Peter Monteverdi was a racecar driver and entrepreneur who became known for his high-performance luxury sports and touring cars. He began building "specials" called MBM in the late 1950s and early 1960s, while also developing his father's motor vehicle repair business into a major dealership that handled prestigious brands like Ferrari, BMW, and Lancia.
Monteverdi's relationship with Ferrari ended in 1963, when Enzo Ferrari demanded that he pay up front for a shipment of 100 cars, which Monteverdi refused to agree to. This led Monteverdi to embark on a new venture in 1967, to undertake series production of exclusive high-performance luxury sports and touring cars.
The first model that Monteverdi launched was the Monteverdi High Speed 375S coupé. This two-seater car was showcased at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1967, and received very positive reviews. The car had a heavy and simple steel frame provided by Stahlbau Muttenz GmbH, with an aluminium body designed by Pietro Frua. The car looked similar to other Frua creations of that time, particularly the Maserati Mistral Coupé and the British AC 428. In fact, the three cars were rumored to share some details, such as windows. The Monteverdi coupé was powered by a 440-CID (7.2-L) Chrysler V8 engine delivering up to 375 bhp, according to SAE standards, and had a luxurious interior finished to the highest standards.
Eleven copies of the Frua-designed Monteverdi coupé were built from 1968 to 1969, but the alliance of Monteverdi and Frua split in anger. Not long before, Frua had built two 2+2 coupés with a stretched wheelbase. One of them was presented as Monteverdi 375/L; the other one stayed for some years at Frua before, in 1971, it was slightly modified and sold to AC, where it was presented as a one-off AC 428.
