Hi All A friend is looking into putting wire wheels on his Khamsin ( personally I think he's mad) anyway does anyone know the thread of the wheel studs into the hub? also I note the front and rear studs are different part numbers. Any one been down this path? Graeme
This Khamsin was converted using the Borrani wires from a Ghibli. They actually looked quite nice, in my opinion. The conversion was done while Frank Mandarano owned the car. If I recall, the studs had to be cut. Perhaps Frank can comment. Ivan Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
LHM leaks, that stain the driver' side carpeting, are common in Khamsins and Boras. What is the best way to clean LHM saturated carpets? Ivan
I put the one from my Bora (under the driver's seat) in the washing machine using warm water and gentle cycle. It took a couple washes. It did remove the fluid pretty well but the trouble was that the rubber bonded/backing had already been deteriorated by the long exposure to the LHM. So I patched the backing and at least under the seat it's not obvious. Maybe a carpet cleaner using hot water, lot's of cleaning detergent and repeated operations would have been better. It was like a giant sponge full of LHM. The under pad had to go as well of course. I tried this with just plain dirty but stinky carpet in my Espada that was along the driver's sill and covering the fuel hose. It stunk like hell of gas but it cleaned up really well. It absolutely had to come out of the car. It also shrunk an inch in length! So either you need a stretching rack for drying or if it's screwed & glued in place then a carpet cleaner with a nozzle & hose might be better if it doesn't need to come out of the car. Bob S.
I know nothing about Maseratis but I thought the whole purpose of EE plates was that a non EU resident could purchase a car tax free and use it in Europe for up to 6 months before export to non EU country. If this is the case then this Maserati might well have been used in Europe between services.
Ivan to clean the carpets of LHM or other dirt i put the carpet on the driveway and soak it with Simple Green let it set a couple of minutes and flush it with a garden hose. With the cold water you do not get any shrinkage
Hi Marc MIE have given me the following info. from their website: http://www.maseratinet.com//p-11895-wheel-stud-threaded-stud.aspx Now In: 3500GT/GTI (Coupe & Spyder) → Suspension & Steering → Wheels & Wheels Accessories → WHEEL STUD - THREADED STUD WHEEL STUD - THREADED STUD Threaded Wheel Stud (Not For Campagnolo Cast Wheel Applications) M14 x 1.25 High carbon Steel. Short end threads into the wheel hub. Then the exposed portion on the bottom is peened over to lock. On the wheel side is a 3mm un-threaded shank, and then 32mm of threaded wheel stud. Most common stud found on GT Maserati models with 4-Bolt Wheels. Applications: 3500GT/GTI Vignale Spyder Sebring Quattroporte I (without cast wheels) Mexico (without cast wheels) Ghibli (without cast wheels) Indy
Hi Marc MIE have given me the following info from their website: However if the picture is a true picture the pitch will be 2 mm not 1.2. http://www.maseratinet.com//p-11895-wheel-stud-threaded-stud.aspx Now In: 3500GT/GTI (Coupe & Spyder) → Suspension & Steering → Wheels & Wheels Accessories → WHEEL STUD - THREADED STUD WHEEL STUD - THREADED STUD Threaded Wheel Stud (Not For Campagnolo Cast Wheel Applications) M14 x 1.25 High carbon Steel. Short end threads into the wheel hub. Then the exposed portion on the bottom is peened over to lock. On the wheel side is a 3mm un-threaded shank, and then 32mm of threaded wheel stud. Most common stud found on GT Maserati models with 4-Bolt Wheels. Applications: 3500GT/GTI Vignale Spyder Sebring Quattroporte I (without cast wheels) Mexico (without cast wheels) Ghibli (without cast wheels) Indy Graeme Image Unavailable, Please Login
Hi Graeme: Thanks for that! Just got back from 500 Ferraris against cancer in western France where I had a wonderful faaast ride with Z.B. in his very nice early Khamsin 066, navy tan, smooth nose, will post the video on Youtube, I was even more impressed than my partiality expected You will see we were on track with some VERY special cars Had a ride in an early 90's Barchetta as well, like a kart. More early in the week as well as the fantasrtic trip I had in Benelux, thanks to all our friends in Holland and Belgium best regards, Marc
Hi all: Unfortunately the video stopped after just 25 seconds, I guess my prospects as a film maker are limited Nevertheless here it is, short but sweet: the car had a brand new custom exhaust which made it sound really good. I was very impressed by its speed compared to much more modern Ferraris on track, we stayed out for about 10 laps and the brakes never faded. Owner Z.B. who really knows what he is doing behind the wheel was able to place the car precisely where he wanted it, not only is the weight distribution perfect but the chassis is amazingly responsive...like a big Lotus Elan! [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2G-vOI6SRs[/ame] best regards, Marc
