Pietro Frua designed the first Maserati Quattroporte and exhibited at the same Salon di Torino in 1963 as the Mistral GT. The car had first been conceived back in the development days of the racing 450 S, a 4.5-litre sports racing car that became obsolete almost as soon as it first ran because a 3-litre engine limit came into force. The 4.5-litre V8 engine was seen as a possible contender for a large high speed saloon and since such a car did not exist in the 1960s Maserati decided to attempt it. 'Quattroporte' simply means '4-doors'. A box section chassis was constructed and a new 4136cc version of the V8 engine installed. Production began in 1964 and the first models had rectangular headlamps which were replaced by quad round units in 1966. From 1968 a 4700cc engine was available; production ended in 1969 after 770 were sold.