Maserati Khamsin

Three Khamsins at a show in Nagoya in recent days! That is the greatest number seen together in one place in Japan in many years as far as I know: good to see! The light blue one is well known but the other two hmmm...

A dark blue or black one is just behind the light blue one.
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.5 atm, which is about 7psi

Ivan

 

A nice poster from our friends down under with a K on it, that happens far too rarely.
Hopefully a few of them will show up at this Melbourne event!

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Hi
I always distinguished them by them name of 'grey' or 'vitaloni' but that was just a mnemonic for myself;
in fact I didn't find any of them by searching for 'Vitaloni'.

But I found some pictures of Lamborghinis with similar or identical mirrors as the second one, maybe that helps.

The first one is from a Countach 1976

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and this one from a Jarama GTS 1974

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and finally from a Urraco 1973:

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Is this ‘nessie’s pet’ for sale again Marc??
She looks like she will need a super dedicated new owner…


https://www.carandclassic.com/l/C1644360

hope someone steps up before it’s too late.
M

 

Hi Mark,

Yes it is, I arranged it's sale to the current owner in Germany in 2016.

He occasionally posts here so he might discuss it.

Gorgeous colors, it would be great to see it reborn.

 

Hello Mark and Marc

I bought AM120-399 in 2016
It was a wonderful trip to Great Britain that I will never forget.
Since I get seasick very easily, I asked one of my best friends to take the ferry from Amsterdam to Newcastle with my car and trailer.
I flew to Edinburgh by plane and my friend picked me up from the airport.
My friend then showed me a video (which he shot on the ship), he put a bottle on the table in his room and the bottle rolled very strongly from left to right and vice versa. I knew then that it was the best decision for me.

We then went to Scotland together.
The seller Steve was a very friendly person. He told me the following about the vehicle. The car was used by its owners until the late 1990s. Afterwards it sat parked in front of the house under the cover for almost 20 years. The owners then moved to another part of Great Britain in 2016 for age and health reasons. They sold their house and the original idea was that the buyer of the house could get the car. But it didn't happen like that. Steve had bought the car. At first he thought about restoring the car himself, but then decided against it and so I bought it from Steve.

From Steve we then drove to a former Maserati dealer.
I wanted to visit the owner of the former Maserati car dealership there to talk about a Maserati that I once owned.
Unfortunately, the owner of the former Maserati car dealership was no longer alive but the co-owner (wife) was still healthy.
The lady was over 90 years old and very shy. She didn't come to our meeting but she gave me a very nice surprise.
Waiting for me was her former employee, Richard "Dickie" Watson.
Mr. Watson used to work in the Maserati dealership and since the owner of the car dealership also drove private races (e.g. with a Maserati 4CLT) in the past,
Mr. Watson also took care of these racing vehicles. Mr. Watson showed us the car dealership, the car dealership owner's private car collection and later invited us to his home. There he showed me a lot of interesting photos from the past.
Pictures in which Mr. Watson was still very, very young and worked on racing cars with many well known people such as John Cooper.
Although Mr. Watson was now already in a older age, he had an HRG in his garage that he had almost finished restoring. So he was still working on cars as a hobby. If i remember it correct, Mr. Watson was also one time a employee at HRG factory.
Mr. Watson was incredibly friendly and I liked him very much.

We drove through very beautiful parts of Great Britain with my friend and I will definitely visit Great Britain again and will look at this beautiful country with more time.

I had the following wish for AM120-399, which unfortunately will no longer come true.
AM120-427 is the Khamsin with the lowest mileage in the world. The car is currently in Hong Kong.
#399 and #427 are both identical in exterior color and interior. So they are RHD twins.
I would have liked to put both vehicles on a stage at a classic car exhibition and with the headline:
This is what vehicles look like when they remain in good hands or when they remain not in good hands.

The nice thing about #399 is, that the car is in its original condition and complete.
But since I recently bought a very special Khamsin and I either way wanted to change something with my collection in general, I am giving this vehicle away.

If I find time, I would be happy to post a few pictures from my trip.

Kind regards from Germany

Zdenek

 

Than you Zdenek for the best post here in a long time; it reminds of car buying trips from decades ago when it could be an adventure, there was a certain romance to it.
Your idea was a beautiful one, you could still show it and an impeccable Khamsin, not necessarily the same color, at a show like Retromobile or Tecno Classica.

