The idea of a grand touring car is intriguing to me. Do, or did, owners of cars such as this 1965 Maserati Quattroporte actually carry passengers? Certainly, they’re made for the best of all worlds: luxury, speed, handling, quietness, exclusivity, roominess and comfort, and many other things. This once elegant touring sedan can be found here on eBay in equally-elegant Cedar Rapids, Iowa (it’s a great city, I’ve been there many times). The current bid price is $7,200 but the reserve isn’t met yet and the seller says that they can end the auction early.
A car like this Quattroporte isn’t just a fancy sedan even though it may just look like a four-door sedan with a fancy name on it. This is my absolute favorite grand touring/luxury-sport sedan, the first-generation, or Series 1 Maserati Quattroporte. I prefer the four-headlight cars but anything made between 1963 and 1966 would be great, or a Series II car made until 1969. There were only 230 cars made for the first four years of production so this car is incredibly rare.
This may not be the most gorgeous view of this car but, unfortunately, the seller doesn’t give us too many exterior photos. We don’t see even the tiniest glimpse of the entire driver’s side at all which is a red flag in my world, but hopefully it doesn’t look any worse than the passenger side does. That is to say, this car is at least somewhat rusty in some areas are very rusty in others. The underside looks hopeful in a couple of the photos but it looks hopeless in others. Rust can be repaired and if ever there was a car worth the expense, this is it.
The interior is beautiful, or it was and hopefully it will be again. It appears to be in good condition, just a bit faded and dirty. The seats define comfort, or they did in the mid-1960s. I’m sure that they could be brought back to life again and they sure have that signature Maserati overstuffed look. The rear seating area looks appropriately luxurious. Having a ZF 5-speed manual transmission in a car like this almost makes me openly weep, that’s so fantastic.
The real beauty of this car is its engine, in this case it’s Maserati’s 252 cubic-inch 4.1L V8 which had around 260 hp. The seller says that it runs relatively smoothly, although on a spare gas can, not through the gas tank. Still, it runs and that’s half the battle. Hagerty puts a #4 fair condition value of $23,600 on this car and it’s a very long way from being in that condition, but their #2 excellent condition value is $53,300 so depending on the seller’s reserve price, this one is very much worth restoring. Are there any fans of these early Quattroportes out there? Any present or past owners?
A brilliant, fast, wonderful neurotic handler with lots of luxury to boot. You need to be close to a Maserati mechanic who knows these cars. If you are, jump on it.
But can it do 185??
You lost your license, didn’t you Slantasaurus?
Slantasaurus; 185, maybe….with a tuneup. That’s 185 kmh, right?? In 1965 a top speed of about 125 mph was suggested.
Oops 185 kph!!!
Yes. Absolutely. I list after big Italian 60s tourers and this is one of them. 300 kph speedo!
Sorry but not being a big fan of Maserati’s, to me that’s one ugly car IMO. Additionally I lived for a couple of decades in Cedar Rapids, unless something has dramatically changed, the car has been exposed to a ton of sand and salt.
Good luck to whoever ends up with this thing.
Are body parts even available for this car ?
Yes, in the form of 18 gauge flat sheet metal. You bend to fit.
Yes parts are available and I would not be too worried about the rust as this car has a separate frame like all Maserati of this period. A tube frame is much easier to fix. The mechanical parts are even easier as the factory makes many of the parts you need and the transmission, and most of the suspension parts come from other makers including Jaguar, and Mercedes. There is a group called MASERATI INFORMATION EXCHANGE out of Seattle that can be a big help.
This is a truly amazing car and is more impressive in person than in the photos. I have seen three and except for the one in white the others in darker colors were really impressive. Simple elegant, fast and comfortable. There is a lot to love here. There are problems in that the engine has a truly Weird water pump. If you buy the car get that rebuilt first thing. Not that expensive but needs to be done by specialist. The only other big problem is wiring. Some had teflon wires and some did not. If this is one that had natural rubber then replace the wires first thing.
If you buy it, GOOD luck is all I can say. Back in the days I had a 1962 3500GT which spent more time in the shop than on the road. In more ways than one the engineering was anything but up-to-date and after spending who knows how much, I sold it for 3.5 grand back in 1974. It helps to be a masochist to own a Maserati.
In the mid 1980s I briefly owned a 1963 4-headlamp version in a beautiful medium blue. I sold it after learning how much parts were gonna cost me, just to make it run again. For a short while I had it parked next to my 4-door Facel Vega Excellance, and they made quite a pair!
Most older Maseratis are beautiful cars. This one is kinda grotesque, especially the front 3/4 view.
Frua was the body-maker here, and the kinda weird angularity is a look that shop was known for at this time. Except for the single rectangular headlights and the upholstery, this is identical to one that sat outside my favorite Nashville repair shop (The Jaguar) for at least three years in the ’70s. It belonged to an oil-field engineer, and was mostly filled with stacks of rolled-up blueprints and document folders, and I never did hear what happened to either the owner or the car. The shop closed in the Eighties.
I’m surprised that Peter Kumar didn’t get his hands on this and have it listed for 20 grand.
This one is a bit tough to figure out. The Barn Find description mentions a $23,600 – $53,300 price range but also states the underside looks hopeful or hopeless, depending on what photos you eyeball. The ACC website site has a 1965 Series 1 listed for $109,990, yet the bidding price on the Barn Find car is only up to $8,400. I suspect this particular Fourdoor will need a *LOT* of work and some expensive parts to achieve “good car” status.
This is a cool car!! Seems to me that the styling cues are similar to the BMW 2002!! Just my observation but worthy of a restoration!!!
These are great driving cars
Ended:Aug 10, 2020 , 2:00PM
Winning bid:US $13,650.00
[ 33 bids ]
OK, gone, anyway
…it never amazes me abt the usa (not american) owner/driver. They R used to late ’70s – current (I guess?) Japanese autos. “Drive’em’n forget’em”. That is – no thing like the rest of the world (esp predating that period and european). U want something? Something nice? Special driver? Special LOOKS? Well U must love it, play w/it, pay attention and it will return that’n more. U want some ‘get here to there’? then it don’t matter. Totally different lifestyle.
Go home, sit in frnt of the TV, veg… OR… get out some wrenches, turn them (or pay another – a sacrilege in my world) enjoy what U have. It is another pleasure like an artistic, creative meal U made for friends, crafting a fine letter in hand to friend or loved one, drinking a special scotch, museum attendance, veg gardening. Life is short, experience it! This car, 1 rearview, carbuncles’n all – is an experience I would not want 2 miss (cept 4 my cursed poverty).