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Lamborghini and De Tomaso already had the Miura and Mangusta, whilst Ferrari were known to be developing their own mid-engined contender. |
Initially known as Tipo 117 and later the Bora, the Maserati project got underway in October 1968 and a prototype was on the road by mid-1969. |
Shown in its final form at the Geneva Salon in March 1971, deliveries began before the end of the year. |
Maserati struggled after being bought by De Tomaso in 1975, and the Bora was discontinued after the 1978 model year. |
564 Boras were produced in total, of which 275 were fitted with 4.9 L engines and the other 289 were fitted with 4.7 L engines. |
The Bora was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro at Italdesign and has a drag coefficient of 0.30. |
Fabrication of the all-steel panels was contracted to Officine Padane of Modena. |
The Bora had a number of innovative features that distinguished the car from Maserati's previous offerings. |
Compared to other supercars, it was civilized and practical, featuring a hydraulically powered pedal cluster that could be moved forward and backwards at the touch of a button and a steering wheel that could be tilted and telescoped, addressing the familiar problem of entering and exiting the vehicle typical of many supercars. |
Most supercars offer little foot room and little to no provision for luggage, but the Bora has a full-size trunk in the front of the vehicle, and was otherwise known as being much more civilized in comforts from its competitors. |
Unlike its competitors, the Bora used dual-pane glass separating its cabin from the engine compartment as well as a carpeted aluminum engine cap, greatly decreasing the engine noise in the cabin and increasing the comfort level for the driver. |
The engine and five-speed ZF transaxle were mounted on a subframe attached to the monocoque via four flexible mounts, |
Two V8 engines were offered initially, a high-revving and a higher torque ; a US smog-qualified 4.9-litre engine was used (a stroked version of the 4.7), starting with 1973 deliveries. |
The 4.7 L V8 produces at 6,000 rpm and of torque at 4,200 rpm. |
Eventually, production switched to only using a more powerful version of the 4.9-litre engine producing at 5,500 rpm and of torque at 4,000 rpm. |
All these engines traced their lineage back to the famous 450S racecar, were aluminium alloy, had hemispherical combustion chambers with 16 valves total operated by four cams (chain-driven). |
Both engines were mounted longitudinally in the middle of the car and were mated to a ZF-1 five-speed transaxle sending power to the rear wheels. |
They were fed by four 42 DCNF/14 downdraught Weber carburetors with Bosch electronic ignition. |
The compression ratio is 8.5:1. |
A combined steel monocoque chassis and body featured a tubular steel subframe at the back for the engine and transmission. |
Also featured independent suspension all round (a first for a Maserati road car) with coil springs, telescopic suspension dampers and anti-roll bars. |
The development prototype and the broadly similar show car first seen at the 1971 Geneva Motor Show featured MacPherson strut based front suspension, but this was abandoned for production because, installed in combination with very wide front tires and rack-and-pinion steering, the strut-based solution produced severe kickback. |
For the production cars Maserati reverted to a more conservative wishbone front-suspension arrangement. |
Citroën's advanced high-pressure LHM hydraulics were adopted to operate the ventilated disc brakes on the main circuit, and on an auxiliary circuit the pedal box [clutch, brake, foot-throttle], the driver's seat [only vertical adjustments], and the retractable headlights. |
Wheels were Campagnolo light alloy rims with distinctive removable polished stainless steel hubcaps in the earlier automobiles. |
Tyres were Michelin XWX 205x70 front and rear, however these early cars exhibited problems with "tramlining" at speed. |
To solve this problem Maserati fitted later cars with 215/70VR15 on the rear, with the choice of Michelin XWX or Pirelli Cinturato CN12. |
Standing high, perhaps the most distinctive details were the brushed stainless steel roof and windscreen pillars. |
Inside, the bucket seats, dash, door trim, centre console and rear bulkhead were trimmed in leather, with electric windows and air conditioning as standard. |
The steering column was manually adjustable for rake and reach, whereas the LHM aux. |