Best of luck with the sale; it is certainly one of the most beautiful color combinations for a K, very similar to my former car!

Here it is in its youth at Haddo House, a grand Palladian style country mansion in Scotland.

 

Hi Marc

Never seen this picture before, it was apparently taken in May 14th 2012 in front of a McDonald in Virginia Beach.
The wheels look like those from a De Tomaso Mangusta.
Is this 1120 or 1182 ?

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I don't think Mangustas had a 4x130 PCB.
More likely this kind of aftermarket 8 x 15 wheels:
https://mrfiat.com/maserati-mexico-ghibli-bora-merak-indy-8-x-15-wheel.html
Offset also seems to be smaller than for original Campy wheels.

 

Hello Roger,

Good find. I have never ever seen a K with a hood/bonnet oval badge screwed into the fender/wing like that nor have I seen one with such wheels.
It is neither 1120 nor 1182. I thought it could be 1228 on the east coast back then and again now, but while it is that color now it was plain silver then.
Just one out of the woodwork I would assume...

 

A nice little commentary by a French enthusiast and Granturismo owner who had a chance to drive a Khamsin for the first time a few days ago in a Club Maserati France outing: it is well written, here is the translation.

It is interesting in the sense that he is a new Maserati person not familiar with the classic ones. Not sure which car that is, perhaps 180 but I will easily find out as I am a member.

"Participating last weekend in a CMF outing, I was able to test a Khamsin for around thirty kilometers at the suggestion of its generous owner!

What a leap in time! Sitting low on the tarmac, steering wheel on your knees, reversed manual gearbox, microscopic mirrors and huuuge engine!
At low speed, the steering is super sensitive and it is with extreme delicacy that the beauty consents to go straight. She waddles a little and we're off.

Barely out of the Granturismo, I need one or two gear changes to get to grips with the gearbox and the brakes.
Without forcing it at all, we are already quickly above the authorized limits! I push a little and reach the 3000/5000 revolutions zone and there it's an orgasm! it pushes hard, the sound is gigantic and the car is going straight now. Here are some nice turns and I have fun with the gears to stay in this magical zone: it holds up and the beauty handles my few extravagances without any problem.
But I look at the counter and...we are well above 150kph/95mph!!! So it allows you to test the brakes, and there it is less secure than our modern braking, you have to dose it, but the car being very light we quickly return to speeds more in line with my number of remaining driving licence points!
I had to give the steering wheel (and the Khamsin) back to its generous owner, but with a slight pang in my heart: I would have liked to drive a little longer. What a great car!!
I still have stars in my eyes, an unforgettable memory!!"

End of quote; as I mentioned very colorful words, eye opening to those who are curious with of course just one caveat; the K is not really light it is the hydraulic brakes which are very potent.
But let's not focus on that; people are always surprised at how fast and competent they are and it took me years to realize it is because it does not have an imposing nose, to the contrary you could call it a stealth nose and I recall someone asking me when looking a t parked one if it had a V6; he was very surprised when I told him it is a 5 litre V8.

So we have a new convert, below!





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Actually that car is 1262. It was bought out of Germany recently by a very nice Parisian who has been in touch, quite an attractive car which had been in a collection in Holland was sold at a Gstaad Bonhams auction in 2006. It had been bought out of the US by a Swiss in 1990, restored in Germany before its Dutch spell. It then lived in Germany unto recently.

Long before all that, in 1984, it was the very first stock number at Motorcar Gallery in Fort Lauderdale when Ed Waterman relocated from Washington DC to South Florida. It was black then and notice that the dash had been redone (privately, not a factory job) in wood, you can see the center console.

Here photos from back then, from the 2006 auction and in the street in Germany in recent years.




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Looks beautiful in this colour

 

Hi All.
I'm puzzled on the correct engine oil level for the Khamsin.
My oil dipstick does not have any reference marks to verify the correct level.
I'm assuming i have the correct dipstick and if this is the case, What level should the oil be on the dipstick?
Further what is the correct method of checking the oil level.
After the car has been brought up to operating temperature should the oil level be checked with the engine running of should the engine be switched off?
Regards
Greg

 

I think these are made by group4 wheels and resemble the wheels used on the Group4 Bora and of course the Mangusta
https://www.group4wheels.com/

Julian

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My dipstick is 420mm long from the O-ring to the tip. From the tip to the low mark it is 165mm and from the tip to the high mark it is 185mm. I check the oil level with the engine at normal temperature and idling. I've also heard that the oil level can be checked immediately after turning off the engine. I have yet to compare if the levels are the same with the engine running and immediately after turning off. Hope this helps.

