually heat soak in that engine compartment will get you. If you're careful and most people are then a well sorted car can get by. I'd be worried that another 70-80 hp would create issues.

These engines cannot be safely run hotter than what is recommended by the factory. I asked that question directly of Ing. Alfieri and he emphatically said no, no, no! I was too polite to ask why he screwed up the airflow so badly in the engine compartment. He was an honored guest and his english was not so great. My friend who did some interpreting was even more polite than I. We didn't have the concrete proof of this issue at that time anyway. We just knew there was a problem we couldn't remedy. Later in 1994 I wish I could have asked him about these issues when I met him again this time in Modena at the factory Revista but it was a large crowd and you don't just run up to someone like that and start chewing his ear off about some foibles of a 25 year old design. He designed and built a pretty wonderful car. Not too many people are nutty enough to try and race it the desert ...

 

These kinds of discussions always remind me of a time back in 1979 when I was talking with an important Factory engineer who had worked in the racing dept.
I was telling him that I was going to re-profile the cams and this and that in order to gain more HP.
He looked at me in a very serious way and said "you?"

He then went on to say that they have an engineering dept that works hard to do that, and that if you increase one thing then there is a reaction to something else -as Bob has suggested - he said the car was engineered to operate in all conditions in a balanced way. Its like when you start adding electrical components such as alarms, high wattage stereos. You upset the balance of the wiring harness which in turn starts causing glitches.
In the end its not so easy.
My 0.02 lira
FGM

 

Yes and no. Mine started as a US car with the emission controls, so it was originally down on power. The previous owner added Euro headers and says his shop reset cam and ignition timing and carb settings, but I'll verify. I wonder just how much real difference there is between the claimed 330hp Ghibli and the lesser versions. I've pored over the specs and there doesn't seem to be much that's changed beyond these minor points. The Ghibli and Khamsin had dry sump versions of the engine, but the sump is so deep on these cars that I doubt windage is a problem. There were two head designs - a full hemispherical chamber and a later "bathtub" type with the sides filled in. There are also two piston types, but the specs I've found claim the same compression ratio for all 4.9s so perhaps the mild popup type goes with the open chamber heads. I don't know of others, but I'm definitely no expert.

I will aim for a good running Euro tune which should actually make the engine run a little cooler than it did with the retarded timing and pressure cooker exhaust system. Bob's experience with high speeds in hot climes indicates you'd need to do a lot of work with cooling and evacuating the engine compartment heat to do much more. Elliot Siegel has a major project to upgrade the engine, but it's far more than I could manage in any event. What I will do, for fun, is put the heads on our flow bench to see where they stand compared to contemporary engines.

For the rest, I plan to incorporate Bob's tips and maybe a couple of other things to simplify pulling the subframe next time. It really is pretty easy (assuming you don't have problems with the shift linkage taper pin!), and a few tweaks would make it easier still.

and.... "Roberto Puerto"??

Larry

 

I think you'll be happy with that it's what I've done.

One thing ALL Bora owners should check is those brake line retaining tabs on the subframe. They won't look bad until you open up the tabs, remove the deteriorated plastic and then the brake line may just break in two. It's a life & death issue.

It's a PITA to deal with when everything is in the car but it's less painful that the potential consequences. I've only seen it happen on the RH side with the ones closest to the headers. The LH side may be getting insulated by the shift linkage rod shield. That's another issue covered elsewhere when discussing Art's car.

The emergency brake cable on my car got so hot from the thermal reactors that the nylon lining inside the sheath melted and froze the cable to the housing. I insulated those housings with silicone heater hose and the new cable and fittings are SS from a Yacht rigging shop. They even have tridents on them! The cable housing is from a trucking cable manufacturing house.

 

I have a dyno sheet for a well tuned Bora 4.9 engine set to Euro specs and it came in at around 290 horsepower. I think that somewhere between 290 and 300 for a Euro version of the 4.9 engine is about right but remember that dyno numbers are only comparable if you have multiple engines checked out on the same dyno run by the same operator, otherwise you are comparing apples to oranges. There are so many variables involved that it is hard to compare two different dynes and operators. No two dynos and operators ever seem to match up in terms of numbers.

