This is an interesting car. Coming from a time when Alejandro de Tomaso owned the Maserati brand, this 1987 Maserati Biturbo SI has a starting bid price of $1,000 with no indicated reserve. It has 60,355 miles on it and is located in East Northport, New York. It does have a clean title. The listing states that the car has been sitting a while, but does not indicate if it runs or not. More information can be found here on eBay.
A 2.5 liter, twin turbo V6 lives in the engine bay. The car is fuel injected rather than naturally aspirated. Some work that will need to be done according to the listing is that a passenger side turbo will need to be installed. Other items that need work as well include turbocharger elbows, a new clutch, a new windshield, rear tires, and some bubbling paint and rust. These cars are very rare so parts might be hard to come by.
Inside the car is a worn interior. It has plush materials and wood trim that do not seem to be cracked. The listing states the car has leather seats. It also states that the car has a CD player. Certainly not standard for back then, even for a Maserati, so someone at some point installed an aftermarket stereo. The listing does claim that the current owner has tinkered with some electrical wiring in the car.
According to the listing, the car is listed as a “Black Edition”, with only 50 produced for the American market. Quick research puts that into question. Some websites claim only 25 were produced. Some charts do not indicate that the specific edition was ever sold in the states. If you do buy this, a website called maseratinet.com has parts and information abound for this unique, yet neat car.
♫This Maserati won’t do 185…there’s a good chance it won’t even drive♫
Cool car… never seen one before. Tail lights remind me of an early ’80s Mercedes.
When I hear the word ‘ Maserati ‘ this is not what comes to mind.
Black Edition, as in black mold. Or, don’t drive it on black ice. Assuming it will ever drive again.
As in black pit of despair……
As in Black hole where your money disappears……..
Ok.
I’m warming up to these. Can someone give me a run down of why they’re so poorly thought of? Something better than “they’re just bad”.
From what I generally understand they were pretty unreliable – particularly early cars. There are problems with the electrical systems, rear differentials, cooked turbos, and other things.
While Italian cars are generally not known for their reliability, I think this one was particularly shaky because it was intended to be a volume car for Maserati and was designed during a difficult time in the company’s history. Nor was it good-looking enough or fast enough for people to forgive these things like they might with a Ferrari or even a higher end Maserati.
Putting those things together, the car generally developed a bad reputation.
The fuel injected ones, are the ones to have. I’ve always have had a soft spot for this clowns, and then I drove one. GOSH, what a neat experience!!!
The later the model year, the more reliable and desirable they are! Oh, avoid the ones with auto transmissions, unless is a parts car!
I own two Biturbos and must say the are a blast to drive. They do require tinkering and I use a parts car as well as suppliers to keep them in shape. Basic automotive skills are important and not recommended for check book mechanic. Most trouble areas are very simple to address and global sites are extremely helpful. So much hype and little truth. I’m glad I didn’t listen to the world view for I would have missed out on the experience. Fantastic cruiser and lots of performance. They love top end speed and are tail happy when desired. I’ve owned or driven about every car from the 80’s and relish these the most. Comfort and style that no one can comprehend until the get behind the wheel. Persistence void of emotional blockage is important. There’s a built in voice that wants to agree with the negativity, but when ignored, the truth is revealed. I squeeze my pennies and find alternative and less expensive solutions. Yes I am a garage addict… most people are not.
As a turbo charged engine, this is not naturally aspirated… the twin turbos would indeed assist with aspiration.
They’re just bad.
Back when these were only 10 years old you could buy them with under 50K miles for $3k. I was tempted but I needed a little more reliability.
FYI Per Wikipedia: A naturally aspirated engine is an internal combustion engine in which oxygen intake depends solely on atmospheric pressure and does not rely on forced induction through a turbocharger or a supercharger.
