Maserati 2.24 BC

Maserati
Maserati 2.24 BC
2.24 BC
Production period:	1988-1992
Class :	Sports car
Body versions :	Coupe
Engines:	Otto engine : 2.0 liters (245 hp)
Length:	4043 mm
Width:	1714 mm
Height:	1305 mm
Wheelbase :	2514 mm
Empty weight :	1240 kg
Previous model	Maserati Biturbo Si
successor	Maserati Ghibli (Tipo AM336)

The Maserati 2.24 v is a two-door sports car from the Italian car manufacturer Maserati , which was offered from 1988 to 1992. From a technical and stylistic point of view, it belongs to the biturbo series and, as a particularly powerful model, complemented the Coupé 222 . The main distinguishing feature was the newly developed engine of the 2.24 v with a four-valve cylinder head while the 222 only had three valves per cylinder. Both the 222 and the 2.24 v were reserved for the Italian market. The export model equipped with a larger four-valve engine was called the 222 4v .

History of origin

The Maserati 2.24 v is conceptually based on the Biturbo presented in 1981 . With the Biturbo, the Argentine entrepreneur Alejandro De Tomaso , who has owned the company since 1975, wanted to establish the traditional sports car manufacturer in the field of series production. Until then, among other things, the Italian tax legislation had opposed a wider spread of the Maserati models, which taxed automobiles with a cubic capacity of 2000 cc and more with a sales tax of 38 percent, while vehicles with a smaller cubic capacity were only taxed at 19 percent. With the Biturbo, Maserati circumvented this problem by adding a nearly 2.0 liter six-cylinder engine that was equipped with two turbochargers to increase performance.

On the basis of this basic version, Maserati developed a wide range of models in the following years, which included an extensive range of engine variants. In general, a distinction must be made between the 2.0 liter engine version for the Italian market and the larger export versions with 2.5 and 2.8 liters displacement, which were available from 1983 and 1987 respectively. In 1983, in addition to the regular, 180 hp biturbo with a 2.0 liter engine, which was equipped with a register carburetor and three valves per cylinder, the sport version Biturbo S, with a higher compression engine and 205 hp. In 1986 Maserati switched the engine to gasoline injection; the models were now called Biturbo i (188 hp) and - in the sport version - Biturbo Si (220 hp). In the 1988 model year, Maserati stopped producing the original biturbo. It was replaced by the externally and technically very similar Maserati 222 , which took over the powerful injection engine of the previous Biturbo Si as the standard engine. It still had three valves per cylinder.

Positioning in the brand's program

In autumn 1988 Maserati presented a four-valve version of the 2.0-liter six-cylinder engine. The model was given the designation 2.24 v, which should indicate the total number of 24 valves. The 2.24 v appeared on the Italian market alongside the regular 222 and served as its sportier variant. In this respect, the 2.24 v took on the role of the previous Biturbo Si. From 1990 the four-valve engine was also available in a sedan. The four-door parallel model to the 2.24 v was called the Maserati 4.24 v . Based on the 2.24 v, the even sportier Maserati Racing model was created in 1991 , with a 2.0 liter engine with an output of 279 hp.

The Maserati 222 4v can be distinguished from the 2.24 v. The 222 4v is the two-door export model that is equipped with a 2.8-liter six-cylinder engine with four-valve heads. As a more powerful version, the 222 4v complemented the 222 E , which was equipped with the conventional three-valve version of the export engine.

