Maserati - The Road Cars 1981 - 1997

By: Price Williams .

John Price Williams tells the story of the Biturbo and all the cars based upon it, including the Spyder, Karif, Shamal and Ghibli.

MASERATI is one of the great names of the Italian motor industry and is today more successful than at any time in its long history of nearly 100 years. Yet it nearly disappeared for ever in the 1970s, when it was abandoned by Citroen, one of a long string of owners. This is the story of how Maserati was brought back to life with a fast, luxurious twin-turbocharged coupe, the Biturbo, which formed the basis for a range of exceptional models over the next decade and a half.

Although the Biturbo's early reputation for unreliability has hung over it like a cloud, the models that followed it evolved into ever-quicker and more accomplished cars like the open-top Spyder, the nimble Karif, the powerful V8 Shamal, the amazingly quick Ghibli Cup and many others — a plethora of models, all of which are chronicled here with specifications, model histories and extracts from contemporary road tests. There's also period detail on the Quattroporte, now one of Maserati's most successful models, but then a byword for extravagance, coveted by presidents and captains of industry.

Behind Maserati's revival at that time was one man — Alejandro De Tomaso — reviled and revered in equal measure, and this book tells how he saved the Modena company and had a hand in almost every decision until he sold out to Fiat. There are also comprehensive sections on buying and restoration, and on clubs and specialists.

Maseratis of this era are regarded as exceptional cars by those who acknowledge their quirks, but appreciate the unique experience of owning and driving a piece of Italian motoring history. They are cars long overdue this reappraisal.

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