More early in the week as well as the fantasrtic trip I had in Benelux, thanks to all our friends in Holland and Belgium best regards, Marc[/QUOTE] Khamsinisti, We were visited by his Registrars travelling in our low lands. By the way Marc has his birthday today so please drop him your PM and fill up his mailbox with your congrats! Marc had a good reason for the visit because in our little country of say 300km by 220 km we have no less than 10 Khamsins! Amongst them Prototipo K#004, 3rd owner original Dutch registered K#236 and my one off T-Top K#US1142 next to a range of other worthwhile examples! A reason for me to spend some time on my K to make it presentable, meaning; we should be able to run it! I fitted my lucky find from the Essen show: the right hand outside rear view mirror, put the hood / bonnet on and did some test runs and started working on some smaller leakages from the LHM system. After the first runs "around the church" and getting rid off the air bubbles in the cooling system I noticed that by really heating up the engine it tends to press some cooling liquid out. By keeping the level a few cm under the top level of the pressure lid this was taken care of BUT I do not like that. So, I did the old trick of (not only) Maserati that I know from e.g. 3500's and Ghibli's: I added an extra overflow reservoir. I put the window wash reservoir on the radiator cover and used the now free space next to the interior air inlet for the overflow reservoir. See the pictures. It works very well: it presses in the liquid while heating and sucks it back in while cooling off so the system stays filled to the top with hardly any air in it. Need to mention here that I had my radiator redone with an extra thick, 3 core, cooling block. Another thing I like to share with you is that during the adjustment of the carburetors the plugs tend to foul. I put the acceleration pump levers on lower volume displacement by replacing the hinge pins to the smaller lever effect side, see pic. This is an old trick by Il Maestro Tralli, the mixture still stays rich enough whilst accelerating and the plugs stay cleaner, thus, better rev pick up! For the plugs I use NGK BPR6EIX modern laser blasted plugs, they do a wonderful job. I use them in my Ghibli too and even after an hour in the traffic jam; rev pick up: sensa problema! Only part of the above was carried out when Marc stayed with us but we were able to run the car and experience the "topless" K. I think I heard Marc saying: the best of both worlds... To be continued, Ciao, Bart Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Hello Bart.... I like the idea of having an overflow tank (reservoir) for the coolant... I really think this was an excellent idea... I do have one question for you... Why did you place the overflow tank where the windshield washer tank was and move the windshield tank to the radiator cover? This seems like extra plumbing (more rubber hose)... Was their a technical reason? Thanks in advance... Mike
Marc... Happy birthday!!! Hope you are enjoying a bottle of your favorite French wine! You realize, of course, that you are catching up to me in age, and that means you will begin to like those Khamsin US bumpers!! (vision blurs, etc, etc...).... Have a good one! Mike
Hi Mike, Just because I like to have the overflow reservoir sitting as much to the level of the pressure cap as possible, so no extra under pressure is needed to suck the cooling liquid back in. The plumbing means 2 holes and 1 meter of 2 string electric wire and 1m of rubber washer hose; no big deal. Oh yes, I changed the exit of the over flow tube to point to the reservoir. I fitted it all, after thinking it out, in less than 1 hour and the problem seems solved! Ciao, Bart
Good morning all: Bart thanks again for a wonderful trip have now caught up so will definitely post full report late today. 5 Khamsins in 48 hours was quite special as was seeing Il prototipo. Best of both worlds absolutely that is my two cents about your car which was amazingly well preserved and in excellent running order (as was the Ghibli!). Mike: hello and thanks yes you bet I had some bon vin last night and good try about blurred vision and the bumpers but...only blindness would make them acceptable though Until later, Marc PS: The video in post 2536...just to be clear that is coming out of the pits, warm up lap. He was really on the limit after that...I am kicking moi self in the rear for the fact that the camera stopped...oh well next time.
