It’s a shame that Maserati has begun building rapidly depreciating CUVs and sedans that are anonymous aside from the familiar script on the trunk lid. No longer will we pine to find a Maserati locked away in a California barn, where it’s been hiding – safely, dryly – since 1978. This 3500GT is a well-optioned car that still wears its California black plates and represents an excellent opportunity to simply restore the drivetrain and enjoy. Find it here on eBay with a $225,000 Buy-It-Now.
The 3500GT features the standard 5-speed manual transmission, which was an upgrade over the earlier car’s use of a 4-speed box. This car also comes with the carbureted inline-six motor, which made less power than the fuel injected models, but that I’m sure is more desirable among enthusiasts who fancy hearing that Maserati engine bark with a set of period sidedrafts hooked up.
The seller, who needs no introduction here, appears to have found an incredibly solid car that shows little signs of neglect aside from obviously being in dry storage for a few decades. The interior is incredible, with barely soiled carpets, what looks like a perfect dash, and seats that may need re-stuffing but are otherwise undamaged by the sun or heavy wear.
Pulled out into the daylight, the 3500GT presents nicely, with a laser-straight body aside from a hood that needs adjustment. The bumper is askew, which frankly may have occurred upon removal. The tires still hold air and it looks good enough to make you believe the engine will turn over with ease. This 3500GT is a true survivor of the best kind and a reminder as to how great Maserati once was.
Wow.
What an aggressively sporty looking car.
I don’t think I’ll be selling my house to get into it, though….
But someone will grab it, and it hopefully will cruise the canyons again instead of being locked up in a “collection”.
Even in it’s current condition,this is a very good looking car even though the new owner has a serious piggy bank to purchase this classic.
I looked at one of the early 4 speed 3500s and in addition to the dash mounted cigar lighter, I was impressed on how large they are. You could travel for a week with what would fit in the trunk. As I recall, the DOHC 6 had somewhere around 240hp with the 3 Weber carbs, a little more with the FI. This one doesn’t have the chrome fins either. Early ones came with steel wheels, not the wires, but they all had Dunlop disc brakes. Lots of work here for one of the all time great Maser GTs. The roof design looks similar to the Lancia V6 Flaminia coupe from about the same time.
It’s not surprising it looks like the Lancia Flaminia coupe. Carrozzeria Touring was responsible for both vehicles.
This car was pulled out of the garage less than 10 miles from my house. I have pictures of it coming out. The landscaper snapped pictures of the car getting hauled out of the back. Dan
A bath would be nice. I am aware of what this car is but 225k is pushing it. Only about 15 to 20 years ago, a decent 3500GT could be bought for 50k. Also, be aware of who the seller/broker/flipper is…. Not the most upfront person you will find so be careful.
Is that a television mounted in the dash??
I hope so! If “You Only Live Twice” had been set in Italy instead of Japan we might have seen Bond in this car instead of the Toyota 2000GT. (Not stating a preference, the 2000GT is pretty amazing.)
If this car is from Berkeley. Then that means that the stories I heard of this car were really true. Cool. Otherwise there is still one hidden in the Hills near my work. Hmmm?
San Leandro-off Dutton
Man this hits me in the gut
Early satnav! :^)
OK, so the seller ‘needs no introduction’….who is it? Jay? Tim Allen? It doesn’t matter; it will take a real sucker to fork over $225K. That might be a price once restored, but no t as it stands. This “seller” dreams big, and only fools themselves.
Peter Kumar , …. bet he paid 30k
Good old Gullwing. Asking $225K for a car that needs just about everything—at least it’s best to assume that since it’s been sitting for the past 41 years. And it’s not even a cabriolet.
These have sold recently at major auctions in very good condition for $223K lately (current SCM Guide), which means that the asking for this car doesn’t compute.
