1977 Maserati Khamsin

Serial number: AM120US1228
44,300 miles

This attractive silver Maserati Khamsin has a very nice and original deep red leather interior, a great color combination! Car is very original with only 42K miles. Mechanically very good and sorted out ; ready to be enjoyed.

The Khamsin was the follow on to the Ghibli and shares the same 4.9 liter dry sump V8 engine. The Khamsin is a bit more sophisticated than the Ghibli with rear independent suspension and the use of the Citroen high pressure hydraulic system to control the brakes, steering, headlight lift, seat adjustment and best of all ... clutch assistance. The clutch pressure on the Khamsin is very light, great for city driving, not at all what you would expect on a powerful front engine Italian exotic! This is one of only 421 Khamsin made.

The following service work was recently completed: hydraulic system service which included: the replacements of most the hydraulic sealing o- rings, rebuilding the brake master cylinder, new clutch master, rebuilt clutch slave, rebuilt front brake calipers, calibrated the Weber carbs, flushed the cooling system, plus several other odds and ends.

Body is in good condition; rockers, floors and doors are solid and with very good gaps. Car was repainted many years ago, the paint still has a good gloss, with some chips which have been retouched over the years. Paint is not in show condition but acceptable for a car that is meant to be driven. Tires are Michelin MXV4, of the proper size (215/70 15) with around 90% of thread remaining. The special Pirelli space saver spare tire, which fits under the engine, is included. Bright work (mostly stainless steel) and glass are very good. The interior is very, very nice, especially considering that the leather is all original. The black "fuzzy" material on the dash top was recently redone and looks very good. All instruments, including the clock, are in working order. The air conditioner, radio, power antenna, power mirror and misc accessories are also in working order. This Khamsin came in third in its class at the recent Italian Car Day.

On 2/4/2005 the engine compression was tested and all cylinders are within 10 psi of each other. Engine starts rights away and runs/idles and sounds very good. Oil pressure is strong. Clutch is very strong and without chatter.

Features/Specifications:

• 4.9 liter V8 with four dual throat Weber carbs, four overhead chain driven cams, dry sump lubrication. Rated horsepower is 315 HP at 5000 RPM
• 5 speed fully synchronized ZF transmission with high pressure hydraulically assisted clutch
• High pressure hydraulically assisted four disc ventilated brakes
• Fully independent front and rear suspension
• Rack and pinion steering with variable hydraulic assistance and self centering. Power steering is reduced the faster you go.
• Full leather interior. This car has no vinyl anywhere in the interior; leather is all original.
• Power windows
• Air conditioner (blows cold) and heater
• Blaupunkt radio with electric antenna
• Power remote mirror
• Hydraulically assisted seat adjustment
• Hydraulically assisted head lamp raising
• Steering wheel has tilt and telescopic adjustment
• Wiper delay

This is a very late Khamsin and was actually manufactured on April 1978, although titled as a 1977 (the Factory did this to avoid having to meet the 1978 EPA/DOT requirements). Below is the factory build information, which confirms that all the numbers match, it is the original factory color combo and that the car was sold in California:

"‘78 Khamsin #AM 120US*1228* - built in April of 1978. The original paint color was “argento” (silver) with the original interior in “rossa” (red) Connolly leather. It was shipped to Maserati Automobiles, Inc. of Los Angeles, CA."

Comes with copy of the owner's manual, spare tire, plus two different original dealer sales brochures. This is a good car for someone looking for an honest example to simply drive and enjoy.

Some people have converted their Khamsin to the Euro version which had the tail lights mounted on the back glass, this gives the car a more attractive back end. Conversion kits which include both front and rear bumpers, mounting brackets and the rear plexiglass are available. Click here to see the euro treatment.

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