Description

The 1960s saw Porsche gaining tremendous sales with its 911; a fast and exciting car that was priced some way below the super sports cars of the time; Ferrari had its V12-engined models, Maserati had V8s - all were well above ‘entry level’ for buyers and among Italian car makers, Enzo Ferrari recognised this first. Launching the Dino brand with partner Fiat, he garnered a new market, enthusiasts who might graduate to a supercar after enjoying a smaller and less expensive ‘Ferrari’. This move proved very astute and Dino sales went well, both ‘Ferrari’ and Fiat Dino coupes and roadsters sold well. Maserati and Lamborghini were a little later to join the junior supercar league, the fighting bull brand launching its Urraco 2.0, 2.5 and 3.0-litre V8 model in 1970. The trident brand followed suit with the Merak, a V6-engined version of its fabulous Bora V8 mid-engined car, in 1975. In a departure from naming its cars after winds - Mistral, Khamsin etc, Maserati named its entry level sportster after a blue star of the fittingly second magnitude, one that is seen in the constellation Ursa Major.

What differentiates the Merak from its Italian rivals is its baseplate, drawn from the Bora but using a V6 engine first seen in the Citroén SM sports saloon. The rear of the car forgoes the expensive clamshell ‘bonnet’, using flying buttresses and a conventional engine cover. This also freed up space for two occasional seats, pitching the car against the Ferrari 308 GT4 2+2.

Aside from the Citroén-derived hydopneumatically powered brakes, clutch and pop-up headlights, the Merak was of fairly conventional construction. As with the Bora, the Merak uses a steel monocoque construction paired to a rear tubular subframe supporting the powertrain and rear suspension, of unequal length A-arms type all around, with coaxial coil springs and telescopic shock absorbers.
The Merak we present here is in excellent mechanical and cosmetic condition and is finished in the most desirable colour and trim combination - red coachwork with a black leather interior. Being one of only 1,830 ever made between 1975 and 1983, it also has the cachet of being rarer than most of its competitors.

The car has come out of long-term Danish ownership - from 1983 it spent 36 years with the previous owner. He acquired the vehicle in Sweden and spent approximately €34000 restoring the car, including rust repair, new paint, and suspension. The car has been driven very little since the restoration that was commissioned shortly after the previous owner’s purchase. The car has a Danish title.