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The Maserati Bora turns 50. It was 'the thinking man's exotic'

The Maserati Bora made its debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1971, meaning the V8-powered supercar from Modena has just turned 50 years old. It arrived at a time when the Italian sports car manufacturers were undergoing a paradigm shift to the mid-engined layout that defines the modern supercar. The Bora (not to be confused with the VW sedan we knew as the fourth-generation Jetta) was named after a winter wind that blows from the Alps to the Adriatic Sea. Though it holds the distinction of being the first Maserati to employ the mid-engine configuration, it was a bit of a latecomer, following on the heels of Lamborghini's 1966 Miura, De Tomaso's 1964 Vallelunga and Ferrari's 1967 Dino 206 GT. However, it was a dramatic departure from the curvaceous designs of the 1960s. Skinned in an avant-garde wedge penned by legendary designer Giorgetto Giugiaro of Italdesign, the Bora was like a concept car come to life. Its most distinguishing characteristic, the unpainted A-pillars and roof, were polished stainless steel, a preview of Giugiaro's DeLorean that would not arrive for another decade. Any resemblance to De Tomaso's Mangusta was probably a coincidence (or the fact that it too was a Giugiaro design). The Bora's massive rear glass area showed off its aluminum twin-cam V8, nestled in a racecar-like steel-tube subframe. Motors came as either a high-revving 4.7-liter unit good for 310 horsepower and 325 pound-feet, or a torquier 4.9-liter producing 320 hp and 355 lb-ft. Delivered through a smooth-shifting ZF five-speed, it carried the car from 0-60 in a reported 6.6 seconds, and onward to a top speed of 174 mph. The Bora modernized Maserati, offering a four-wheel independent suspension for the first time behind the Trident badge. The Bora was considered more liveable than a Countach, thanks to features like double-paned glass between the cabin and engine compartment, a carpeted engine cover, and adjustable pedal box. Though overshadowed by its contemporaries from Maranello and Sant'Agata Bolognese, the Bora was considered the thinking man's exotic. As evidence of its decidedly un-basic following it was even cited in 1984's The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, describing the evil Dr. Emilio Lizardo's escape from imprisonment: "Last night he kills a guard, breaks out of Trenton Home for the Criminally Insane. Ten minutes later, he cops a Maserati Bora.

Leak confirms Maserati product plans, five new models

It isn't a secret that Maserati is planning a product expansion in an attempt sell 50,000 units annually by 2015, but the automaker hasn't officially announced just how it plans to do so. Yes, we've seen (and driven) the 2014 Quattroporte, checked out spy shots for the smaller Ghibli sedan and Maserati even confirmed the Levante name for its SUV, but a leaked document reported by CarScoop could shed some light on how the Italian automaker intends on carrying out its rapid growth.
According to the image, the new Ghibli and Levante models will considerably lower the entry price point for the Maserati brand with the sedan having a price range from around $72,000 up to just over the $100,000 mark, with the SUV starting at close to $80,000 and topping out at almost $200,000. It also looks like the GranTurismo and GranCabrio will be getting redesigned in the near future at which point the new Gran Sport model will be added to the mix - otherwise known as the which often-rumored sports car with which Maserati will do battle with the Porsche 911.

Why Maserati won't share the Nettuno V6 with its siblings

Maserati spent a great deal of time and resources developing a twin-turbocharged, 3.0-liter V6 called Nettuno. It made its debut in 2020 in the MC20, and it will be available in the Grecale Trofeo in 2022, but Autoblog learned that the six won't travel outside of the trident family. "We want to keep the Nettuno engine as a signature for the brand. It was developed with the aim of being uniquely associated with the Maserati brand, so it was designed and engineered specifically for Maserati. It's technically feasible to apply it to other cars [in the Stellantis group], but we want to keep it proprietary. We have it in the MC20 and now in the Grecale; there will be other uses for it in the future, but always in Maserati cars," Federico De Medio, Maserati's head of vehicle validation, told Autoblog on the sidelines of the Grecale launch. While he stopped short of providing details about the other uses, De Medio hinted that Nettuno will gradually replace the Ferrari-derived V8 that Maserati has used for many years. He explained that the project's goal was to design a six-cylinder engine with V8-like power. Does that mean that a V8 with V10-like power is on its way? Nope, it sounds like the eight-cylinder's days are numbered in the Maserati line-up. Asked how long the V8 had left to live, De Medio replied that "it depends on the life of the product itself, so the response will be provided by the market and by regulations." And, how about a new V8 designed in-house? "Never say never, but for now we just launched Nettuno so let's enjoy the V6," he answered. What's certain is that the Levante and the Quattroporte won't need a V8 for much longer: they're going electric in the coming years. We know the Ghibli is on its way out, so that leaves the next-generation Gran Turismo as the only candidate for a V8. Nothing is official, but our crystal ball tells us it's more realistic to expect that the coupe will make its debut with a V6 than with a V8. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.