The birth of the 5000 GT Touring was the result of cooperation between the engineer Giulio Alfieri and the Shah of Iran Reza Pahlavi. The Shah entrusted Maserati with the task of producing an exceptional car. As such, the 5000 GT was a very high-end ‘made-to-measure’ version of the 3500 GT, powered by a V8 engine that would benefit from improvements in 1960, including an increase in cubic capacity to 340 bhp.