circuit controls adjusted the driver's seat vertically, the pedal box [consisting of the brake, clutch and throttle pedals] horizontally forwards and backwards by around --a first such application in the world for a production car, and also to raise and lower the concealed headlights in the front fenders. |
The original design weight was , however, noise and safety concerns pushed this up to . |
It is popularly believed that the Bora is heavier than the Ghibli however the Ghibli weighs some , more than the Bora. |
The reason for this misconception probably stems from the state of tune of their respective engines as well as the difference in the gearing of the two cars. |
The Ghibli's 4.7 litre motor was tuned to give in SS form, whilst the Differences in the gearing are a little harder to understand, the Ghibli had the option of two final drives 3.31 or 3.54 both of these lower than the Boras' 4.11 in US form or 3.77 for the few RHD cars, also having a 2.97 first gear versus 2.86 in the Bora made the heavier but more powerful Ghibli accelerate at almost exactly the same rate as the Bora, initially. |
However as speed climbed the more highly geared Bora (5th gear of .74 versus .90 in the Ghibli) would take the lead, top speeds were similar at 154 to 160 for the Ghibli versus for US spec Boras' and up to for RHD and European spec cars without smog controls. |
This has led to confusion over this issue as well as the top speeds of US spec versus European geared cars. |
The first Boras were delivered to customers in late 1971, and only minor production changes were gradually phased in thereafter. |
About early 1974, front lids became hinged at front instead of rear, pop-up headlights showed rounded inside corners, and a rectangular black air-exit grille was added across the hood (similar to Pantera). |
From 1973, as the 4.7-litre engine had not been homologated in North America, US Bora models had air-pump emissions-equipped Super-Ghibli engines similar to those found in US-bound Ghiblis. |
Output was at 6,000 rpm, or less than the Euro-spec' derivative. |
US safety-compliant front bumpers had to be added to meet US DOT safety legislation, on US-delivered cars, though many US Bora owners have subsequently retro-fitted the original Euro versions. |
Three years later, the 4.9-litre engine became standard on all Boras, displacement having been stroked from 85 to 89 mm, resulting in a size of 4,930 cc. |
With compression set at 8.75:1, output was up on the 4.7 with ( in Europe) at 5,500 rpm. |
Production ran from 1971 to 1978, with 564 Boras built, 289 of which were 4.7s and the remaining 275, 4.9s. |
Maserati created two Group 4 racing Boras at the request of Thepenier, a French Maserati dealer. |
They were very competitive, but Maserati couldn't produce enough cars to meet the 500 road car homologation rule for Group 4 racing so the project was shelved. |
The Bora was the basis for the Merak, which used the same bodyshell front clip but in a 2+2 configuration, made possible by using a smaller, lighter and less powerful Maserati V6 engine, also used in the Citroën SM. |
The Merak was popular, and sold thousands in number, including the later modified and improved Merak SS, making its debut in 1981. |
Merak models had an opened rear engine-cover instead of the glass-enclosed and heavier rear of the Bora. |
LaPorte Church of Christ |
LaPorte Church of Christ is an independent White Supremacist church in Laporte, Colorado, led until 2011 by Pastor Peter J. Peters (November 13, 1946 – July 7, 2011), who proclaimed that Europeans comprise the twelve lost tribes of Israel and that contemporary Jews are satanic impostors (based on and ) and the descendants of the Biblical Esau (Edom) -- the brother and nemesis of Jacob (Israel). |
Critics labeled his message to be that of Christian Identity, although he rejected this label. |
The church is no longer associated with the decentralized group of churches that use the name "Churches of Christ". |
The church served mainly as a platform for Peters' views and its membership never went above 100. |
It attracted white supremacists, including the members of the terrorist organisation The Order who murdered radio talk show host Alan Berg with whom Peters had clashed on Berg's radio program. |
The church became involved in a controversy in Colorado, related to an amendment against homosexuality, which led to it being fined for a minor violation of election laws. |
Peters refused to pay the fine and the church was seized by the state in February 1993 as the debt exceeded $10,000 dollars. |
Stanley Middleton |
Stanley Middleton FRSL (1 August 1919 – 25 July 2009) was a British novelist. |
