When it comes to certain “problem” cars, it makes sense to buy the best one you can get. If you can’t swing that, I recommend buying the one you can afford with as many spares as possible. This 1985 Maserati Biturbo is a little bit of each of those things, but not in the ideal mixture: it’s too expensive and too much of a project, despite coming with a parts car and a boatload of spare parts. The seller is listing the Maserati on behalf of the mechanic who has owned the, and the better of the two is the Biturbo coupe seen here. There’s also a four-door parts car and lots of spares included, like a decent interior and a used engine still in the shipping crate. Find the Italian combo here on eBay with a suggested opening bid of $10,250.
Now, I don’t hate the Biturbo as much as some people do, even though it represents peak malaise-era thinking. The seller’s cars are both New Mexico vehicles, so they are nice and dry which at least takes the body rot issue off the table. The Biturbo looks surprisingly complete and the photos show some nice “bonuses” in terms of spare parts and hard-to-find bits that are preserved on this car. Check out the back glass – even the sun shades still work! Other photos show brand new Marchal OEM fog lamps complete with Maserati-branded covers and a factory took kit that appears to be complete. I realize this doesn’t address the elephant in the room of these cars being non-runners, but it helps.
The Biturbo’s interior is pretty much torched, at least as it relates to the leather seats. The headliner is also drooping down in photos, which is a common issue on Maseratis of this vintage and especially ones that have resided in the dry-but-sun-intense climate of New Mexico. The photos in the listing include what looks like a very decent pair of spare leather bucket seats in this trademark orange color, so the next owner won’t have to schedule a trip to their upholstery shop to get these fixed. The Maserati is thankfully equipped with the preferred manual transmission, and while the front seats are rough, the back seat and the dash are both in good condition overall.
The engine bay looks surprisingly tidy as well, and this is an area I was fully prepared to see a rat’s nest of chewed-up wires or half-done repairs. Now, there could be ugliness lurking underneath, but it’s not as bad as I was expecting. The seller reports that the mechanic who owns the cars can have the Biturbo up and running within a few hours, so take that for what it’s worth. Investing in these cars is not the sort of exercise that’s going to pay you dividends down the road, especially at the current asking price. But if you were able to negotiate a bit lower, you may at least be starting from a good place budget-wise to bring this forgotten Biturbo back to life.
I had a co-worker in 1985 that bought a new Biturbo. What little I knew about owning a Maserati was their less-than-stellar reliability record. She had this car three months, with most of it spent at the dealership. She walked away from it by handing the keys to the dealer and telling them to sue her for the remaining payments. They never did. She got lucky!
Unless things were different in the 80’s walking away from a car hurts only you and your credit rating.
The dealer has nothing to do with it.
But, I can totally understand the motivation.
No thanks!. A nightmare in the making.
A nightmare in the making.
Sounds so nice you said it twice
And later, Maserati was ashamed for building the Chrysler TC, a car that actually was reliable.
I always liked the Chrysler, I hated my Maserati 3500 GT which spent more time in the shop than on the road.
Wildly optimistic price either completely oblivious to the market going rate for these and/or trying to sucker in someone who doesn’t know any better. I’m not sure I’d take these at half or even a quarter of the ask — heck, I’m not sure even a late-model injected Biturbo/228/430 in good running driver-quality or better condition would warrant this ask.
These early blow-through carbureted Biturbos are responsible for most of the model’s bad rap. The much-improved later fuel-injected versions still had their peccadilloes, but if you must have one, those are the ones to get, and in the best possible condition you can find and afford. Any lesser example will just wind up costing you more in both money and consternation in the long run.
But it’s a MASERATI.
What’s the hourly rate for the “few hours” of the mechanic/owner’s labor needed just to get the car running?
First thing to do is junk the running gear & replace it with anything from Japan. If I could squeeze an LS in that would work too.
I would go for a 318 Poly Swap.
This and the og Quattroporte were cars that Maserati wishes they could erase from their history
Bring a fire truck!
The Maserati Biturbo was a joke. This example at $10,250 is the funniest joke of all.
Turn it into a electric car! The “Messerarti” BI- not a very desirable car to own.
Plenty of room in the front and rear for batteries and call it Bi- Electric.
BiTurbo is Italian for leaks oil, lots of oil.
If they came down $10k it would still be too much.
Located in:
El Paso, Texas
Believe or not but a Rover 4.2L V8 can be made to fit. I’ve seen it … and it was a peppy performer too.
BOW, WOW!! Run away from this as quickly as you can. Those cars make a Yugo look good.
Ended:
Oct 03, 2021
Starting bid:
US $10,250.00
[ 0 bids ]
Not surprised