Maserati classics set to rumble

A CONGA line of shiny, expensive and – in several cases – rare Maserati cars is set to wind its way down some of Australia’s most satisfying driving roads next week in the first Maserati Global Gathering for enthusiasts of the famous Italian brand.

Starting in Melbourne on Tuesday, about 50 Maseratis will head off on a five-day, 1500km jaunt that will take them down the Great Ocean Road from Torquay to Apollo Bay, through Victoria’s countryside via Castlemaine, Daylesford, Maldon, Bendigo and Beechworth to Albury, up through the Snowy Mountains to Cooma and Canberra, and down through the Macquarie Pass to Sydney, ending at the Sydney Opera House on Monday March 26.

Organised and hosted by the Maserati Owners Club of Australia, the event has attracted about 40 overseas enthusiasts from eight countries, including Italy, Norway, United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, South Africa, New Zealand and United States.

They will join with 60 Australian Maserati club members and Maserati executives on the trip that will include scheduled stopovers along the way so car fans can have a look at the classic machines that include rare models such as a 1964 5000 GT and 1964 Mistral Spyder, as well as a 1974 Quattroporte 2 built for the Aga Khan.

Eight of the cars have been shipped in from overseas for the event, with the rest coming either from Australian owners or – in the case of some of the modern cars – from Maserati Australia which has hired cars to some of the visitors without wheels.

Maserati is using the event to showcase its latest range, including the newly released Levante S SUV with its bi-turbo V6 engine built by Ferrari and similarly-armed Ghibli S sedan.

Maserati Owners Club of Australia president John Gove, who was a driving force behind the event, said the gathering had taken more than two years to put together.

He said he and his wife had travelled to various Maserati rallies in Europe and the US, but no such international event had been held in Australia.

“We felt it was time to put back,” he said. “And besides, I am a proud Aussie.”

With Maserati sanctioning such an event for the first time, it was decided to go global, with invitations going out to Maserati clubs across the world – the first time this has happened.

Of the overseas visitors, the biggest contingent is from Britain, followed by Italy, where Maserati was founded in Bologna by the Maserati brothers – Alfieri, Bindo, Carlo, Ettore and Ernesto – in 1914, firstly as a racing outfit and, from 1957, as a road vehicle manufacturer.

The first Maserati road car was the 1957 Maserati 3500 GT, one of which will be out an about at the gathering next week.

Also along for the ride will be a racing Maserati 150S sportscar once raced to victory in Italy by Stirling Moss.

The cars can been seen on display at lunchtime stops between noon and 2pm in Apollo Bay on Wednesday, at Castlemaine Jail on Thursday and at Brown Brothers winery at Milawa on Friday.

Ten of the classic Maseratis will also go on display on the Sydney Opera House forecourt from 6pm to 9pm on Monday, March 26, as the event winds up with a gala.