I had always wanted to go see Khamsins in Benelux, particularly Holland and was finally able to when an article in Belgium materialized. I wanted to see first and foremost the prototype AM120004, owned by W. The T top Khamsin AM120US1142 of connoisseur and bon vivant Bart and as many other Khamsins as possible. I ended up seeing 5 thanks to the kind help of W. and Bart. After flying at dawn from Geneva to Brussels May 23rd and taking a train from the Belgian capital to the Dutch city of Helmond near Eindhoven I spent the afternoon and evening at Bart’s beautiful house with him and his wife, a very nice lady and engaging character like him and we took both the Khamsin and the superb Ghibli SS for rides. 1142 is amazingly free of any rust, as solid as it gets and presented very well. It was interesting to see it up close, the T top work carried out by or for the Los Angeles distributor was very well done, the transparent panels are actual glass, not plexi as I thought. I am not sure if there is structural rigidity within the T (Bart do you know? Maybe ex owner Dr L would know?) but in any case the car felt very solid on the road, these are very hefty chassis anyway. I hadn’t seen a black one in a very long time and it is interesting to see how color affects visual perception. We indulged in photographing it for a good while. Bart is far more technically minded than yours truly but those of you who are appreciate I am sure his tips and ideas. That evening we had dinner at a terrace restaurant by a canal with Michel de W. who owns AM120236. A very friendly enthusiast and interesting person who drove his car all the way to Ireland by way of two ferry boats for his wedding with his Irish wife. He was having his engine rebuilt and I would see the car the next day. We went back to Bart’s house and talked till midnight about you guessed what, looking at photos over a good bottle, great fun! The next morning after breakfast I was picked up by W. in…a Lamborghini Jarama! That was a nice surprise, always liked these, Gandini design, not as pretty as K’s but certainly exotic. I took my leave from Bart and madame and we set off for Italauto the leading Dutch repair and maintenance mechanical restoration specialist for classic Masers, located in Achterveld, about 100kms north. The Jarama ran like a sewing machine thanks to modern electronic iginition and we were able to talk about Khamsins –what else- to our hearts content and he is one of the absolute hyper keen Khamsinistas, witness the three hour phone conversations that we end up having once in a while! During that trip most other people on the autobahn seemed to photograph the Lambo with their phones. At Italauto we met the owner Pieter young but very professional and impressively knowledgeable as well as a sponsor of my book. We also met the founder and ex owner there, historian Kees van Stokkum who does some very fine research putting in whatever time it takes, all too rare nowadays, he is a true bible! We had a fascinating discussion about comparing notes on various individuals we had both interviewed amongst the oldtimers at Maserati, he through the years for various articles, yours truly for the book. We both concluded that one ex Maserati oldtimer who left the company decades ago but lived the 1968-75 Citroen era, -i.e. the period of interest to me for my book- had such an oversize ego that he is completely impossible to interview so neither of us did and he won’t be named here! Within Pieter’s superb facility I discovered the Khamsin AM120236 of Michel de W. which is in a medium shade of blue with a very nicely preserved interior, a good car. The engine was out having been totally rebuilt and was in fact being bench tested: I will always fondly remember going deaf after entering the engine room while it ran at fairly high rpm. It is pretty impressive I must say, what with the red hot exhausts and gauges keeping an eye on the baby. 236 is supposedly the only Khamsin sold new in Holland and this is a matter of heated debate in the Netherlands as Mr Cozza of the factory states that there were seven…meaning tha six of them would have been sold abroad right away or never actually delivered to Holland…the charms and uncertainties of research! We then departed and W. said he had a surprise…I half expected some Jaguar collection or something that did not really interest me but being his guest I held my curiosity and minutes later after briefly stopping at a garage which had a 3500GT we drove another mile and pulled up in front of a non descript warehouse. Except it was huge. Moments later a man with the key arrived. Inside was a big private collection and W had arranged for special permission. The door opened to reveal…about a hundred cars! Most were modern, Jaguars, American cars but there was a row of Lambos a few Ferraris no less than 5 QPIII’s(!) an Indy a Mexico and…a shape under a cover. W. said he wanted to