Marius, after the conversion to a stiffer ARB, I had the car on the Alfa-Romeo test circuit of Lallocco, Italy. The car has some tight corners and a very fast long left hander. The K. performed perfectly with this set-up. The handling of my ex-car was the only thng that really impressed my customer almost 2 years ago and who is known for his heavy right foot and is a member on this forum too...! Ciao! Walter
Probably I'm the last who should speak on this subject, but a stiffer ARB has consequences for the ride too, as do stiffer shocks. I have no idea how stiff the K body is, but read about the propensity of cracking at the bottom of the rear hatch, so maybe one should be careful with stiffening up the underpinnings. Eibach, as well as many others, will be able to make a stiffer ARB, stiffer sprins, springs with different characteristics, and there are shock suppliers to choose these days. That said, chassis development is a science, and every action has a reaction. It'd be interesting to see how the rest of the car holds up with everything underneath stiffened up. What's next, a full hard-poly bushed set of wishbones? Let's be real: The youngest K is now 30 years old. Any new half way up BMW will run circles around it anywhere. Is there a point?
Hi everyone, I thought you might be interested to see some pictures of the my K after the complete interior has been replaced and restored. regards, armaz Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Looks great! But why do you cover the lower rear window? Its screen is a very essential part of the cars design concept!! Ciao! Walter
+1 But getting rid of some of the lean in turns is certainly a plus. I don't think you have to turn the suspension into a hard edged track rat to achieve that.
Hi Armaz... The interior looks great!!!! A couple of questions... 1. What kind (make/model) of radio ? 2. What is the device hanging under the dashboard in the passenger area? 3. What is the tag (or whatever) on the ashtray cover? The car looks great, so please keep us posted on other items you redo and/or change! Mike
It is those worthless Citroen -junk pieces, only thing You can do is sell the car to me... Very low price, of course, because it's not working properly... ;D Well, the "steering hardener", isn't so complicated, it might just be jammed if the car hasn't been used for long time, and also in Khamsin, You need to change oil there - no need for that in SM, where this part is originally from... I have some pictures, when I made some maintenance to my SM steering hardener, I can put them here with some explanation if these words Citroen and SM isn't too much (like it seems to be to some here)..?
Hi everyone, Just coming back to your remarks I would like to comment as follow: 1- I decided to use this foil which from inside allows you to look out and from outside avoids that. 2- The radio is Blaupunkt I will let you know the model 3- The part hanging on the passenger side is another hifi device 4- The tag on the ash tray is from the previous owner who wanted to make sure that no-one shifts into rear gear instead of 1st gear (shifting diagram) Thanks for your interest and regards, armaz
Greetings Armaz, Beautiful car. Very nicely done. The rear lower glass panel is an iconic feature of the Khamsin, but to me it is not something that translates well from the show car to the road going car. The guy behind you in traffic does not need to see the stuff in your trunk: your sport coat, tools, computer, whatever. So I like the idea of the reflective panel. Carmine
Hi Jack: Well of course one could get a faster more recent car but then again compare fast driving pleasure with liquor: a College kid may just want a binge with cheap beer or vodka but others may prefer something a bit more subtle and be after a fine wine, not after drunkenness. In this case it's not about G forces and perfomance numbers, statistics but about feelings and sensations. What I have always found very alluring in a K is that the chassis, steering and brakes are 1980's competent whereas that wonderful engine -with carbs!- sounds much better than any fuel injection ever will and is straight out of the 60's! it is a very heady mix My point is that a Khamsin has a lot of character, a lot of performance but yes in the view of those who want to enjoy one in spirited driving or on track -as opposed to some other car which may be faster but has less charisma- it could use some "added stifness" and doing so with adjustable shocks and perhaps harder springs hurts no one as long as you are reasonable with it, we are not talking about going for crazy stiff seetings. Armaz: car looks really great congrats, as you said not easy to get it done so far away from other cars as reference: K 130 will have pride of place at K40 if all goes well! One other point for all those studying Armaz's rear window is that reflective material would not work as it would be dangerous to those following at night so this is the perfect solution for those bothered by the rear glass and lack of privacy. best regards, Marc
