Maserati Biturbo History

Introduced on 14 December 1981 — the 67th anniversary of Maserati's founding — the Biturbo was the world's first production car with a twin-turbocharged engine, a 2.0-litre V6 with two small IHI turbos. Alejandro de Tomaso, who had rescued Maserati from near-liquidation in 1975, designed the Biturbo to reach a far wider audience than previous Maseratis: it was compact, relatively affordable, and offered Italian luxury at a fraction of the price of the Bora or Quattroporte.

Over its 13-year life the Biturbo spawned a full family of body styles: the original two-door coupe, a four-door sedan version (from 1983), and the Spyder convertible (from 1984 — notable as a production record for open Maseratis, with 3,076 built). Engine displacements grew from 2.0 to 2.5 and 2.8 litres across the range, and at its peak the Biturbo sold roughly 40,000 units, making it by far the most numerous Maserati up to that point.

Quality problems — particularly with the early cars' engine reliability and fit-and-finish — damaged Maserati's reputation in the United States, and the US market was eventually abandoned mid-run. Despite this, the Biturbo family was commercially essential: it sustained the company through a difficult decade and generated the capital that eventually enabled Fiat to acquire and rebuild the brand.