Ivan

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View attachment 3597255 View attachment 3597258 Image Unavailable, Please Login Hi All, I’m slowly plodding on with the body work on my car. One day it will look like I’m making progress!! I’m working on the door at the minute. Another case of metal welded over rust

my question is, how many drain holes should be in the door? I found evidence of 3 but not sure if there should be 5?? If anyone knows that would be great. Thanks

 

Thanks Ivan.
That is a great help.
Regards
Greg

 

That helps me as well Ivan. My car didn’t come with a dipstick and I’m having trouble sourcing a new one. Anyone know if it was used on another brand of car? Or have a used one they want to sell?

Greg

 

Merry Christmas to all Khamsinisti, owners and enthusiasts!

Here is a nice Christmas fast delivery photo of AM120US1130 in Holland taken by JB Classic cars.

I was very worn out after KHAMSIN CINQUANTA (K50) last June and consequently did not really post photos of the event, which was a perfect success and a fantastic occasion. In fact I did not post much in recent months but I was waiting for Christmas to look back upon K50 and share with those who were not there.


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So here goes: KHAMSIN CINQUANTA first day Thursday June 15 2023:

Arrival, photos of the cars gathering at le Domaine de Divonne our host resort in Divonne les Bains near Geneva, just on the French side of the French Swiss border.

Guests arrived from eleven countries, including the USA, New Zealand, and nine European countries. 18 of the 26 cars which took part arrived on that day, the remainder arrived as planned Saturday morning for concours day. Note that 30 owners registered for the event but four cars were not ready in time alas.
We had a wonderful atmosphere right away at the welcome reception and dinner be it with returnees of KHAMSIN QUARANTA in 2012 or new participants. These were the people who, among 160 Khamsins in running condition in Europe & UK had made the effort to be ready and to come so I had them applaud each other during the welcome: THEY made the dream into a reality THEY made the event possible


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K50 day 2, June 16:

The Tour du Jura.

We went on a 200km (125 miles) route I chose through the Swiss Jura mountains including three passes, stunning twisty traffic free roads, gorgeous views, lakeside touring and driving through rock arches in amazing canyons.
Notice the last two photos with the two blue K's taken by different people at almost the same second from different angles. That's one positive aspect of pooling all participant photos. More to come after lunch, bon appetit !


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K50 day 2 June 16 continued:

We then arrived at lunchtime in Motiers a village high up in the Neuchatel canton.

Being organizer I was first on the road and, apart of one other K following us, I was a bit concerned as I had been driving at fairly reasonable pace; did they get lost, will they blame my road book....but after about ten minutes a convoy of TWELVE Khamsins suddenly arrived, a most spectacular arrival and impressive sight! The remainder soon followed, firming an impressive line up in main street which had been reserved for us.

There we had lunch in the restaurant des 6 communes, highly recommended, I had not tried bone marrow in many years and it was delicious. We had privatized half the restaurant but the other patrons were bowled over by the K's and waved enthusiastically!

After that it was time to head to the Fondation Burkhardt Felder 100 meters away.

This retired couple apart of having a gorgeous little manor have lived many years in Australia.

While he is a car enthusiast and has his own museum on the grounds she is fascinated by aborigine art and also has her own museum there.

We started with the latter -split in two groups English and French/German as would be the case for all visits during K50- for a very interesting and eye opening visit, learning a lot about this ancient culture with excellent guides.

Then we moved on to the car museum, le manege where the owner himself gave us a tour.

It is called le manege and is in an old barn. Interestingly since he was not allowed by local authorities to raise the roof he dug to create a lower floor and raised the upper one, complete with car lift! He had one of the earliest cars ever to be registered in Switzerland and an incredible variety; Cord, Packard, early Rolls, Stanguellini Formula junior, Merzario single seater...one Delage he brought back from Australia had a Kangaroo radiator mascot! There was an Indy there too. All were in perfect running condition; true and rare. Then it was time to go onwards with the Tour du Jura route!




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PS: Photos of Le manege car museum in la Fondation Burkhardt Felder:


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