1989-1990 Maserati 228
Average asking price*: $6,700
Collector status: Buy and hold
masr_228

The idea behind the Maserati Biturbo wasn’t a bad one. It was meant to be an exotic for the masses, with performance rivaling its compatriots from Maranello in an everyday package that could compete with the likes of the BMW 3 Series or Mercedes-Benz 190 Class. Its initial offering of a 185-hp carbureted 2.5 liter twin-turbocharged V6 wasn’t bad. On paper. However it was plagued with build quality and reliability from the time it left the showroom. Sales dropped nearly half from 1984 to 1985 as word spread about the car’s woes. Significant improvements were made, first in 1986 and then again in 1989, but by then its reputation had already written its eulogy and in 1990, Maserati would exit the US until regrouping in 2002. In its wake however, it left what may be the single greatest collector car bargain in the market today: the Maserati 228. The 228 is an evolution of the Biturbo, but it is vastly different. In the years between the US introduction of the Biturbo and the launch of the 228 in 1989, Chrysler had injected some cash into Maserati and build quality was now rivaling that of its competitors from Germany. At its heart was an even more powerful (225 hp) fuel-injected 2.8-litre V6 that was more reliable and easier to maintain. It weighed over 200 lbs. less than a Ferrari Mondial T and was half a second quicker to 60 MPH from a standing start, while costing nearly $25,000 less. Today, finding a 228 coupe will be a proper hunt; finding a well-sorted one with solid service history will be even more so. Nevertheless, the woes of the Biturbo (and its larger, more opulent sibling, the Quattroporte) have so decimated the DeTomaso-era Maserati values, that even an über-rare (240 sold in the US) mass-market exotic like the 228 can be had for a bargain if and when you do.