He was born in Bulwell, Nottinghamshire in 1919 and educated at High Pavement School, Stanley Road, Nottingham and later at University College Nottingham. |
Middleton started writing at university and in 1958 published "A Short Answer". |
Alongside his work as an author he taught English at High Pavement Grammar School for many years. |
In 1974, his novel "Holiday" won the Booker prize. |
In 2008 "Her Three Wise Men" was published, his 44th novel and the last to be published during his lifetime. |
Middleton was an accomplished organist, playing regularly at St Mark's Methodist Church on Ravensworth Road in Bulwell and stepping in to cover others, often at Mansfield Road Baptist Church in Nottingham. |
He was also a fine water colourist and contributed his own artwork to the covers of the 1994 novel "Catalysts" and the festschrift, "Stanley Middleton At Eighty". |
In 2006, a reporter for "The Sunday Times" sent the first chapters of "Holiday" to a number of publishers and literary agents as a journalistic stunt. |
Almost all rejected it. |
The actor Peter Bowles was taught by Stanley Middleton while a pupil at High Pavement. |
In 1980 when Bowles was the subject of the popular TV programme "This Is Your Life", Stanley Middleton appeared as a guest on the programme. |
Middleton was married to Margaret Welch from 1951 until his death; the couple had two daughters, Penny and Sarah. |
Towards the end of his life he suffered from cancer, and died in a nursing home on 25 July 2009, one week before his 90th birthday. |
It has been revealed that Middleton refused an OBE in 1979. |
This came to light following a Freedom of information request by the BBC. |
He did not feel that he should be honoured simply for doing what he regarded as his job. |
Fiction |
Non-fiction |
Ferrari Testarossa |
The Ferrari Testarossa (Type F110) is a 12-cylinder mid-engine sports car manufactured by Ferrari, which went into production in 1984 as the successor to the Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer. |
The Pininfarina-designed car was originally produced from 1984 to 1991, with two model revisions following the end of Testarossa production called the 512 TR and F512 M, which were produced from 1992 to 1996. |
Including revised variations, almost 10,000 cars in total were produced, making it one of the most mass-produced Ferrari models. |
The Testarossa is a two-door coupé that premiered at the 1984 Paris Auto Show. |
All versions of the Testarossa were available with a rear-mounted, five-speed manual transmission. |
The rear mid-engine design (engine between the axles but behind the cabin) keeps the centre of gravity in the middle of the car, which increases stability and improves the car's cornering ability, and thus results in a standing weight distribution of 40% front: 60% rear. |
The original Testarossa was re-engineered for the 1992 model year and was introduced as the 512 TR (TR meaning TestaRossa), at the Los Angeles Auto Show, effectively as a completely new car, and an improved weight distribution of 41% front, 59% rear. |
Another new variant called the F512 M was introduced at the 1994 Paris Auto Show. |
The car dropped the "TR" initials and added the "M" which in Italian stood for "modificata", or translated to modified, and was the final version of the Testarossa, which continued its predecessor's weight distribution improvement of 42% front, 58% rear. |
The F512 M was Ferrari's last vehicle that featured the flat-12 engine. |
The Testarossa was replaced in 1996 by the front-engined 550 Maranello grand tourer. |
The Testarossa name paid homage to the famed World Sportscar Championship winner 1957 250 Testa Rossa sports racing car. |
"Testa Rossa", which literally means "red head" in Italian, refers to the red-painted cam covers sported by both cars' 12-cylinder engines. |
The Testarossa traces its roots back to the faults of the 1981 BB 512i. |
The problems that the Testarossa was conceived to fix, included a cabin that got increasingly hot from the indoor plumbing that ran between the front-mounted radiator and the midships-mounted engine and a lack of luggage space. |
To fix these problems the Testarossa was designed to be larger than its predecessor. |
For instance, at wide the Testarossa was half a foot wider than the Boxer. |
This resulted in an increased wheelbase that stretched about to which was used to accommodate luggage in a carpeted storage space under the front forward-opening hood. |
The increase in length created extra storage space behind the seats in the cabin. |
Headroom was also increased with a roofline half an inch taller than the Boxer. |
The design came from Pininfarina. |