1969 Maserati Ghibli - The Resurection
Discussion
They used to 'supply and fit' themselves or sell to classic workshops only, I think starting this or next years they are also going to supply DIY kits - a big step for such a safety-critical system as you'd imagine, but they are confident they can deliver an idiot-proof package...
Indeed, it's old column out - new column in so I assume you can keep the OE column. The conversions are designed so that there will be no visible parts in the engine bay; indeed many converted cars have participated in - and won - concourse events.
I did an article on them last year (I think) but it's in Dutch unfortunately; however Harry Metcalfe came the The Netherlands to have his Countach converted and wrote about it in Evo and Octane a couple of months ago...
Indeed, it's old column out - new column in so I assume you can keep the OE column. The conversions are designed so that there will be no visible parts in the engine bay; indeed many converted cars have participated in - and won - concourse events.
I did an article on them last year (I think) but it's in Dutch unfortunately; however Harry Metcalfe came the The Netherlands to have his Countach converted and wrote about it in Evo and Octane a couple of months ago...
Hi Chad speed , interesting re the steering on these cars.
I have just found out that the first owner of my Dads one ( Am115 100 ) ordered it in June 1967 and it was delivered in Oct 67. It apears that he Didn't own a second Ghibli , but his brother Did !
In 1970 his Brother took delivery of a 4.9 SS in wait for it.... Verde Gemma ( Metalised Green ) !! Ime intrigued to know if this one has survived as well. I have the Chassis No.
Does anyone keep a record of all the Ghiblis built and their fate ?
If not its surely time one was started , I beleive that there is a complete listing of Muiras and the E Type has the Excellent XKE Data.
The Ghibli was surely bought by some very interesting / Very wealthy people / Famous Celebrity people when new.
In 2010 I bought an E Type from "Let's call him A European Dealer " ...... he had several Ghiblis inc a Red 4.9 , which I sat in ( will try and find the photos later ) .
I have just found out that the first owner of my Dads one ( Am115 100 ) ordered it in June 1967 and it was delivered in Oct 67. It apears that he Didn't own a second Ghibli , but his brother Did !
In 1970 his Brother took delivery of a 4.9 SS in wait for it.... Verde Gemma ( Metalised Green ) !! Ime intrigued to know if this one has survived as well. I have the Chassis No.
Does anyone keep a record of all the Ghiblis built and their fate ?
If not its surely time one was started , I beleive that there is a complete listing of Muiras and the E Type has the Excellent XKE Data.
The Ghibli was surely bought by some very interesting / Very wealthy people / Famous Celebrity people when new.
In 2010 I bought an E Type from "Let's call him A European Dealer " ...... he had several Ghiblis inc a Red 4.9 , which I sat in ( will try and find the photos later ) .
Yes, This ..... quizzed me at length re my Dads one, in 2006, which was very painfull as my dad had a Heart attack on the saturday, just after dropping it off at a bunch of theives ( they rifled through the car when they heard he had died and took All my cassetes and various other things ) to have a new clutch fitted.
I didnt realise then that the German guy just wanted to add my info to his ruddy data base !!
I didnt realise then that the German guy just wanted to add my info to his ruddy data base !!
I used to have a summer holiday job working as a cashier at a filling station in the late 1980s. The best car that would very occasionally pop by was a red LHD Ghibli coupe (I think SS), registered GIB 5000. It was owned by an American chap. A few years later and when my brother bought his own SS coupe and joined the Maserati Club we found out that GIB 5000 had been chopped into a Spyder. Great shame.
Anyone have any idea re how many Ghiblis have survived ?
I had another look at the pictures of the 4.9 SS that the B Hills Car Club have. Looks like it was Originaly that Opalescent Maroon colour from new ?
There just doesn't apear to be One area of that car that doesn't need major work. I bet the inner shell is very rusty .
Guessing it has sat outside for years to get that bad , maybe Florida.
Shame The interior is a complete mess and I well remember those square leather cushions that sat just behind the front seats. Useless for anything apart from kneeling on them when jacking it up !
The interior of 115 100 was a lovely dark tan, but it did make the car very gloomy inside , red would be my choice of interior colour.
I had another look at the pictures of the 4.9 SS that the B Hills Car Club have. Looks like it was Originaly that Opalescent Maroon colour from new ?
There just doesn't apear to be One area of that car that doesn't need major work. I bet the inner shell is very rusty .
Guessing it has sat outside for years to get that bad , maybe Florida.
Shame The interior is a complete mess and I well remember those square leather cushions that sat just behind the front seats. Useless for anything apart from kneeling on them when jacking it up !
The interior of 115 100 was a lovely dark tan, but it did make the car very gloomy inside , red would be my choice of interior colour.
A9XXC said:
A friend of mine owned GIB 5000 in the mid 80's, along with a couple of other Maseratis, including a Merak and several Bi-Turbos. This was around Leicester.
Sounds like the same guy. I spotted it in Market Harborough and he told me he was from Leicester way (Fleckney area?). Was he a North American? I have forgotten his name.Chad speed said:
With the body stripped of paint and filler and with all visible rust cut out I had already made the decision to have the shell surface treated. A number of services are available but all employ either chemical stripping or mechanical abrasion, so which one to choose?
After much research this is the way I saw it:
Chemicals get to inaccessible places but can also get trapped in those same places potentially causing problems later on. I have seen first hand brown residue seeping out of chassis welds 2 years after treatment.
Blasting meanwhile can cause distortion, doesn’t remove underseal, and may not get to hidden places but it has no long term issues.
