1973 Maserati Ghibli

Maserati introduced the Ghibli at the Turin Motor Show in 1966, serving as a successor to the 6-cylinder Maserati Mistral. Its name was in reference to a hot wind that blows from the south of France across the Mediterranean to North Africa. Like the Quattroporte and the earlier Mexico, the Ghibli rested on a shortened version of Maserati's tubular frame, suspended in the front by an independent setup with dual wishbones, coil springs, and an anti-roll bar. The back used a live axle suspended on semi-elliptic leaf springs and located by a single longitudinal torque arm. Many of the Ghibli's rivals preferred a more complex suspension design, compared to the Ghibli's which offered a much more easily maintained arrangement. While the Ghibli inherited many aspects from its predecessors, it radically departed from its brethren by its styling.

The Maserati Ghibli was penned by a young Giorgetto Giugiaro, while he was at Ghia, the Ghibli featured a long (184 inches) and low (46 inches) fastback design that marked a new, more modern design ethos for Maserati. Shedding the soft curves of the 1950s, the shark nose of the Ghibli was flanked by a near-horizontal windshield above and adorned with pop-up headlamps below. In the center of the hood was an aggressive yet elegant bulge vent that gave a hint at what lurked underneath. The roofline fell away from the top of the steeply raked windscreen to the chopped-off tail, resulting in a cabin that was lower than that of almost all the Ghibli's contemporaries, albeit one with restricted headroom for rear passengers. Magnesium alloy wheels wrapped with Pirelli Cinturato 205 VR 15 tires were positioned below chrome-trimmed vents along the front flanks, and a slight crease separated the lower half from the upper portion. The interior excelled at pure and opulent luxury with a dashboard trimmed in leather, the wooden steering wheel surrounds a bold crest and steel spokes, and the console instruments, vents, and push-button radio are equally impressive works of art. The sports seats are comfortable and accomodating, and the pillars are all dressed and trimmed in leather with premium stitching.

Production of the new Ghibli began in 1967, in both spider and 2+2 fastback coupé configurations. Then, in 1969, Maserati began offering an upgraded version of the Ghibli, known as the SS, which featured a stroked version of the V-8 engine that now possessed 4930cc of displacement along with four Weber 42 DCNF downdraft carburetors, delivering 330 horsepower at 5,500 RPM. With this increase in power, the Ghibli SS had a top speed of 175 mph, making it the fastest road-going automobile Maserati had produced up to that point.

Between 1967 and 1973, Maserati built 1,274 examples of the Ghibli with 1,149 of those being coupes. 425 examples were SS coupes.

Initially, the front-mounted, quad-cam 4,719cc V8 engine, derived from that of the 450S sports racer and first seen in road-going guise in the 5000GT, produced just over 300 horsepower and endowed the Ghibli with a zero-to-sixty mph time of 6.8 seconds and a top speed of 155 mph. Dry-sump lubrication enabled the engine to be mounted deep in the chassis, permitting a low bonnet line, while limited suspension travel ensured that the tires did not foul the wheel arches. A five-speed ZF manual transmission was part of the standard equipment list while the three-speed automatic could be found among the list of options. Borrani wire wheels and a detachable hardtop (for the spyder) were also optional. The SS version of the Ghibli had a 4mm larger stroke and a displacement of 4,930cc, boosting power to 330 horsepower. The 4.9-liter SS version was tuned to comply with ever more stringent emission laws.

The eight-cylinder engine was a thirsty beast so Maserati engineers fitted the Ghibli with two independent 50 liter (13.2 U.S. gallon) fuel tanks, which could be filled via flaps on either side of the roof pillars. Regardless, the Ghibli is one of Maserati's and Giugiaro's most cherished designs, combining sublime Italian styling with outstanding performance and fantastic driving dynamics. The neck-snapping acceleration was courtesy of the V8's enormous torque, making the Ghibli one of the most flexible and easy-to-drive GTs of its era, and a worthy rival for the Ferrari Daytona.

Maserati replaced the Ghibli with the Khamsin 2+2 grand touring coupe which was produced from 1974 through 1982, with 435 examples built during that time. Its engine was a 4.9-liter V8 and its wheelbase measured 100.4-inches - the same as the Ghibli. The angular, wedge-shaped styling was courtesy of Marcello Gandini at Bertone. It was sold alongside the DeTomaso-based Maserati Kyalami which was also a 2+2 GT car with V8 power. The 2-door Maserati Bora is also considered a successor of the Ghibli, with a mid-engine configuration, seating for two, styling by Giorgetto Giugiaro at Italdesign, a 102.4-inch wheelbase, and powered initially by a 4.7-liter V8.

Maserati revived the Ghibli name in the early 1990s for a two-door, four-seater coupe powered by a twin-turbocharged V6 engine. Wearing a design by Marcello Gandini, production lasted from 1992 through 1998. After lying dormant for several years, Maserati once again brought back the Ghibli name in 2013 for a four-door salon powered by three different 3.0-liter V6 engines.

by Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2021