1978 Maserati Khamsin

This 1978 Maserati Khamsin for sale

Sold

One of just 100 US specification Khamsin's built with ZF-5 gearbox

The car offered here left the factory March 15, 1978, bound for the Los Angeles division of Maserati Automobiles Inc the US importer. It was painted Oro Kelso (Kelso being the name of a famous race horse) with Senape (mustard) interior, 5 speed.

The distributor kept it for media use including an article in Sports car Graphic and a photoshoot with movie starlet Judy Landers. It was then dispatched to the San Francisco dealer who fitted a Blaupunkt Berlin stalk radio with microphone and sold it in January 1979 to its first owner, Michael Broughton from Salem, Oregon. The car then changed hand a few times: January 1992, Ed Waterman of Motorcar Gallery in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. July 1992, Toyota dealer and racer Javier Quiros from San Jose, Costa Rica. 1993 back to south Florida, sold to a mid western Can Am racer. Summer 1999 at the Elkhart lake Wisconsin Concours, bought by Lance Everson of Milwaukee. The latter advertised it in the spring of 2002 which is when Maserati Khamsin Registry founder Marc Sonnery first inspected it. He had actually briefly seen the car 12 years earlier in Fort Lauderdale. He purchased the Khamsin in April of 2004. After a thorough service by South Florida Maserati expert Steve Claasen he began enjoying it including some top speed runs where he saw an indicated 160mph with arrow straight stability. In December of 2004 he changed the US spec bumpers to Euro version and displayed it at the 2005 Cavallino Classic. Sonnery then moved back to Europe thought the car remained in Florida and he sold it in 2007 to an enthusiastic Couple from Laguna Beach California. It was then sold in April 2015 to its current Dutch owner and re-crossed the Atlantic for the first time. He gave it a bare metal repaint that year in the original Oro Kelso, refurbished the rims, fitted new tires, a complete new exhaust system and partly restored the interior.

Long a best kept secret for connoisseurs, the Khamsin is now recognised as one of the greatest Grand Tourers of all time with first rate performance, excellent handling, incredible ease of use thanks to the hydraulics along with the added cachet of rarity since only 430 were made.


  • Owned by Marc Sonnery the Khamsin registry founder
  • Presented in immaculate order throughout
  • One of 100 ZF-5 examples for the USA
  • Full matching numbers
COLOUR Oro Kelso
TRIM Senape Leather
MILEAGE 41,500 KM
CHASSIS NUMBER AM120/US*1242
ENGINE NUMBER AM120/US*1242
LOCATION The Netherlands

Looking to sell similar?

Enquire to sell