1990 Maserati Biturbo

Alejandro de Tomaso acquired Maserati in 1976 with ambitious plans for the marque. He hoped to combine his sports car knowledge, pedigree, and experience with the prestige and lineage of the Masteri brand, creating a more affordable sports car that would appeal to a wider audience of buyers than the earlier and traditional Maserati range. The resulting Maserati BiTurbo model was introduced in two-door form in 1982, intended to challenge Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW in the luxury sporting saloon market. It had a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout with an all-independent suspension, four-wheel disc brakes, and a comfortable and well-appointed leather interior with a burlwood veneer trim. As its name implied, it was equipped with a two-liter V6 engine with two turbochargers making it the first production car equipped with a twin-turbocharged engine. It wore a design by Pierangelo Andreani, an engineer from the De Tomaso team, with design influenced by the newer Quattroporte III (Italdesign Giugiaro), as can be observed on the front fascia. It was initially a strong seller and brought Italian prestige to a wide audience and competed (unsuccessfully) in the British Touring Car Championship in the late 1980s, the European Touring Car Championship and the 1987 World Touring Car Championship. The Spyder version was introduced at the Turin Motor Show in 1984 and was designed and built by the world-class designer, Zagato. Overall 3,076 were built over a ten-year period, setting a production record for Maserati Spyders.

The Maserati BiTurbo received unibody steel construction with a MacPherson strut-type suspension in the front and semi-trailing arms at the rear, with anti-roll bars, coil springs, and double-acting dampers at all four corners. A subframe supported the rear suspension and the differential. The all-aluminum 90-degree V6 was a new design that was based on the preceding V6 engine powering the Marek, itself based on the Giulio Alfieri-designed Formula One Maserati V8 engine. The BiTurbo V6 engine used wet aluminum sleeves coated with Nikasil, and a timing belt to drive the camshafts.

Engines
Maserati built two versions of the BiTurbo throughout the production run - one for the domestic market and another intended for export. Italy subjected a 38-percent value added tax to new cars with engine displacement over 2,000cc, while smaller displacement cars had a 19-percent tax. Thus, BiTurbos built for the 'home' market received two-liter engines, while 'export' models were powered initially with a 2.5-liter V6 and later, a 2.8-liter V6 engine. The 2.5-liter carbureted engine offered 185 horsepower and 208 lb-ft of torque in North American specification while the European versions delivered 190 horsepower and 220 lb-ft of torque.

The 2.5-liter V6 powering the 1984 and 1985 models received a single Weber DCNVH carburetor, an aluminum alloy plenum, and twin IHI turbochargers. In 1986, the engine received a Weber 34DAT carburetor which proved more unreliable and less efficient than the previous Weber DCNVH version. During this time, the water-to-air intercooler was side-mounted, and remained in this configuration through late 1986 or early 1987, when it was permanently relocated to outside the engine back, in front of the radiator. Fuel injection arrived in 1987, boosting output to 187 bhp for the North American models. An increase in displacement to 2.8-liters for 1989 brought another increase in output to 225 hp and 246 lb-ft of torque for North American models and 247 horsepower for Europe.

Coupe
The two-door 2+2 Biturbo Coupe was introduced in December of 1981 and its name would continue through 1988. In May of that year (introduced at that year's Turin Auto Show), it received a significant redesign by Ghibli, and the Biturbo name was dropped and replaced by 222 - for 2-door, 2-liter engine and 2nd generation. Styling revisions included a more rounded hood (bonnet) and grille in a similar fashion to its 430 sibling, with different rear spoiler and wing mirrors. The interior was given a mixed velour-leather motif for domestic models, while models destined for export markets received leather upholstery as standard. The engine size of the 222 E displaced 2.8-liters.

The 222 SE arrived in 1990, a successor to the Biturbo ES, with side skirts, aprons, dark trim and grille, and offered in black, silver, or red. The 222 SR replaced the 222 SE a year later and was offered with adaptive suspension as an option, with standard equipment included wider, 16-inch, 7-spoke alloy wheels, and a DOHC 2.8-liter four-valve engine.

The most powerful version of the two-liter models was the 2.24v and served as a replacement to the earlier Biturbo Si. It was introduced in December of 1988 and equipped with the new four-valve per cylinder engine. It wore a wraparound fascia in the front and rear with integrated foglights and deep side skirts. Like the 422 and 430, it wore 15-inch disc-shaped alloy wheels, with black trim and grille, lower body two-tone paint, four exhaust tips, and a rear deck spoiler. There were two reversed NACA ducts on the hood to extract hot air from the engine bay.

The 2.24v II arrived in 1991 following another styling revision by Gandini. Production continued through 1993. The 2.24v II received a catalytic converter and standard Meccanica Attiva suspension on all four wheels.

