1978 Maserati Merak SS Original Time Capsule Garage Find

At the risk of abusing the industry standard term “barn find” I’m going to call this a garage find. This car is as found as it was parked since 1985 when it had mechanical problems at 17000 miles. No attempt to even clean it was made. The car is being sold as-is where is. It is extremely original. There is no sun damage to the car inside or out as it has been stored indoors. The paint is the original Argento (Silver). It is a true SS making it rare and it is also the most desireable of years being post Citroen era. Only 312 SS were made for the US market. It has the Bora dashboard and none of the complicated Citroen brakes or suspension components making it mechanically simpler. Being an SS it has the most power of all Meraks running larger triple carburetors. I also found a production number stating that only 277 came with the Bora style dash. The internet has tons of info. There is even a registry for which this car has not been documented on yet – I’ll leave that to the new owner. The interior has survived very nicely. There are no tears or holes in the still supple leather. If anything. a simply re-dye or conditioning will have the seats looking like new. I personally like the patina the seats have now. The dash has no cracks. Headliner is perfect. A gentle cleaning will have the interior like new as now it is covered in years of dust. Under the trunk it looks very solid and clean. Some parts are loose – a signal lever was in a box. Storage and transport has not been kind to the otherwise almost rust free car. The nose has a wrinkle. The front and rear lower valances need to be straightened. and one of the composite buttress needs to be repaired (clean break – should be a simple epoxy job). There is a ding on one fender. The windshield has a stable u-shaped crack under the passenger wiper (not in your field of vision). and the rear fiberglass bumper has some cracks on the corner edge. One rocker has a deep scrape. However. all of these are SIMPLE issues any qualified body shop can handle. There is hardly any of the typical rust these cars are famous for. I don’t know what lies under the paint but I am not seeing any major bubbling under doors or lower fenders. Might just be some starts where I see a bit of scale but no holes or bubbles yet. Underside pans is pretty spotless up until the very rear edge where there appears to be a patch on one side and the start of rust on the other. Some scrapes and dings from being a low to ground car. These cars would rust even if it sunny outside so I make no promises of perfection. Even the battery tray is solid! The front turn signal lens under the rubber bumper will need replacement. Having sat. brake and clutch cylinders will require rebuilding. Transmission shifts fine but linkage is disconnected. Also disconnected but hanging is drivers side exhaust pipe leading us to believe the car was in the process of being put back together. The cars have infamous timing chain issues and this car may have been no different. I took the car to my mechanic who not only work on modern Maserati but on many vintage versions. most recently my friend’s Bora. They have also worked on a bunch of Citroen SMs and are familiar with these motors. They speculate that this may have been a stalled or abandoned rebuild maybe due to a timing chain break. However. on inspection. the chain is intact. pistons look fine. there is no metal in the pan and there is obvious evidence that cases have been split due to fresh looking gaskets and sealant. There was even evidence of white lithium grease in places suggesting a fresh build. The cases look too clean. The oil came out looking like new so. When I bought the car the drivers side valve cover was off. At first we thought the chain was just broken but now we think they might have been making cam adjustments after installing new parts when the project stalled or bailed on. While there very well may be more complex issues. speculation has us very optimistic that the next step might be to see if it can be run before trying to re-do work already done. The tires are original and hard as a rock but hold air and roll. Rims are beautiful – no curb rash. Many engine components are shared with the high production Citroen SM and. from what I have researched. mean parts are available. The license plate lamps were off the car when I got it and are included. This car has no title. Ebay does not give the option to state otherwise so IGNORE the listing status of “clear title” Do not let that discourage you. This car spent it’s whole life in Houston until recently. It has always been a Texas car. Included is a statement from the Texas DMV stating it is no longer in their records. I also have a police VIN inspection and the car has not come up as stolen. With these documents and a bond you can apply for a title or go through one of the many online title services. I bought a 308 Ferrari without title 6 months ago and the process was easy and I have a title. Please see my feedback. I have sold many classic cars over the years and will never misrepresent a vehicle. I know what it is like to be on the receiving end of a misrepresented vehicle. There is not much history I can share except from what the prior owner told me and I have no reason not to believe him. His father owned a repair shop in Houston when he was a kid. This car was left (abandoned?) with them after the damage. Ran out of funds and never finished? Who knows. When his dad died and shop was closed he put the car in storage and it has been there ever since 1985. He had always intended to restore the car and started the process of acquiring a title last month when he lost his job and needed money. A friend told me about the car and I ended buying it. My take on the car as it sits now is to try and get it running. rebuild if necessary. clean it detail it. and enjoy the patina until you can afford to fix the dings and paint it. It is very presentable due to the shine of the original paint. One might be able to pull the dings and spot paint damaged areas to keep this car as a “survivor” for now. Not too many originals left. I can work with your shipping company. It is a roller. Because it does not have a title now means it probably cannot be exported overseas unless you know loopholes that I am unaware of. I can arrange to store the car beyond 3 weeks for a reasonable price but you must contact me prior to bidding to arrange this. Please bid responsibly and pay in full within 5 working days of auction. I HAVE TONS OF DETAILED PICTURES - GO TO:photobucket. com/user/santacaferacer/slideshow/maserati On Mar-12-15 at 09:26:31 PDT. seller added the following information:I SEE THAT THERE ARE A FEW OVERSEAS BIDDERS - PLEASE BE REMINDED THAT A TITLE MAY BE REQUIRED FOR YOU TO EXPORT THE CAR - RESEARCH THE REQUIREMENTS BEFORE BIDDING. I SUPPOSE IF YOU HAVE AN AGENT HERE IN THE USA WILLING TO DO TITLE PROCESS FOR YOU THEN OBVIOUSLY NO PROBLEM. On Mar-12-15 at 09:40:38 PDT. seller added the following information:The valve cover is not missing and is included - I failed to get a picture of that. The timing chain is disconnected but not broken and looks new. It was are guess. and guess only. that they may have been making cam adjustments when the ownerbailed on the project. There is no obvious damage to any components from the limited inspection we conducted by looking up into the cylinders by pulling the oil pan. The lower timing chain looked intact. rods and pistons looked OK. See the additional picture link that show these areas the best I could photograph. It's a shame we don't really know what happened but it is fair to guess that this car had a timing chain issue since it was common back then. I have been made aware that there are modern remedies but from the most part it is just a matter of making sure the upper chains are properly tensioned to assure that the lower chain never fails. Forensics suggest that this engine may have already been fixed and was in the process of being completed when the project stalled. Bid accordingly. These cars are appreciating quickly and there is still plenty of room for someone not to be upside down on their investment. I wish I had the luxury to stash this car away but with all my other personal projects in line ahead it's best that someone get this on the road before I do.