Hi All Chassis is reasonably stiff for the age of the car. The Cracking of the rear window I believe may partly be be contributed on my car to bad rear springs that went soft and sagged by 32 mm or 1.25 inches. This in turned caused the car to botton out . This in turn cracked the rear cradle and the associated mounts. I had the rear springs reset and the spring setters recon the original spring material is OK. I do agree that the Ebach springs would probably come closer to the original rear spring rates and be lighter than that of the factory ones. As for the rear window, practicle from a security it may not be but its makes for a car that is very easy to reverse park. Recently I managed to pick up some excellent condition 70's period Luggage in red to match my car. However another idea I have, is to make a neat luggage locker made that mounts / bolts inside the rear tray. trimmend and to match the interior. inspired by the ones offered by http://www.tarischarysyn.com/ and http://dreamcargarage.com/dreamcargarage.php?obj=articles&name=dareclassics I believe as long as it matches the correct period then it would be appropriate. As a example the Alfa Montreal had straps for the rear seat area and the drawings are on the Montreal wed site. Cheers Graeme
Hello all: Quite a lot of good news! We have some very interesting owners coming to KHAMSIN QUARANTA with very fine Khamsins! I received a call from the owner of AM120018, the car in the Paris Artcurial auction: he is a well known person in the classic car community. Now that he knows about K40 he is hoping the car does not sell at the auction so that he can have it repainted in its original orange and participate! Yes of course I will believe it when I see it but he gets things done well and quickly so there is plenty of time: no Khamsin has been orange in decades, I only know of 018, 154 and 156 having been orange new. There may have been a few others but not many. In other news AM120US1218 5 speed black black which recently came up for sale in California will for once stay in North America, contrary to the pattern in the last few years of them being immediately vacuumed across the water to the old world: it will live in Ontario with someone very intent on getting it fully sorted. Heading to Paris Retromobile at lunchtime will be there all day tomorrow from 8am and Tuesday, as well as at Bonhams cocktail tomorrow evening. If you are coming email or PM me your cell number, look forward to seeing you! best regards, Marc
Hit a little snag: The bearing on the aircon-compressor went bad, was sent to a re-builder who fitted a new bearing, but discovered that there is a wobble in the compressor pulley. It was sent to an engineering facility for repair, but they couldn't get it 100% out. Is this pulley unique to the K, or do other cars share tha part? Where could I find a replacement?
Hi Jack Good Question, Given Maserati probably used a propritory part it is mare then likely off a early Mecedes which also ran the Low Volume York compressor. But Maserati would have added the drive cable and the safety pin that make it unique. My suspicision is find a twin belt drive pulley for the York and it should do the job. The Parts Book identifies it as page 040 item 117 BR 78299 Eurospares list it for the Bora and Khamsin I Know a Khamsin Carefully modified to take a rotory compressor and he just aligned to the center of the pullies and drilled and taped the drives. Regards Graeme http://www.eurospares.co.uk/partTable.asp?M=3&Mo=712&A=1&B=42550&S=
Thanks for that info, Graeme. Finding an old Benz pulley won't be a problem here, and the holes can be drilled. We'll fit the compressor as is, without using the A/C, just so we have drive to the water-pump, as we're going to have a 600km drive before we can get to any parts or a space to work. That's going to be fun in this summer heat! I guess I'll take some foam strips with to try to temporarilly seal off the gap at the rear, so we won't kill ourselves inhaling exhaust fumes with the windows down. The wobble isn't alarming, but the pulley isn't 100% and I'd like to correct it. The Merc-tip is good, there are still plenty of these here, so that should not be difficult at all, if the pulleys are indeed the same. Next I'll go chase after some green soup to take with; All systems are up and running, but I don't want to get stuck half way...
Marc -- or somebody, Please post a photo of an orange Khamsin, or alternately another Maserati in the same orange. Is it the "Rame Metallizzato 106 R 49" paint chip on Ivan's web site: http://thecarnut.com/Manuals/Paint/Paint-chips.pdf If so, I like it. Carmine
Hi Carmine Thanks for the link to the colour chip, it reenforces my respray colour choice. However it was a shame I could'nt locate this info in 1993 when I painted my car, I may have used a factory colour. Regards Graeme
Graeme, Don't thank me. The reality is, I actually don't do any research or other work, but rather try to make myself look smart by referring to other people's work. Post some photos of your orange car, whatever orange it may be. Carmine
Marc, (or maybe some other informed person), How does one go about getting copies of the original build sheet and any other original delivery paperwork for one's car? I'd like this for my Khamsin. Could I write directly to Sr Cozza at the factory? Carmine
Oh it used be so informal as if you had Cozza's fax number you sent him a fax but now I believe your start here and it's no longer free. You can purchase an entire package for your car including manuals and models. http://www.maserati.com/maserati/en/en/index/passion/Maserati-Classic/Letter-from-Maserati-Classic.html
Thanks, Bob. This looks like the way to go. Regarding the money, I find that owning the Khamsin is kind of a twist on that old sailboat joke. That is to say: A Maserati is a hole in the pavement that you pour money into.
