A 1969 Maserati Ghibli has sold at auction for $54,500, sparking a debate among car enthusiasts: Should this project car be totally restored or kept as is despite its physical imperfections?
The price of this 53-year-old car when it’s pristine is quite high. You’ll usually see it priced between $150,000 and $300,000, depending on its condition, engine, and mileage. The highest-ever sale on Bring a Trailer was $425,000 back in 2022. Most project cars sell for around $100,000, making this the lowest 1969 Maserati Ghibli sale in history.
Only 1,170 coupes were manufactured during a span of six years. This particular model was acquired by Stan Nowak, who traded a Ferrari 250 GT Boano coupe and a 330 GTC 2+2 for it. He drove it for nearly a decade before it was taken off the road in the early 1980s due to a brake caliper failure. At that point, the seller started some refurbishment and bodywork but abandoned the project. The car remained in a barn for decades. With noticeable wear, rust, and corrosion on the body, a crack on the windshield, and other imperfections, this non-running vehicle was sold as a project car.
1969 Maserati Ghibli project car has enthusiasts debating: Restore or build?
A few stories were mentioned about possible previous owners of this 1969 Maserati Ghibli. One that seems to be most supported centers on Stan Nowak, a pretty infamous Ferrari historian in the 1970s. After he passed away, Bill Noon found the Ghibli along with other vehicles in long-term storage inside the family’s barn. He “pleaded” with the family to take the Ghibli, hoping to restore it in his retirement, marveling at how well-protected and original it was, including its engine and gearbox. Unfortunately, the timing was off for him, and he let it go. He wrote: “This one absolutely retains the original engine, gearbox and rear axle assembly. Best of luck to the fortunate new custodian!”
The seller who later acquired the vehicle from the barn noted that this was a largely “untouched and unmolested” model aside from the paint, applied early into its life. He added: “Since then, it has just been driven, enjoyed, then stored away. Many Alfas, Maseratis, Ferraris, and Lamborghinis of this era have been restored/modified once or multiple times over.
“To me, a car that has received all new parts, body panels, interior pieces, etc., is just a new car with these new parts. This car gives one the ability to unbolt pieces that have not been touched since it left the factory. It has not been torn apart or put together by anyone else. That has gotten rare.”
Indeed, many auction viewers shared this sentiment. While it’s a project car, most car enthusiasts didn’t want to see any big changes made to the vehicle — restoring it to its former glory would be ideal, bringing it back to its original beauty. The touching backstory and the car’s rarity made many feel sentimental and reluctant to see the Ghibli completely different from what Fleming may have imagined if he’d had the chance to fix it.
With the vehicle in such rough shape, it probably won’t make any money after all the cash it takes to restore it. It’d maybe be more of a passion project. This has given auction watchers some hope that it’s not about to be totally transformed but rather brought back to its original glory.
However, the winner of the project car owns a restoration company and has stated that they plan to document “the build.” This wording alarmed some people. While a restoration focuses on returning a vehicle to its original condition and values authenticity, a build is about creating something entirely new, often to modern standards.
“I hope it’s a restoration and not a build,” a classic car enthusiast noted in response. “I really hate that word and what it may (or may not) imply.”
However, even a restoration is too much for some car enthusiasts.
Said one viewer: “I think that I’d enjoy this without touching cosmetics. How cool to be driving a vintage Maserati without caring about gravel roads and mud puddles. Maybe even do some ice racing.”