show me “this Ferrari here” but it was obviously a Khamsin! Off came the cover to reveal one of my absolute favorite colors: light gold! It was tan inside with auto, chassis AM120US1252, converted to Euro bumpers, presented very well except for a leak of LHM and was completely utterly unknown to me (and Bart as well)! To discover an unknown one in a favorite color unexpectedly was quite the thrill!!! Then we headed back to the Helmond/Eindhoven area and visited Henny Kennis of Retrolegends in his very fine showroom where we spent a good hour chatting with him. His family is very prominent and respected in classic cars in Holland. No Masers there but he has had many. Then another surprise, we were invited to the home of Marcel L. a major Dutch collector who hosted us for drinks in his beautiful English cottage style house and showed us his A6 Allemano, his Osca and his Maserati bikes. A true enthusiast as well and we had such a good time talking with him we lost track of time so headed out for a very good dinner and yes we talked at the bar till midnight…the car disease has no cure! The next day W. picked me up in the Jarama and we went to see the piece the resistance of the trip: AM120004! W. keeps it at his sisters house for now as he is changing warehouses so we pushed it out of its current garage (the engine is out) and I was finally able to see the most important Khamsin there is: I had been waiting for this for years so it was really special and the 90 minutes we had around the car went by like 90 seconds. The differences in the interior are innumerable, it simply is a prototype and everything is different, the photos will tell you the story. The body as discussed here in the past also has a lot of differences from production specs. The rear chrome bumpers, the rear wheel arches have no lips, the rear triangular chrome behind the side windows which on a production car hide the fuel cap on the right side are in beautiful chrome and are functional air vents, something the production car did not get and would have needed for better ventilation, the fuel tank is accessed behind the rear number plate. Gold paint can still be seen here and there where the black fairly cheap paintjob missed such as the inside of the window surrounds but also where that black paint peeled off. The intent, if possible, is now to have the car repainted in the original gold color in time for Khamsin Quaranta in one year, for it to have its premiere there, the first time it would be been seen in these colors in fourty year. Something about 004 was bugging me during that hour and a half and finally minutes before leaving I realized that the roof…I measured the height of the side windows at the back of the door: we would be with a production Khamsin half an hour later so the answer would soon come. It was time to push this major piece of Maserati history back in its lair and depart, seeing it was really a special moment! We had to hurry as we were to meet with Mr Fritz Harms president of the Dutch Maserati club and his Khamsin AM120392 in rame (burnt orange) with beige interior. We arrived just after him and it looked spectacular in that rare color gleaming In bright sunshine, getting a lot of attention in front of the hotel. We had coffee, I went to the car to measure the height of the window and sure enough the prototype has windows and roof one centimeter lower in height! This detail was lost in the mists of time for decades so it was very nice to discover that there was this slight adjustment of roof height in the transition between prototype and production version implementation. We took our leave from W. who had really worked very hard to make my stay so interesting: bedankt a lot Monsieur! Fritz Harms and I then traveled to Brussels in the Khamsin, seeing 220kph on a couple of occasions, the diff ratio of European cars really allows them to be long legged, his car is in truly superb condition and is one of the two Khamsins most driven (the other one being a red automatic on the pacific coast) they have about the same mileage at 170000kms. Mr Harms and his wife travel to Italy in it a few times a year. The purpose of our trip was to photograph his Khamsin in front of the statue of Neptune in Brussels for the cover of my book. Why not the statue in Bologna, the one from which came the inspiration for the trident logo you ask? Because it is impractical and has dirty buildings behind it. This statue is an exact replica and before anyone protests the one in Bologna was made in the middle ages by…a Belgian! So here we were in his native country paying tribute to his work which unwittingly gave birth to one of the most distinctive logos in the world. The problem was the statue was on a grass promontory and we had been denied by letter the permission to put the car there for the shoot…so if you work for the city of Brussels the next paragraph is fiction…really…and the photo is