Among the Italian supercars of the 1970s, the Bora occupies a special place, being Maserati's first mid-engine offering and competing with the likes of Lamborghini's Miura and Countach, DeTomaso's Pantera, and Ferrari's Dino 246GT and 512BB.
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Deftly styled by Giorgetto Giugiaro's Ital Design studio and introduced at Switzerland's Geneva Car Show in 1971, long before the first gas crisis and ever-tightening government regulations changed things forever, the Bora exudes all the opulence and machismo this Golden Era of ultra high performance sports cars could muster.
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Just one or two Boras were hand-built each week; a total of 571 left the factory during nine years of production. Equipped with Maserati's potent but reliable 4.7/4.9 liter DOHC V-8 and a bullet-proof ZF 5-speed transaxle, Boras were good for a 180mph top speed on the German Autobahn or Italy's Autostrada. Few were sold in the U.S.--keeping a Bora at 55mph is not too much fun. Find a deserted stretch of asphalt, though, and you are in high speed heaven! |
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The 1973 Maserati Bora featured here, VIN *AM117570*, spent all its life in California, apart from a 2-year stint in a Connecticut collection, where it was exercised on sunny summer days only.
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It is a numbers matching car throughout. Yes, we checked every single component!
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Factory books, manuals, and service records accompany the car. Within the last 1,000 miles, $18,976.55 was spent on mechanical items, mostly the engine, which weas rebuilt, ensuring it to be one of the best-performing Boras on planet Earth.
Let's now inspect this amazing supercar inside and out in great detail, starting with the trunk compartment.
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Unencumbered by a spare tire, the luxuriously carpeted front luggage compartment is actually quite spacious. Battery lives safely in a separate compartment at the rear of the trunk.
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Trunk lid itself is made from lightweight aluminum alloy, features the typical Italian diamond-quilted hood pad in superb condition.
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Stunning fastback coachwork featured lightweight panels. Body gaps are perfect--this Bora has never been in any accident--and doors and hoods shut with a precise "click."
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Stock, date-coded CAMPAGNOLO magnesium wheels with poverty caps are shod with excellent MICHELIN high-performance tires.
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Finished in a most attractive, shimmering metallic dark blue, the Bora is a delight to look at.
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Bora's exterior trademark: a brushed stainless steel roof, just like on a '57 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham or '59 Imperial Crown Coupé. It's another touch of luxury!
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Inside, there's a perfect original headliner, ivory with a tiny black pinpoint pattern. Noe pristine sun visors.
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Leather-covered panels are hand-fitted to swoopy inside door skin. There's a storage compartment in the arm rest.
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Intimidating-looking at first, perhaps, but once you familiarize yourself with all the gauges, lights, and toggle switches, gazing at the Bora dash makes you feel like an airline pilot. Everyting works as it should, including the original power antenna.
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Cockpit details.
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Hydraulically operated leather sport seats. Hydraulically adjustable pedals. Tilt steering column. A cockpit that can be tailored to suit pilots of all sizes, at the push of a button!
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Storage bin left of driver's seat contains jack and tools.
Additional compartments behind B-pillar alllow easy access to coolant and fuel tanks.
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The 4.9-litre Vee Eight with 4 overhead cams. Triplex chain for crankshaft; Duplex chains for camshafts. No issues, no headaches, no timing belt nightmares--the Maserati V8 is bullet proof!
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Removing the power-coated air cleaner reveals a battery of four dual-throat WEBER carburetors.
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Indestructible ZF 5-Speed transmission; correct factory spare is mounted atop trans to aid perfect weight distribution.
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Aluminum alloy rear hatch with fishbowl windows. If you like to show off what's lurking inside, just leave the carpeted engine cover off!
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As if the lightweight aluminum was not light enough, there's quite a bit of Swiss cheese treatment present on this car.
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Ready for the testdrive?
So are we, but let's take a look at the Bora's underpinnings first.
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First, we notice the aerodynamic flat bottom. Subframes for front and rear suspension are designed to separate in case of a crash, like a Formula One race car, leaving the cockpit intact. |
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Engine and transmission, from the frog's perspective: Clean as a whistle!
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Details, details: this Bora is ready to be shown!
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Monday, March 1, 2010 was another fine day in San Buenaventura. We let the Bora stretch its legs on a 50-mile round trip that included visits to our favorite South Coast neighborhoods, finally heading for Channel Islands Harbor.
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Driving the Bora, you almost feel like a fighter pilot, with all those gauges and switches and an unobstructed view ahead of you. Behind you, fabulous sounds emerge from the double-overhead-cam power plant, nicely muffled by double-pane glass. Under no circumstance did the Bora exhibit ill manners; there is no smoking, fluid loss, or overheating to report.
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Returning home, we are utterly impressed with the Bora's road manners. We've never driven that fast in this much luxury. If you think a Porsche 911 feels good on the road, wait until you drive this Maserati. With plenty of pedal left, we've had the Bora up to 130mph on the 33--our little test strip between Ventura and Ojai--and it felt as solid as a bank vault, with absolutely no lift or instability. The immense disc brakes are able to anchor the car in a jffy, no matter how fast you go, and there's no fading or pulling. the 5-speed ZF shifts impeccably smooth and solid. Mid-engine motoring doesn't get better than this!
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The Bora being a special supercar for the experienced connoisseur, prices for excellent original examples have seen a steady rise. Not many were built, even fewer are left. Now is as good a time as ever to add a fine example of Italy's finest to the stable.
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A Bora is a modern masterpiece. We'd venture to claim that it should be collected like fine art--except, you can use it as rapid transport from point A to point B. It's an heirloom-quality investment guaranteed to appreciate in value as time goes by!
Addendum:
We sold this Maserati in March 2010 to an enthusiast in California.
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