1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse Gst Spyder on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Junkyard Gem: 1989 Chrysler TC by Maserati

Lee Iacocca's friendship with Alejandro de Tomaso went way back, and it led to the Ford-powered De Tomaso Pantera being born in 1971 (when Iacocca was running Ford). After Iacocca moved over to head Chrysler in 1978, he began working with de Tomaso (who owned Maserati by that point) to develop a sports coupe based on the Chrysler-salvation K-Car platform. It took quite a while, but eventually that car became reality: the Chrysler TC by Maserati (officially known as Chrysler's TC by Maserati). Some 7,300 were built through 1991, and I've found one of them in a Denver-area car graveyard. I've managed to document four of these cars in their final parking spots prior to this one, in wrecking yards in Colorado, California, and Wisconsin. The Chrysler's TC by Maserati does have a devoted following, but they can't save 'em all. The TC really was assembled by Maserati in Italy, but the underlying chassis was taken from the Dodge Daytona. The body bore a strong resemblance to that of the Chrysler LeBaron GTC, which was unfortunate considering the price difference between the two cars: the MSRP on the 1989 TC was $33,000, while the LeBaron GTC cost $17,435 (that's about $80,880 and $42,730 in 2022 dollars). The TC had three different engines driving the front wheels over its short lifetime: two varieties of turbocharged Chrysler 2.2 four-cylinder (one with 160 horsepower and one with a Cosworth cylinder head with 200 horsepower) and that good old workhorse of a Mitsubishi V6: the 6G72, with 141 horses. This car has the 160hp 2.2. The Cosworth-headed cars (500 were built) got a five-speed manual transmission, but the other 6,800 TCs got a Chrysler slushbox of either three or four speeds (this one is a three-speed). There was a lot of snobbish disapproval of the TC by the automotive press, but just look at that interior! Even the most over-the-top LeBaron never got this level of swank inside.  Every time I write about one of these cars, I hear that the factory hardtop roof is worth fantastic money… but four out of the five examples I've found in junkyards had the hardtop, and I think every single one went to the crusher with its car. How many miles? Not many! Maybe the speedometer cable broke in 1995. The radio and HVAC controls are straight LeBaron, but the wood and leather are the real thing.

Maserati Project24 is a custom, limited-edition, track-day special

Maserati joins the parade of limited-run, track-only cars designed to a set of specs instead of a set of established racing regulations. The entry is known by the codename Project24 at the moment, and Maserati says it will build just 62 examples. We don't know the significance of 24 nor of the production run. When the automaker launched the MC20, it said it planned to get return to heritage values founded at Formula 1 and sports car tracks around the world. While we wait on an MC20 developed for FIA GT racing, Project24 will be automaker's second outlet for racing aspirations, the Italians planning on entering Formula E next season. It's possible the Project24 is an offshoot of Maserati's reportedly dead GT3 program for the MC20. In December 2020, Daily Sports Car reported that a GT3 challenger "was said to be under development" when Maserati debuted the MC20, but perhaps due to ramifications of Covid, the circuit version was "shelved for the time being." The automaker hasn't divulged performance targets for the Project24, only a weight target: Below 1,250 kilograms, or 2,756 pounds. If achieved, the racer would be 552 pounds less than Maserati's claimed weight for the MC20. Part of the weight loss comes courtesy of carbon fiber bodywork that's two inches wider than on the MC20, Lexan windows, and making the passenger's seat optional. The gains should be felt everywhere around a track, especially because Project24's 3.0-liter V6 engine sports a larger pair of turbos that boost output by 119 horsepower, to 740 hp. The road car's eight-speed automatic is replaced by a six-speed sequential auto with paddle shifters, from there sending power to the rear wheels through a mechanical limited slip differential instead of the electric LSD in the MC20. Brembo CCMR racing brakes hang off a double wishbone suspension with anti-roll bars front and rear and adjustable dampers, just behind custom, forged 18-spoke center lock wheels on racing slicks. An adjustable front splitter and rear wing fine tune aero performance, on-board air jacks help pit crews put in the best performance.   The cabin offers an adjustable, multifunction carbon fiber steering wheel and pedal box. The wheel contains a digital display working alongside a dash and data acquisition system, but a driving performance optimization display is extra.

Maserati GranCabrio First Drive Review: Want an electric convertible? This is it

LAKE MAGGIORE, Italy — Driving the Maserati GranCabrio Folgore on its picturesque home turf, and studying MaseratiÂ’s press materials, IÂ’m convinced the Italian automaker has buried the lede. Especially when every auto journalist is questioning a pricing strategy that finds some GranTurismo coupes and GranCabrio convertibles brushing past $200,000. That gets into Cloud 9, Bentley-and-Aston-Martin territory.  To counter the whispers, hereÂ’s the part IÂ’d be shouting about: The GranCabrio Folgore is the worldÂ’s first and only luxury electric convertible. That alone might intrigue some free-spending, first-on-their-block buyers. Then, Exhibit B: Like the plug-in GranTurismo coupe, the convertible will out-accelerate any rival Bentley Continental GT or Aston DB12, a margin that grows positively yawning as speeds climb. A rocking 750 horsepower and rock-crushing 995 pound-feet of torque will do that. This Italian job is also noticeably more agile and connected to the road than the isolated Bentley droptop, and easily on par with AstonÂ’s best GTs. That includes a gasoline Trofeo version whose 4,316-pound curb weight undercuts a GT Speed convertible by more than 1,100 pounds; mated to 542 horses from its twin-turbo, 3.0-liter Nettuno V6, a detuned version of the engine in the MC20 supercar. This Italian sexpot is arguably a prettier car than the Bentley, and nearly as head-turning as the Aston, judging by public reaction to our convoy of beautifully painted models: Rose gold was a knockout specimen, along with a deep blue with metallic flake called Night Interaction, a burnt orange and a sizzling red. Anything but bright yellow, grazie. The Maserati also carves out more passenger space than the British duo. ItÂ’s a legitimate four-seater with room for two adults in back — after a bit of space-sharing from front-seaters — versus a Bentley or Aston whose back seats are glorified parcel shelves. Finally, the MaseratiÂ’s vividly realized electric powertrain advances the tech future, where Bentley and AstonÂ’s relatively pokey corporate V8s are rooted firmly in the past. So thatÂ’s four objective wins for the Maserati, in key areas I assumed auto journalists also cared about: Power and acceleration, sporty handling, interior space and technology. Honestly, the BentleyÂ’s only decisive win is its gorgeously wrought London library that doubles as a car interior. The AstonÂ’s cabin also tops the MaseratiÂ’s in materials and execution.