Always hear horrible things about these, I has an 87 drove it for years. Other than tires and oil I never put a dime in it. I guess I had the only good one ever built
I own a real exported U.S. 87 Biturbo Si Black Edition. 2500cc, supercharged fuel injected, twin turbo, twin intercoolers, twin-coils, larger water pump, larger hoses, bigger thermostat and more etc. There are many things that separate the U.S version from the European versions, I never had any major problems with it ever, just normal maintenance.
How can it be turbo and supercharged? Reach out inwant to buy nick at mrinvestor com
Having owned several, I have developed an axiom. There are few things in this world more expensive than a cheap Biturbo.
The early cars had Head Gasket and Turbo Problems. The biggest problem was that they did not have a cool down cycle for the oil when the car was shut down. The net result was that the oil “COAKED” in the turbos or became carbonized and in the process the oil became abrasive which ate up the engines very quickly. Given that there were two turbos did not help.
One that is working properly is a blast to drive, a car with a real kick in the pants. When not working can be a total money pit. That is why there is no resale value to them. They are very comfortable, good handling, powerful and useful cars to own.
There is a good support group now and enough of them that there is a depth of experience needed to keep them running and for restoration. The interior or at least the seats is easy almost any interior shop can restore these to new. The electrical systems have the newer teflon coating so in general they are not that bad if not messed with to badly. The transmissions are very seldom a problem, the same is true for the suspension and rear end. The bodies are generally well made but the cooling system and the engine is the problem.
I have seen 4 of these in a shop of a very good friend that were just impossible to keep running. And one that needed almost nothing for over 10 years of ownership from the same man. This is a shop that could keep Aston Martins, V-12, Jags, and my fuel injected Maserati Sebring running with little or no trouble. The price is about right and pray that this is a good one. If it is, you are a winner, if not you can be forgiven for dreaming big.
The fact that it has been sitting for years points to the later, me thinks. If the number was better, it might be worth a shot,, although it would be an expensive shot, to be sure.
“Been sitting awhile…”
No kidding?
Hello guys well I’m gonna put my two sent in it and tell you a story about a ls engine tranny and differential that works fa oulous in one and let me tell you guys something.Iso Grifos.petro frua , bizzarinni,and detomaso himself did the Ford and Chevy ssb things all day long look at thelongcbamps or the panteras of the day and right now today they sell for big bucks and highly sought after.so if I were to buy I’d get a lsx and a GM 6speed and with the looks that car has then I would take it off my wall of dream cars.
@Geoff
“Back when these were only 10 years old you could buy them with under 50K miles for $3k.”
Don’t kid yourself, none of these made it to 50K miles.
I’ve read the odometers on these tended to break somewhere in the 50-60k range, which is at least one reason why these are rarely seen with anything over 70k or so on the clock — it’s not necessarily that they won’t go that distance, just that their true mileage is unknown beyond the point when the odo broke.
Brian,, a few made it to/above 50k,.there were some owners with a big enough bank account to do it,, lol
I owned one, the 2 happiest days were, when it arrived and when it left and I am a Certified Technician. Head gasket issues, oil leaks and timing belt issues. Mine was carburetored and it went pretty well. Not fun if you let off the gas quickly on a slippery road, the exhaust restriction from the turbo’s made the rear wheels act as if the brakes were applied and the car wanted to swap ends. I almost spun mine into a ditch a couple times. Fun in the dry but scary when wet. Very comfortable front seats, although the doeskin hide didn’t hold up well in the sun.
A question often asked around guys is, “What car would you want to give up in a divorce to get back at your ex?”. Most people say a Yugo, but that is wrong. It’s a Maserati Biturbo. It will suck her dry all the while she thinks she got the win in the divorce. I actually wish I had one when my ex took me for all I had.
I sold these new in 1988-89 in Scottsdale Arizona. We had to tell the new owners that they should not run the air conditioning in the summer if they were going to be sitting at idle, they would overheat! ARIZONA, 110 DEGREES OUTSIDE!