 

Progress on 117157.
Nice to see the motor out and heading to the engine builder. However i will be happier when i can post photos with the engine re installed. Its just feels so good to be part of the resto process and putting a hand to the rebirth.
Greg
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When you get a good look at how this car is built you begin to appreciate just how strong it is. A bit heavy too. That glass hatch has to be a 150 pounds maybe more?

 

Speaking of the engine hatch, if someone has the opportunity or has previously done it (why I wouldn't know!), I would love to have an accurate weight for the engine hatch. 150 pounds sound about right but who knows? Anyone care to weight the beast?

 

Progressing well Greg, keep it up!


Julian

 

I'm moving house shortly so I'm getting rid of a collection of Bora articles
Can post anywhere!

Maserati Bora Magazine Collection | eBay

Julian

 

Nice shot of my car from Le Belle Macchine I found online.
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Tom,

Here's one of your car!
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Thanks Dean, great shots.

 

From the roof of golden nugget in Atlantic city
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Some great photos guys.

One I'd like to see is of a Bora at say 70 mph in a rain storm. It would be reminiscent of the day I picked up my Bora back in 1987 in Oklahoma City. That was quite a day!

First thing out of the box and not 1 mile later it overheated due to a seized cooling fan. So after a return to the shop where I picked it up I then removed the melted fan and got a direct replacement from the local MB dealer.

After that we headed out towards twitchypaw (Wichita) on our way to Kansas City to stay with some friends. We ran right into a beaut of a thunderstorm. The wipers worked flawlessly and the rooster tail off of that car was a spectacular sight.

That was the last time I ever drove it rain of that magnitude.

Any volunteers?

 

Bob,

I remember you telling that story at Skytop and would love to see a picture of that rooster tail also. On another note, not a Bora picture, but I saw this at New Hope Auto show yesterday and thought, is this one of Bob's???
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How cute but looks dangerously of short wheelbase.

I wish!

 

I am continuing to sort out Bora 117.162 by going on progressively longer rides.
This euro model pulls strong in all gears and has plenty of torque. The steering feels tight and precise and the only negative thing I can report on is the heavy clutch pedal.

I have read many complaints about the seats not fitting taller drivers, but at 5'8" I don't have that problem and find them quite supportive. My wife, who is a petite 5'1" claims that they are the most comfortable sports car seats that she has ever sat in.

We are both looking forward to some upcoming fall runs on Long Island and the tri state area.
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Hey that's a nicely optioned car too!

You guys are hardly tall though. It's built perfectly for you so enjoy! Having the battery gobble up passenger leg room gets old if you have long legs. It can be removed though. For me the seat stops supportme about where my thigh meets my butt. So I carry a special fill in pillow.

You should have had me test your clutch out at Pocono. I think 3 or 4 burnouts would be enough?

There is an upcoming event in the Mystic Seaport area which you might enjoy. PM or email me if you're interested. Taking the Bridgeport ferry would be kind of cool too! First Saturday in September.

 

Thanks Bob.

The Mystic event sounds very interesting but I know I have a late night on that Friday.
My wife's tribute band "Heartbreaker" is playing at Connolly's Pub in Manhattan, where she will perform the music of Pat Benatar. If you're in the area, please stop in. The show starts at 9:00.

 

Good afternoon all,
'Marco' and I took a nice trip on Tuesday - enjoyed a full day of fresh Adirondack Mountain air. 245 comfortable miles of highway and mountain roads, plus I squeezed in a beautiful hike. Fuel consumption calculated to 16.99mpg for the day. This was 70% highway, speeds around 75 with a few stints up to 130. The nose lightens at that speed, but not squirrely. Maybe a Merak chin spoiler would improve that. And I added "Balance the Wheels" to the To Do list.

Anyone coming up this way for the Hemmings Concours Sept 26-28 at Saratoga Springs? I'm a bit disappointed Maserati isn't a fettered marque.

Cheers, - Art
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The Bora I drove with one @ 160 was still wandering from side to side. It wasn't my car so I don't know if the toe was properly set but I always found that having a loose hand on the steering wheel and not trying to correct each and every side movement was the best approach. Just let it sway back and forth a bit.

That's why I never put one on my car.

Perhaps lowering it in front and adding an actual splitter would help?

 

Thanks for those observations Bob,

Today was another perfectly brilliant day on which to take 'Marco' for a drive. This time we took in the Mohawk Valley between Amsterdam and Canajoharie.…..

Cheers, - Art
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