Hi, Would anyone know if the Merak SS sold at Monaco over the weekend and if so what it fetched? Julian http://www.rmauctions.com/FeatureCars.cfm?SaleCode=MC12&CarID=r392&fc=0
Looks like it went at the low end 25.200 pounds http://www.rmauctions.com/AuctionResults.cfm?SaleCode=MC12&SortBy=RO&View=Normal&Category=Cars&Currency=EUR&tempstartrow=76¤tpage=4&Collection=#
They call that a SS in Europe? I haven't seen a SS in the USA that looked like that! Citroen dash and a very checkered interior. Full LHM? Hard to tell much from that auction description , it's so full of sh*t.
that is not an SS even in europe. I know , I had one. this is a pre-SS . Something does not match up here.
Judging from the pictures and chassis number (AM122.606), this is an early regular 3.0L Merak. Most likely produced in 1973 or early 1974. Seems to be in nice condition, but I'm surprised a car without leather interior fetched what is seems to be a rather decent auction price.
Same condition? Not very likely... The Monaco car seems to be in very good condition. I don't think you can get a good Merak - regardless of whether it is SS or not, and regardless of LHM or not - for under 25.000 euros in Europe. If it is cheaper than that one should expect that a number of issues need to be taken care of, perhaps even some major ones.
If it's not, then it is worth buying for spare parts by someone who already has a similar Merak. Eventually it will cost less to maintain the "main" car if you have your own supply of spare parts for that price.
You mean this one http://tinyurl.com/7yhoty7 Looks pretty nice. I actually like the color combo. Very sparse info & unreasonable price = s c a m
well, based on the fact that most italians don't really know a second language, especially older people, I am not surprised that the advert has no details about the car. At least the person is giving his full name and phone number. well the price is something relative. I wouldn't pay more than 5,000 euros for a citroen-nonSS Merak. It is only worth as body spare parts to me.
You might just be a bit jaded with that view about non SS Meraks ... Couldn't they have posted the info in Italian? Just smells funny. I'd take that car in a nanosecond if it were over here.
apparently the entire market must be jaded, because that view is reflected on sale prices. When you find a citroen-nonSS model that sold for 50,000 euros, let me know I have to agree, the ad seems fishy without details. I'll take a look at the Italian web sites and see if it has been posted anywhere else and if the details match.
Got it, it is indeed published in various Italian web sites, it seems like the mobile advert is either a scam (someone copied the photos and made an identical advert), or the poor guy wrote the price wrong by accident. The car is for sale for 38,000 euros not 8,000 euros. (http://usato-auto.vivastreet.it/usato-auto-usate+castelmassa/maserati-merak-3000cc--perfetta--/41591398) Interestingly, I also found a European SS 1981 model with 647km on the odometer!!! From a private collection.
nah, my 1983 EU SS Merak is quite enough for me. Plus, it is a rare car, one of the last 10 cars build before the factory shut down production. although I am considering buying a cheaper Merak for spare parts... in 10+ years there won't be enough Meraks out there and spare parts will be nonexistent.
Hi Maserati Blue, Why do you use every chance you get to try convince others that Giulio Alfieri's design choices was bad? He designed the Bora, Merak and Khamsin with the state of the art technology from Citroën. You may think that Citroën is not a premium brand, but the hydropneumatic system has proven itself to be reliable since the 50ies, also in long distance endurance races (like Paris - Dakar). It was Alfieri that wanted this, not something Citroën forced him to use. The system is different to maintain, but the bad reputation is mainly caused be lack of knowledge. The Merak without LHM is a product of our Maserati "hero", Alejandro de Tomaso, and are really a lesser car than the originals to drive. The higher output of the SS engine is really not that noticeable, when used like the vintage car it is. If the extra horsepowers are important the Euro specification cars from -76 and -77 are the ones to look for. I think most LHD cars after that was "castratos" (no green nuts). I predict that the original Merak 3000 and Merak SS with LHM will be the most sought after models in not too far future. This is something we se for other brands and models, like Espada where the series 3 cars had a higher value than the first series not long ago. Now the first cars are climbing in value, but the series 3 cars are still pretty cheep. See also the six cylinder Maserati cars like 3500 GTI and Mistral, where removing the Lucas fuel injection was looked at as an upgrade, just because people didn't understand the system. Now the cars with functional Lucas units are the ones to get. BTW. I have a -79 Merak SS "castrato" for sale, keeping my -76 Euro SS Best regards Marius Sorteberg
I think the point is not to denigrate someone else's choice of model or car. Mr. Maserati Blue doesn't seem to care? He's not alone.
Well, we agree that we disagree Lets not forget the ugly citroen dashboard and the ugly citroen steering wheel. All of that combined with the LHM system. Honestly, I don't find it ideal for my Maserati to be 50% a citroen, no matter how good the LHM system is. Only time will tell what the market will go for. Personally, I didn't buy my Merak to make money, so I don't really care what the value will be in a few years time. All I want is to drive it (last month I took another 3000km trip). A few months ago I met with a collector, he asked me if I was going to "pile up the miles" on the Merak and I told him "hell yes!", he looked shocked! But I am definitely not like him, he has a basement with 200 cars and they are just sitting there for years, sometimes he sells a car without ever having driven it!! No thanks! Anyway, it is all a matter of opinion. The LHM system is a fine system, but that doesn't mean I will like it No offense intended.
Marius, I don`t agree with you. The Citroen-soup might be reliable and well proven in the 70s - but the sport car market doesn`t like the word "Citroen" - and thats the point! Citroen and sports cars doesn`t fit to each other (image wise!)! Also the much rarer Merak SS without the green-soup and in EU-specs are much more rare. As of Alfieri: A genius! But he had the tendency to design very advanced but complicated and therefor not much reliable projects like the V12-racing engines with- and without injection for the 350S and 250F, the derivates for the Cooper-F1-cars, the complicate 5000 GT-motor, the wide-angle V6 for the Merak with its endless chain drive and various other engine projects that remained to prototype status and never saw the production! It would have been the wiser decision to make it more powerful, more simple and therefore more reliable - like Ferrari did. And also the Lucas-inj. (not designed by him but favoured!) was not much reliable in the early 60s. The market speaks a clear word here - and this is not much charming to the Merak. Yes, the Espada I are keeping up in value now and the LP400 "Periscopia" is the most expensive Countach since 10 years - but all this cars never had anything in it that came from France. It was pure Italian stuff. Also the Espada I and the LP400 are very rare! And thats reflected by the market.
I share many of Marius' views. The first series often become the ones that are the most sought after, especially when a model gets recognized as a classic and is treated as such; the functional improvements over the model's life then become less important, whereas the purity of the original design gets increasily appreciated. I don't know, of course, what will happen in the case of the Merak in the next, say, 5 to 10 years; who does? But, although I expect that the euro-spec SS will still lead the pack pricewise, I think the early euro-spec cars will get increasingly closer. Meraks - any version of the model - are getting pretty rare...
You maintain your car well and use it a lot. Thats the way to do, and I applaud you for doing this. You are also right, time will tell witch variant of the Merak that will be most sought after. As Gabriel write, the Meraks are getting rare, and would not be surprised if there is more 3500 GTs around now than Meraks. No offense taken either Maserati Blue, I just find it a bit harsh when you state that the LHM cars are no good and not worth saving. I agree that the LHM system is a matter of taste, but the cars was designed for it. Best regards Marius