Choosing the ‘right’ company is also essential; a friend’s Ghibli came back from a well known classic car chemical treatment company with a dent in both the rear and the front that necessitated removal of the nose cone for repair. I’ve also heard of another stripping company sending the shell elsewhere for post dip anti corrosion coating and the time between strip and coating was over a week.
So, weighing up the pro’s and con’s I opted for blasting at http://www.blast-cleaning.co.uk/index.php?menuid=5... which by good luck is only 10 miles away. The risk of distortion is minimized by using low pressure, high flow air to propel abrasive garnet media through a 1” nozzle (in contrast to conventional blasting that uses high pressure). The process is so controllable that paint can be removed from aluminum and even GRP bodywork layer by layer, a Lotus Elite monocoque was being stripped at the same time as the Ghibli. A phosphate acid etch/primer is applied immediately after stripping which will hold the surface in the stripped state for up to 6 months in a normal dry-ish garage.
Note the pale grey areas are lead loading, most of it factory applied but some clearly from past work.
At about £1k for stripping and treating the shell, bonnet, boot, doors and headlight pods it wasn’t cheap but I was well pleased with the result and it was so much better that what could be achieved at home.
Firstly, epic restoration thread and some great DIY skills on display here. Very well done !After much research this is the way I saw it:
Chemicals get to inaccessible places but can also get trapped in those same places potentially causing problems later on. I have seen first hand brown residue seeping out of chassis welds 2 years after treatment.
Blasting meanwhile can cause distortion, doesn’t remove underseal, and may not get to hidden places but it has no long term issues.
Choosing the ‘right’ company is also essential; a friend’s Ghibli came back from a well known classic car chemical treatment company with a dent in both the rear and the front that necessitated removal of the nose cone for repair. I’ve also heard of another stripping company sending the shell elsewhere for post dip anti corrosion coating and the time between strip and coating was over a week.
So, weighing up the pro’s and con’s I opted for blasting at http://www.blast-cleaning.co.uk/index.php?menuid=5... which by good luck is only 10 miles away. The risk of distortion is minimized by using low pressure, high flow air to propel abrasive garnet media through a 1” nozzle (in contrast to conventional blasting that uses high pressure). The process is so controllable that paint can be removed from aluminum and even GRP bodywork layer by layer, a Lotus Elite monocoque was being stripped at the same time as the Ghibli. A phosphate acid etch/primer is applied immediately after stripping which will hold the surface in the stripped state for up to 6 months in a normal dry-ish garage.
Note the pale grey areas are lead loading, most of it factory applied but some clearly from past work.
At about £1k for stripping and treating the shell, bonnet, boot, doors and headlight pods it wasn’t cheap but I was well pleased with the result and it was so much better that what could be achieved at home.
Second, I have an old BMW M3 that I hope to finally get restored one day and had pretty much settled on using Surface Processing to dip-n-strip the shell.
I too debated the pros and cons of this, and the weeping acid story popped up a few times, but was usually by people concerned by this and not anyone who had actually had their own shell done. In the story you relate of a car seeping brown residue, do you know if this was looked into and repaired by the owner and confirmed as being from the process of acid dipping ?
I have had some feedback from various owners who have used SP and got mixed reports, but mostly over the handling of the shell and only one back on any post dip problems, in which I was told a similar story to yours, but which I was then told the owner was clueless and it was a rust treatment seeping out after the shell was wax injected and undersealed when complete.
Hi Mr B
The comments regarding Surface Processing dip 'n' strip came from a good friend who is an epic home classic car restorer (Mercedes 600 Grosser, Maserati Ghibli and Merak, Alfa Giulietta, Innocenti Mini, Citroen H van to name but a few, I think he has over 10 on the go at the moment!) so if I personally were to take someone's word it would be his. Misunderstandings do happen however and wires can get crossed so I'll drop him a line to make sure.
Please start a thread on the M3 and be sure to take a good deal of photo's like I didn't, good luck with the project.
The comments regarding Surface Processing dip 'n' strip came from a good friend who is an epic home classic car restorer (Mercedes 600 Grosser, Maserati Ghibli and Merak, Alfa Giulietta, Innocenti Mini, Citroen H van to name but a few, I think he has over 10 on the go at the moment!) so if I personally were to take someone's word it would be his. Misunderstandings do happen however and wires can get crossed so I'll drop him a line to make sure.
Please start a thread on the M3 and be sure to take a good deal of photo's like I didn't, good luck with the project.
Have seen the capillary rust issues post chemical dipping more than once via more than one restorer.
Not for me, process-wise as not convinced theoretically and from seeing it first hand let alone the handling of shells and associated dents, etc -dents, etc only via marque club anecdotal stories mind.
IMHO the OP has made the right choice!
Not for me, process-wise as not convinced theoretically and from seeing it first hand let alone the handling of shells and associated dents, etc -dents, etc only via marque club anecdotal stories mind.
IMHO the OP has made the right choice!
A9XXC said:
He did live in Fleckney. But I was never sure of his actual name, he had a couple of nicknames though!
Had LOADS of Lancias as well, 17 at one time I believe! His company is still in Wigston but I've not seen him for years.
Thanks for confirming my memory of which village he said he lived in. It's amazing how my brain can retain such an unimportant piece of information from a chance meeting with a complete stranger 25 years ago and yet I still can't remember my wife's birthday after being with her for 15 years!Had LOADS of Lancias as well, 17 at one time I believe! His company is still in Wigston but I've not seen him for years.
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