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Maseratis in Top Gear
Maseratis feature on BBC2's premier motoring magazine
I used to be a regular viewer of BBC's 'Top Gear' back in the good old days when it was fronted by a younger less self-important Jeremy Clarkson, along with co-presenters Tiff Needell and Quentin Wilson. Although no programme 'can please all the people all the time', at that time I found it both interesting and entertaining. These days I seem to have lost interest in the programme, as it appears to be more orientated towards 'boy racers' rather than the serious motoring enthusiast. In recent weeks, however, I have watched a couple of editions that have featured Maseratis.
A few weeks ago I was contacted by a researcher from the BBC. He wanted a few photographs of the various Maserati models produced during the eighties and nineties for use in a programme featuring Maseratis that would be aired two weeks later on Sunday the 29th May 2005. At first I expressed a certain reluctance, adding that Mr Clarkson wouldn't have a good word to say about Maseratis anyway! Having got that off my chest, I agreed to supply them with some photos, most of which were official Maserati photographs from my collection of brochures. I supplied images of the early Biturbo, Biturbo S, Biturbo SE, Biturbo 425 and Biturbo Spyder, the Quattroporte III, the Karif, the Shamal, the Barchetta, the Ghibli II (1a serie) and the Ghibli GT.
That Sunday night I made myself comfortable in front of the television with a certain apprehension, remembering Clarkson's last performance when the show featured a Maserati. That programme included such classics as the Sebring, Mistral and Khamsin. He had praised the cars for their design and performance stating that as a child he could say 'Maserati' before he could say 'Mummy' and that these cars were; 'stunning', 'nostalgia gone mad' and 'drop dead gorgeous, with what was just about the best badge in the business'. This praise was followed by a comment on the Biturbo which he dismissed with the words: "Maserati or should I say Gazerati.....it would rust if Ian McGaskell only mentioned the word rain.....the only reason this thing growled was because it was a dog!" Being the owner of a Biturbo 425 at the time, I was not amused. He then went on to drive a red 222 4v and admitted the car was much improved, commenting; "Interior plain great.....this is a very very nice place to be.....the days of fast Masers are back!"
But this was 2005 and things at Maserati have taken a turn for the better. The show opened with Signor Clarkson standing by a shiny red Ghibli, and in his now customary showmanship manner he produced a small pocket book saying; "Good evening, and we start tonight with the highlight of my childhood. It's the 'Ladybird Book of Motor Cars' from 1963, and as you can imagine it's full of rubbish really, just endless boring grey shapes, until you turn to page 40 when you get to the Maserati 3500GT (he had now opened the book to a page showing a photo of a red Sebring). This for me, when I was little, was like having Jordan and Cameron Diaz in a bath together, with a Lightning jet fighter and lots of jelly. I could say Maserati before I could say Mummy. Because of this picture, Maseratis were just the business!"
Then, hurtling down the straight came a shiny red Biturbo, with Clarkson at the wheel; "This is one of the cars from the company's long and illustrious history, a 150 mph sports saloon called the Biturbo." The car comes to a halt and getting out of the car he adds; "This is no ordinary Biturbo, it's mine, I've just bought it, and this is what I think of it." Oh dear, what next I thought? Well what came next was a surprise even to a cynic like me! A mobile hydraulic crane carrying a large skip full of rubbish was dropped on to the poor Biturbo from a great height. Needless to say the poor old Biturbo was flattened. Clarkson justified his actions with the words; "The Biturbo got what it deserved because it was an afront to one of the best badges in the business!" I knew it was too good to last, Clarkson was up to his old tricks again!
We then saw Clarkson, with contorted face, at the wheel of a 250F as he hurtled down the straight describing Fangio's legendary victory in the German Grand Prix at the Nurburgring during his 1957 World Championship winning season.
Clarkson was then seen at the wheel of the new Maserati MC12 supercar, which he didn't exactly enthuse over but did at least admit that it was fast, very fast. However the programme ended with the MC12, in the hands of a racing driver (AKA 'the Stig'), claiming the fastest time around their test track with a time of 1:18.9 secs, 0.1 of a second FASTER than the previously quickest recorded time by the Ferrari Enzo. It was good to see a professional getting the best out of the car.
Two weeks later Top Gear featured another Maserati, the GranSport. This time the lucky test driver was Richard Hamilton. He began; "Now I've got two words for you, Maserati Coupe. Together they sound fantastic. Unfortunately the realities never quite measured up. We last tested the Maserati Coupe three years ago and we didn't much care for it. We didn't like its psychotic handling, (scene shows the rear of the Maserati Coupe breaking away as it makes a right-handed bend), or the looks or the interior. Most of all we didn't like the flappy paddle gearbox. In fact the only thing we did like was the engine. That's not exactly a long list of plus points. Still, if Maserati's given it another go, so should we!" All very negative so far!
Matters definitely seemed to be improving as he presented the new Maserati GranSport - "more hard core" - "bigger meaner grille" - "side skirts like surf boards" - "huge 19-inch wheels" - "the volume really is nudging up towards eleven" - "and you get more power with an extra 10bhp from the 4.2-litre V8" - "0 to 60mph in 4.8 seconds, top speed an enormous 180mph. From past experiences the last thing this car needed was more power. Quite frankly it was already a bit of a wild unruly beast with what it already had. But do you know what, here today, now, in this GranSport, I think they've cracked it!"
We then saw a contented Hamilton enthusing over this new Maserati as he drove along the winding country roads just outside Modena. "The whole car has been lowered - the suspension stiffened - the computer software that controls the chassis has been modified and improved - it's difficult to describe just how much better this one-time mongrel now feels - it feels confident - sure-footed - I know that I can used all that extra power. This Maserati is starting to look like the car it should always have been. And another thing, the badge is now cool, Bono drives a Maserati as does Jamie Oliver." |
