1978 Maserati Bora Coupe

Giorgetto Giugaro and his new Italdesign studio was tasked with designing a new mid-engined two-seat coupe. The result of their work was to become known as the Bora, named for the maritime winds that blow off Italy's Adriatic coastline. The car was given a steel chassis and body monocoque and rested on a 102-inch wheelbase. The first several hundred examples were given Maserati's 4.7-liter 90-degree V8; later examples were powered by an enlarged 4.9-liter version, which offered more power and torque. The engines had a block and cylinder heads formed from aluminum. The engine was mounted longitudinally behind the cockpit. The engine, suspension, and transmission were cradled by a separate steel rear subframe. Giulio Alfieri was tasked with designing the suspension layout. He chose upper and lower wishbones with coil springs at both ends.

With the 4.9-liter engine developing 320 horsepower and offering a top speed of 162 mph, the Bora was certainly in supercar territory. The GT car rested on Campagnolo alloy wheels, and featured a brushed stainless steel roof and windscreen pillars. The interior was rather luxurious, with leather used for on the bucket seats, dash, door trim, center console and rear bulkhead. Standard equipment included electric windows; most examples were given air conditioning.

This particular example was produced near the end of production. It was part of a small collection of high-performance Italian sports cars assembled by their late owner in northern California. It has seen little use and is in rather neglected condition. It is currently finished in Maserati Red, but it appears to have been originally painted yellow.

By Daniel Vaughan | Feb 2015