Lot 229: 1967 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 The 3500 series proved to be a great success and represented the pinnacle of Grand Touring cars until it was superseded by a new model in 1963.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. Coys are proud to offer this stunning Mistral Coupe, as one of a pair of exceptional Maseratis that come from a prominent private Italian collection. Virtually a one owner from new example, the car is fitted with the more powerful 4.0 litre, six cylinder engine which features its original Lucas fuel injection system, which is in perfect working order. Other than a recent quality repaint the car presents itself in a perfectly preserved 'time warp' condition. Maseratis of this period general are very hard to source in this condition, because of their inherently low values when compared to say a Ferrari of the same period most of them have lived through a period of neglect before being revived by enthusiasts: this is no such car, all of the chrome work and hard to source interior fittings are fresh as the day the car left the factory. Its current owner a famous personality in Italian fashion circles is only and regretfully selling the car to make space for another purchase.C'est notamment tres difficile de trouver une Maserati des annees 60 qui n'ont pas souffri une periode de negligence, grace a leur valeur plus bas que, par example, les Ferrari. Cette Mistral se presente en condition superbe, avec tres bonne chrome et une tres belle interieur.