Lot 229: 1966 Maserati Mistral

The Maserati name is one of the oldest and most respected in motoring history the world over. Established in 1926 by racing driver Alfieri Maserati and his brothers, it began as a racing marque and developed into a sporting one. The production of road cars started in 1958 with the glamorous 3500GT, a Touring bodied coupé powered by a detuned version of Maserati's famed 350S competition engine of 1956.The 3500 series proved to be a great success and represented the pinnacle of Grand Touring cars until it was superseded by a new model in 1963. The new car was romantically named the Mistral after the wind which blows over the French Mediterranean coastline, conjuring up images of speed and beautiful scenery. The Mistral enjoyed a relatively long production life, from 1963 until 1970, during which time a total of 948 cars were built, of which a mere 120 were spyders, with only 20 of those being right-hand drive.The Mistral continued to use the race-proven 6 cylinder, twin-cam engine, power output being in excess of 220bhp at 5,500rpm. The chassis was of tubular design with semi-elliptic rear suspension, coil springs at the front and hydraulic shock absorbers all round; the gearbox was a five-speed ZF unit with a single dry plate clutch, whilst braking was by discs to all four wheels.Produced in 1966 this Mistral has been in the vendor's collection since 1988. Finished in red with the interior recently refurbished in ivory leather the car is presented in very good condition. Further highlights include desirable Borrani wire wheels and the car is fed through recently fitted Weber carburettors for added performance. This sporty and elegant coupe is sure to give a lot of fun during the summer months and comes complete with German registration papers.Auch dieser Mistral entstammt einer privaten Sammlung und wurde bereits 1988 vom jetztigen Besitzer erworben. Die beigefarbenen Ledersitze wurden vor kurzem erneuert und kontrastieren zu dem roten Lack der Karrosserie. Zustzlich erhhen die begehrten Borrani-Speichenrder und neu installierte Weber-Vergaser die Attraktivitt dieses Mistral. Perfekt fr den hoffentlich noch lange andauernden Sommer.