Sometime in the late 60’s, my uncle showed up at our SF home in one of these. He had just purchased it and was heading to Los Angeles, probably hoping to set a land speed record in doing so. The car amazed me. As a young teenager, what really stumped me were the two spark plugs per cylinder. I had never seen that before. Both he and my dad were Jaguar guys…or at least British car guys. We grew up in SF surrounded by Jags. Buy a Jag, buy a parts car. LOL. Dad drove mom nuts! Anyway, never found out why/when he sold that thing. I stumbled upon a car show in Florence, Italy this past summer and one of these was present. They really are gorgeous cars. On Fantom Works (Motortrend TV), a guy brought his fathers in for restoration. Parts aren’t easy to come by and are obviously expensive. The shop nailed it and I don’t even want to know what it cost the owner. The sound blowing out of the exhaust is pure amore!
There’s one of these not far from me. An absolute basket case of ruin that has sat outside for decades.
Agree with most here about the pie-in-the-sky pricing – roughly around Hagerty #4 condition but in a below #1 condition . Never had personal experience with Gullwing, but my guess is that there is a LOT of negotiating room here, although maybe not enough to pay the costs necessary to restore it back to decent shape. Nevertheless, it’s got a lot going for it and I hope it gets done.
I have owned a Sebring Series II that is just a shortened frame and slightly different body than this car and I can tell you that they are great fun to drive. Fast for the day and not bad now. Critical problems will be is the Head Gasket OK, Is the Water Pump OK, and are the carbs balanced. Those are the three main problems as long as the body and. frame is good.
Of note these typically had oval tubes for the frames which are not obtainable these days. Most of the suspension is Jaguar the transmission is from ZF at least mine was. The electrical system is good as are most other parts.
These cars were never meant to be the street racers that the Ferrari of the time were. They were for the very wealthy ONLY. Luxury, speed, looks and quality thru out. Easier to run on a daily basis then the typical Ferrari and far more reliable. Generally had very good heaters which was a surprise given that it is an Italian car. Air-conditioning was available both from the factory and as an accessory items.
Sports cars yes, but more GT car similar to the Porsche 928 of later years. Larger than you might think but roomy and beautiful. The price is about 100K too high. I am not aware of this seller but it is typical of so many that want the retail price for something that needs serious work. Sad.
Something of note from someone that owned one. You will need the engine numbers, transmission numbers, chassis, numbers to order parts. Maserati made on line changes from car to car and from supplier to supplier. Maserati keeps records as to what was installed on each car, gear ratios, and all the rest. You will need such information to know what part to order. That is one reason so few of these were ever stolen. Without that information you can not keep them running and as soon as you try to order the the parts they know where the car went. Mostly if you stole it you went to jail. There are good and bad points to this but any new owner should be aware.
Hmmmm I have a green matchbox car of one like this.
The owner of my company had one of these in original condition in his basement in France. He had it since new! Thought the value would be over a million euros!
Would have loved to see that one.
I remember when these were in the $7500 to $10,000 range for drivers. I’ve owned four of the coupes and one Vignale spider. At the time, these were unwanted and unloved, and a tough sale when it was time to move on. I was always concerned about the fact that these cars had loads of thick crumbly asbestos covering the interior door sills (as the exhaust pipes pass through the channel). Not sure how to properly take car of this issue. Of course, I didn’t foresee the values going up like they have, or I would have simply parked my Masers in a barn for 30 years!
My Vignale Spider which had a factory hardtop and Borrani wires. Purchased for way under $10k back in the late ’80’s!
I looked at one backed out of a storage unit in Kissimmee, Fl. – south of Orlando, around the late ’90’s. It was ugly – paint and carpet, but solid. I saw it as soaking up a lot of money, and they had not at that time, started to appreciate. I think I could have bought it for $13 – $15,000. I had the money, but would have suffered the wrath of my wife. :-)
The major re-ason prices are going stupid, is FAKE MONEY. When the US FAKE re-serve is shut down, we will all be able to live a-gain. The only thing holding value is labour.u
Sold at RM Monterey in ’05 for about 30k. Shoulda coulda….
It’s worth what someone will pay.