At the start of the 1950s, Maserati was still producing cars on a small scale. It built high-performance sports cars that were a little too demanding for the wealthy clientèle just starting to appear after the war.
The marque wanted to produce models that kept the same allure and were fast, but which had improved levels of comfort and security. The task of developing such a car was given to Giulio Alfieri, the brilliant engineer who joined Maserati in 1953. Four years later, the Maserati stand at the Geneva Motor Show displayed a stunning prototype of the 3500 GT, with a coupe body designed by Touring. It formed the base for the formidable line of GT cars that followed. With a 6-cylinder, twin-spark engine derived from competition, the 3500 GT could reach speeds of more than 200 km/h (124 mph) with ease, allowing it to dominate the fast lane on unrestricted highways.
The car was a success, and more than 2,000 examples were built on different bodies. In 1963, Maserati unveiled the car that would unequivocally replace the 3500 GT. It was the Mistral, elegantly designed by Frua. It was available in 3.7- and 4-liter versions, with the 3.7-liter engine producing 245 horsepower and enough power to propel the car to 230 km/h (142 mph). This car was delivered new on February 12, 1969, in Italy to Nami Hamouda. In 1978, it is believed to have passed into the hands of Farag Owar Bessituni on behalf of the king of Morocco, before returning to the Maserati factory collection in 1997. It was then acquired by an engineer from Modena who carried out a complete and thorough restoration of the car, in line with the original configuration.
In July 2004, this stunning Mistral was featured on the cover of Ruoteclassiche. The car sold to the current owner at an auction in Gstaad, Switzerland, in December 2007. At that time, it had covered just 27,000 km (16,777 miles) from new, and six years later, on the day the photographs were taken, the odometer read 30,866 km (19,179 miles). In 2008, it won the Concours d’Elegance de Valescure. The original black leather upholstery displays a charming patina, and the carpets are also in excellent, original condition. The car comes with a copy of the original bill of sale from 1969, original toolkit, owner’s manual and various documents including its ASI certificate.