a really good photoshop, really;-)! We stopped nearby having been met by Philippe a Belgian Maseratista friend of mine who owns a 222, we walked to the statue with Dirk a professional photographer who had also met with us by appointment, we cased the site like bankrobbers preparing their heist, the incentive not to get caught was strong as this was ten meters from the royal palace wall so police presence was not going to be light. Then we did it, like an F1 pitstop, the fastest photo shoot ever, less than five minutes and it worked to perfection, even the weather was perfect when I had a vision of rain the entire week preceding it! Mission accomplished we then went to have a few beers at an outdoor terrace, the weather was like summer already and I had a big smile on my face: a spectacular and memorable shot was in the bag, extremely satisfying! The rest of the trip did not involve any more Khamsins but 5 in 48 hours is quite good I think! In the course of preparing an article for Classic & Sports car I saw two more private collections, sorry no chassis numbers to respect the privacy of the owners, one with a Mexico, Vignale spyder and a Ghibli SS and one with…a Ghibli, Ghibli spyder (which we actually used as chase/camera car for the moving photos fo the subject car –not a Maserati-) a 5000GT, a Bora with 200kms, a Mistral spyder ex jean Guikas and dozens of other top Modenese machines plus Bizzarinis and an Alfa 33 Stradale: wow! Then I flew home, feeling happily saturated: Bart calls car trips like that car porn and in a way that is just what it is over indulgence but at least unlike an excessive meal you regain your sanity without gaining any weight! A big Bedankt to Bart, W., Michel, Pieter, Kees and Fritz for their kind welcome! I will post photos of each car within the next 48 hours, have to travel tomorrow and prepare. The photo here was taken with my cellphone those of Dirk are spectacular. Sorry but I had to copyright protect it. MS PS: In other news the project AM120US1230 is on the English Ebay: www.ebay.co.uk I don't think it links to the other Ebays. I confirm as you can read that it is very much an almost ideal restoration base and would jump at the chance if I could!
Marc, but Bologna has much more aura and atmosphere than this place with only some simple trees in the background! Get Panini with his Khamsin there and a good snapper - and you get a great photo! Its not impractical at all! Ciao! Walter
Great story, Marc. I could hear the Mission Impossible Theme in the background as I read through your post. Ciao, George
George: LoL Well that is the sort of mission I am always willing to accept! Walter: As discussed I don't like the background in Bologna, we already tried with Fritz Harms car there and as I mentioned to Matteo the other day I am just not fond of the color of 080. I am forstly very happy with the photos and secondly have invested soooo much time in this book I have to conclude. Photos of the Dutch cars hopefully this evening, Have a great day, MS
Hi Mike and Bart The engine bay layout on RHD cars allows a option of fitting a header on the LH inner gard. The standard radiator cap has both a positive and a negative pressure relief valve so the height of the tank isn't that important. I made this one to fit in my car. Ineresting to note it is about 2 litres and the level goes almost to the top when the engine is hot and is just visable when its cool so If anyone is contemplating one, over two litres in capacity is a good start. Graeme Image Unavailable, Please Login
That is incredibly clean Graeme, looks like one could eat off that airfilter lid Dutch trip: Here are a few shots of Bart's car, AM120US1142, I was tired as I had slept just 2 hours the night before due to my travels so the photos Bart posted a couple of days ago are much better. I like the motto on the back of the car I found the T Top very intersting because it is the easiest way to enjoy open air, it closes in minutes and much less fussy than a targa top. Let's not even talk about a soft top. MS Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
AM120236 the car of Michel de W. A very nice shade of blue. Michel picked up the car a few days ago after his complete engine rebuild at Italauto. There is a video on you tube of it on the dyno: [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HGjiGvQgcY[/ame] Michel is a keen track enthusiast so it will be good to see it back on a circuit soon! MS Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
236 again, some interior shots: Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Hi Greame, Thanks for your contribution on the expansion tank. I really wonder how these other cars perform without overheating? How did you manage the air filter script on the lid? Printed or by sticker? In case of the last where can I get one? Trying to reply from my Iphone, toke the Ghibli up to our boat: life is tough Regards, Bart
