The first Maserati Mexico appeared on the market in 1966. The 4 seater grand touring coupe was based on the first generation Maserati Quattroporte and was powered by the same 4.2 and 4.7-litre V8 engines. The idea for the car came out of the 2+2 prototype bodywork presented by Vignale in 1965 at the Saloon di Torino. Vignale’s car was based on a 4.9-litre 5000 GT which was re-bodied after it had been damaged. After the show, the car was purchased by the president of Mexico and since then, the model became known as the ‘Mexico’. As the car received a lot of interest during its initial presentation, Maserati decided to put the model into production.