Model description

body

Coupé body with dark anodized trim: Maserati 2.24 v. Chr

Externally identical to the 2.24 v from 1991: Maserati 222 SR

The Maserati 2.24 v was a two-door coupe with a notchback body. The self-supporting body corresponded in style and structure to that of the less powerful Coupé 222, which in turn was a further development of the two-door biturbo from 1981. For the introduction of the 222, Marcello Gandini had slightly revised the body originally designed by Pierangelo Andreani . Compared to the original version of the Biturbo, the front section was now slightly rounder and the radiator grille was smaller than on the predecessor. A rear wing was standard on the trunk lid. The modifications concerned the 222 and the 2.24 BC. equally. Unlike the 222, the body of the 2.24 v had a few additional details that should make the car appear sportier. As with the previous Biturbo Si, the body was painted in two colors. The lower part of the car flanks was regularly colored black, and only a limited range of colors was available for the upper part of the body. Decorative parts that were chrome-plated on the 222 were black anodized on the 2.24 v. That affected the radiator grille and the side trim. A few other Maserati models took over the external features of the 2.24 v; this applies in particular to the less powerful Maserati 222 SE .

In 1991 Maserati stylistically revised the type and renamed it 2.24 v II. In addition, the manufacturer took over the front mask of the Maserati Shamal with front light units that were combined from square and round elements. There was also a wind deflector at the lower end of the windshield, which covered the wipers. The two-tone paintwork was omitted. All additional components such as spoilers and aprons, but also the radiator grille, were now painted in the vehicle color. Maserati transferred this body design to the differently motorized models 222 SR and 222 4v.

Engine and drive

The four-valve variant of the 2.0-liter engine (Tipo AM 475) had a newly designed cylinder head. Each bank of cylinders now had two overhead camshafts. The camshafts on the exhaust side drove the camshafts on the intake side via timing chains. At 7.6: 1, the engine had a slightly lower compression than the three-valve engine in the 222 (7.8: 1). The engine output increased from 220 hp in the regular Maserati 222 to 245 hp, which occurred at 6250 revolutions per minute. The maximum speed was thus more than 230 km / h. The car has also been available with a catalytic converter in recent years; the power was then 240 hp.

As with the other Maserati models, the power transmission was initially taken over by a manual five-speed transmission from ZF . With the revision for the 1991 model year, Maserati switched to a five-speed transmission from Getrag that had previously been introduced in the Racing model.

landing gear

The 2.24 v received a revised chassis. The shock absorbers supplied by Koni were adjustable from the interior; the driver could choose between four preset settings.

production

The 2.24 v was produced from 1988 to 1993. Production ended with the introduction of the new Ghibli . During this time, 1147 vehicles were built, 254 of them as 2.24 v II.

literature

• Martin Buckley: Maserati. Italian luxury and flair . Heel Verlag, Königswinter 2012. ISBN 978-3-86852-633-2 .
• Gianni Cancellieri: Maserati. All the cars. Giorgio Nada Editore, Vimodrone 2015, ISBN 978-88-7911-609-1
• Hans-Karl Lange: Maserati. The other Italian sports car. Zsolnay, Vienna 1993, ISBN 3-552-05102-3 .
• Anthony Pritchard: Maserati. The history of racing , Delius Klasing, Bielefeld, 1st edition 2003, ISBN 978-3-7688-2513-9
• David Sparrow, Iain Ayre: Maserati Heritage . Osprey Classic Marques. Auckland 1995. ISBN 1-85532-441-5 .

Web links

Commons : Maserati 2.24v.  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Hans-Karl Lange: Maserati. The other Italian sports car. Zsolnay, Vienna 1993, ISBN 3-552-05102-3 , p. 60.
2. ^ Gianni Cancellieri: Maserati. All the cars. Giorgio Nada Editore, Vimodrone 2015, ISBN 978-88-7911-609-1 , p. 235.
3. ^ ^{A b c} Gianni Cancellieri: Maserati. All the cars. Giorgio Nada Editore, Vimodrone 2015, ISBN 978-88-7911-609-1 , p. 247.
4. ↑ The illustration shows the outwardly identical, but differently motorized 222 SE
5. ^ Martin Buckley: Maserati. Italian luxury and flair. Heel Verlag, Königswinter 2012. ISBN 978-3-86852-633-2 , p. 137.
6. ↑ ^{a b} Hans-Karl Lange: Maserati. The other Italian sports car. Zsolnay, Vienna 1993, ISBN 3-552-05102-3 , p. 65.