Saloon
A four-door saloon version arrived two years after the coupe's introduction, resting on a 3-inch longer wheelbase (102.4-inches compared to 99 inches of the coupe) and with a more pronounced rear overhang. The additional length and added luxury components increased the saloon's weight by approximately 220 pounds compared to its coupe sibling, and along with the different routing of the exhaust system, it had less performance than the coupe. Performance increased in the early 1980s with the introduction of the 425 powered by the 'export' 2.5-liter engine. Production lasted from 1983 through 1986, with various updates along the way. A new dashboard was installed in 1984, corresponding to the new dashboard in the two-door models, and was joined in 1985 by the 420 model - equipped with a two-liter version of the 425. The 420 S was a more sporty version with improved handling, the twin inter-cooled engine, and styling upgrades similar to the Biturbo S. It had NACA ducts on the hood, two-tone wheels, two-tone paint, and dark finish trim. When the Weber fuel injection arrived in 1986, the name became the 425 i, with the 'i' referencing 'injection.' The 425 i was produced from 1986 through 1989; and the 420 i and 420 si were built from 1985 through 1987.

The Maserati 430 was a high-performance version of the Biturbo saloon produced from 1986 through 1994, equipped with a 2.8-liter version of the Biturbo engine, and resting on unique 15-inch 5-lug disc alloy wheels. Distinguishable styling featured a more rounded hood and grille which was later incorporated into the rest of the lineup in 1988. The interior had a walnut veneered steering wheel rim, dashboard trim, door inserts, gear shift knob, and handbrake lever, along with leather upholstery.

The 430 4v arrived in 1991 and continued through 1994, powered by the 24-valve engine, with the '4v' referencing this feature (four valves per cylinder). It had an aerodynamic package that included a discreet spoiler on the trailing edge of the trunk (bootlid). The standard 430 was updated as well at the time, gaining new bumpers, and continued in production alongside the 430 4v version. Maserati built 955 examples of the 430 4v during the three-year production lifespan.

When the 222 replaced the Biturbo, the 420 was replaced accordingly with the 422, with production lasting from 1988 through 1992. It was essentially the 420 Si but with styling updates to the wheels, wing mirrors, and grille.

The 4.24v was the four-door offering of the 2.24v and the 4.18v was introduced in December of 1990, produced solely for the Italian market. The 4.18v was powered by an engine with three-valve per cylinder heads, was the first Biturbo with ABS as standard, and the rear of the entire Biturbo family with a mere 77 examples built. The 4.24v used the four-valve 2.0-liter V6 engine with the new Meccanica Attiva suspension, black trim and grille, a small spoiler on the trunk (boot), and black deep side skirts. A restyling of the 4.24v in 1991 resulted in the 4.24v II, complete with catalytic converters which helped it comply with emission regulations.

Spyder
Zagato designed and produced a convertible version of the Biturbo, and dubbed the Biturbo Spyder (Tipo AM333). This represented Zagato's first production styling effort for Maserati since the A6G/2000 of the late 1940s and early 1950s. A four-seater cabriolet commissioned by Embo of Caramagna was shown at the Turin Auto Show in April of 1982, but this proposal never made it into production. The production version, produced from 1984 through 1994, rested on a 4-inch shorter wheelbase than the coupe and was offered solely as a two-seater with folding rear seats. During its decade-long production lifespan, a total of 3,076 examples were built.

The production Spyder was introduced at the Turin Motor Show in 1984 and could be purchased in either 2.0-liter (domestic) or 2.5-liter (export) configuration. When its engine received fuel injection two years later, the name was changed to the Spyder i. 297 examples were built with the 2.0-liter engine and 122 with the 2.5-liter, carbureted engine.

The Gandini styling treatment was applied to the Spyder in 1989, resulting in its name being updated to the Spyder i 1990. It had a rounded grille and hood, 15-wheels on five-lug hubs, aerodynamic wing mirrors, and fuller bumpers. The displacement of the engine increased to 2.8-liters, and a four-speed automatic transmission became part of the options list. Just like its saloon siblings, the engines received water-cooled turbochargers and intercoolers.

A third styling revision arrived in 1991 resulting in the Spyder III. This was Gandini's second styling update to the range, complete with a new grille and hood (bonnet), a spoiler at the base of the windscreen, deeper body-color sills, ellypsoidal headlights in body-color housings, and 16-inch seven-spoke wheels. The 2.0-liter version received 24-valve engines while the 2.8-liter version continued to use 18-valves. Spyder IIIs also received a limited-slip differential from Maserati's Ranger.

Two Door, 5 Seater GT Coupe
The Maserati 228 was based on the Biturbo chassis and produced from 1986 through 1992 with 469 examples built during that time. It was a luxurious two-door GT coupe rested on the longer wheelbase chassis of the four-door Biturbos and powered by the 2.8-liter, 18-valve fuel-injected V6 (thus, its name representing 2-door, 2.8-liter engine). Styling was by Pierangelo Andreani and standard equipment included Bilstein gas shock absorbers.

Successor
The coupe version of the BiTurbo was replaced by the Maserati Ghibli (AM336) and the sedan version by the Maserati Quattroporte IV / Maserati Ghibli (M157).

by Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2021