1959 Maserati 3500GT Spyder

Maserati's pursuit to remain at the highest levels of motorsport competition resulted in a hemorrhaging of financial resources. This led to the company diverting its full attention to its production-based road car by the late 1950s. The six-cylinder engine from the sports-racing 350S was detuned and installed in a new model dubbed the 3500 GT. Introduced in 1957 at the Geneva Salon, it was initially equipped with 12-inch finned drum brakes and a Salisbury-type rear axle. The popularity of the coupe body style led to the development of an open-top version. Frua and Touring were furnished with several chassis for design studies, but it was the Giovanni Michelotti design built by Carrozzeria Vignale that was selected as the production model, with chassis number 101.623 officially introduced at the 1959 Turin Motor. By the time production ended in 1964, a total of 242 Vignale Spyder examples had been created.

This particular example is chassis number 101.678, and is believed to be the 10th open 3500 GT built. It is one of around five prototypes bodied by Vignale with unique features as Maserati searched for the perfect combination. Differing from the production version, this Maserati has unique fender vents, with an angular (almost arrow-shaped) sweep-spear design located just behind the front wheel well with a character line on the door. The later production Vignale Spyders had shorter center-placed fender vents.

This Maserati was completed in late October 1959 and wore a Blue Medio exterior with a red interior. Equipped with front disc brakes, it was dispatched in February 1960 to Waco Motors in Miami, Florida, on behalf of its first owner, Lindsey Hopkins. By 1980, it was owned by Texas resident William Strange, who is believed to have begun a restoration but left the car in a disassembled state for a number of years. Following a bankruptcy proceeding, ownership passed through dealer Gary Roberts and was then sold in 1996 to Kenneth Glyn of Melbourne, Australia (along with partner Mario Lombardi). The car received a full nut-and-bolt refurbishment that included complete mechanical freshening.

In the early 2010s, custodianship briefly passed to a German collector before it was sold to a dealer based in Massachusetts and offered at RM Sotheby's flagship Monterey sale in August 2014, where it was purchased by the current owner. It was immediately dispatched to RM Auto Restoration for a sympathetic refurbishment that primarily addressed cosmetics and minor functional issues. The work was in excess of $198,000 and included a refinishing in its original Blue Medio exterior with the interior reupholstered in tan leather with complementary Wilton carpeting.

Upon completion, the car was driven on the Colorado Grand tour.

By Daniel Vaughan | Dec 2022