Why Is The Maserati Ghibli Such An Underappreciated Sports Car?

Photography by Federico Bajetti

Myths sometimes exist to be busted and thrown into oblivion. Anything that is judged exclusively by its flaws often lead to general misunderstanding and to a bad reputation. So even though the Maserati Biturbo is nicknamed Il bidone (“The Barrell”) in Italy because of its low value, I followed my friend Claudio Ivaldi, secretary of Maserati Club Italia, to their track day at Arese.

Despite all the joking we made, the guys from the Biturbo Club Italia proved us wrong. All the cars that were present sustained hours of abuse without breaking a sweat, overheating, or worse: catching fire.

The gathering was composed of almost every model that featured the twin turbo engine layout from Maserati, including early examples, Shamals, the 2.24v, the “Racing”, Ghibli IIs, and even the Quattroporte V8 Evoluzione. Nearly 20 years of Maserati history were roaring in good health on the track.

With maintenance costs at about the same level as a typical luxury car, the key is finding a solid example that’s been properly maintained. Find a good example, and maybe the only thing that’ll catch fire is a new passion for the Maserati Biturbo.