1964 Maserati Sebring 3500 GTI Series I

This car comes to us courtesy of a vendor who has owned it since 2021, having part-exchanged a Lamborghini Gallardo in order to buy it.

Clearly, then, a man of incontrovertible taste and discernment. 

He tells us he has owned Maseratis since 1992 and, although he admits to the occasional dalliance with Italian brands featuring prancing horses and raging bulls, he always returns to the trident.

Manufactured in April 1964 and delivered new to a Maserati concession in Holland Park, the car later spent some time on a ranch in Arizona US before returning to these shores to be issued with the correct, 1964 ‘B’ registration number. 

The car is an original matching numbers (chassis and engine) vehicle.

In 2003, it was bought by a car dealer and restorer (who is very well-known to us here at HQ) who decided to replace the car’s Lucas fuel injection system with triple Weber 45 DCOE carbs, and an original new old-stock factory inlet manifold with all new gaskets and linkage.

We understand that this conversion cost in excess of £3,500.

He sold the car with the original Lucas injection system intact, functioning and in the boot of the car.

Prior to buying the car from Specialist Vehicle Solutions in 2021, the current vendor commissioned premier Maserati whisperers McGrath to conduct a full inspection, road test and a list of proposed remedial/maintenance tasks. 

Very sensibly (and expensively), the vendor gave McGrath his consent to proceed and they promptly spent nearly 142 man-hours on the work advised, at a total cost of over £17,000. 

He also reinstated the original Lucas injection system and had it optimised and fettled by McGrath.

At some point between the car’s re-entry to the UK and, we think, 2009, it was comprehensively and expertly restored, including a full engine rebuild. We don’t know the details and neither does the vendor, despite numerous attempts by him to hunt out the history and provenance.

Some time after 2009, 'BNF 98B' received a new clutch and was given a full respray - with the bonnet, boot and doors detached and the glass removed. 

Today, the car’s odometer reads 59,398 miles.

In 2009, the mileage was recorded as being 58,427.

Clearly, then, this car has been leading a rather pampered and sedentary life for the last few years.

We have driven this stunning vehicle. It is roughly the same age as your author and, like him, it takes a little while to clear its throat and warm up from cold. But when it’s up to operating temperature and the gearbox oil is sufficiently lubricious, this car’s pedigree GT quality and class shine through. 

There’s no mistaking the fact that you’re driving a very well screwed together, low mileage example and one that’s spent considerable parts of its life under hot, dry Arizona skies - and the rest of it properly curated and cared-for in warm, dry storage facilities.

It feels balanced and poised, picking up pace with enthusiasm. It presses on, handles and stops with surprisingly modern characteristics and feel. 

And when you catch sight of its elegant, sleek, rakish reflection in a plate-glass window, your heart will skip a beat.

The bodywork is excellent and is uncompromised by any dinks, dents, creases or folds that we can see.

We can’t fault the exactness and weight of the door closures, the symmetry of the panels or the consistency of the panel gaps. 

It all looks, and feels, just right.

The ‘Amaranto Roma’ dark red paintwork is really very good pretty much everywhere you rest your gaze, and there’s only a handful of tiny stone chips to be seen in the usual places.

The brightwork is free of foxing, pitting and tarnishing, including the refurbished Borrani wire wheels. 

All five Michelin radials look to have plenty of life left in them, although we can’t vouch for their age.

The lights, lenses, badging and other exterior fixtures and fittings are all in first-class condition.

There are one or two small ripples under the paint in the crease beneath the boot lid lip, and also in the paint beneath the driver’s door window. 

Now, these could be just air pockets or even overspray – or they could be indicators of some nascent bubbling. We don’t know. Either way, it doesn’t appear to be in any way significant.

The good news continues unabated on the inside, where almost everything is in exceptional condition and is far more a reflection of the car’s low mileage and careful curation than its age. 

The black leather Connolly hide has yet to earn even a meaningful crease let alone any ingrained patina. 

The seats, front and back, are comfortable, supportive and functional. 

The door cards, carpets and mats are following the same script in terms of preservation and condition, as is the clean and tidy boot.

The headlining is good. So too, for the most part, is the dashboard, although some of the matt black paint has rubbed away on the fascia and there is a small split in the padded dashboard cover near the base of the windscreen on the passenger side.

The electric windows work as they should. 

We didn’t tweak every lever, press every knob or flick every switch, but most of those we did tweak, press and flick performed as instructed without complaining. 

We have our doubts about the veracity of the fuel gauge, however, and feel it may be under-estimating the levels of fuel in the tank. Which is better than over-estimating them.

The oil temperature gauge has retired and is no longer prepared to undertake any meaningful work.

The steering wheel, gear lever and handbrake are all very much of their time and are all the better for it, in our opinion.

The engine bay looks particularly clean and dry, and everything seems to be in its right and proper place. 

In fact, it looks worthy of a 5-star food hygiene rating, let alone a glowing mechanics’ report.   

Even the twin lights inside the engine bay still work, and we think details like that speak volumes about the care lavished upon this very special car. 

The very tidy undersides of the car appear to have been properly weather-sealed and kept away from salt, water and other sworn enemies of automotive structural integrity.

This car comes with previous sales and auction listings, lots of bills, receipts and invoices (recent and older) from McGrath and other specialists. 

It also comes with a build sheet and certificate from Maserati, various magazine articles about both the model and this actual car, a recent, clear HPI report, and a copy of an owners’ manual.  

Forgive our subjectivity, but if we had to point to an age and a fashion in the history of automotive evolution that, for us, hits all the right high notes in terms of understated style, panache and elegance, we’d aim our collective finger at the late 1950s to late 1960s and we’d almost certainly hark back to Italy and the era of La Dolce Vita. 

All the great Italian marques (and a few British, American, French and German ones, too) and their carrozzerie competed to see who could make the most stunning evocations of speed, grace, style and beauty. 

There’s a very strong case for arguing that Maserati took the crown and did it first with the 3500 GTI Sebring.

Perhaps that’s why Jeremy Clarkson made it number 77 on a list of his all-time favourite 100 cars.

We are under no illusion that we’re highly unlikely ever to see another RHD Series I Sebring in the flesh.

And we’re absolutely certain that we won’t see a better example than this anywhere outside of a museum or a private collection.

We’re confident to offer this exceptional car for auction with an estimate of £160,000 - £190,000.

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located at the Bonhams|Cars Online HQ. Viewings are strictly by appointment. To make a booking, please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, and read our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.