Tag Archives: maserati

Angolan Adventures – Maserati 300S #3082

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I believe today’s featured Maserati 300S chassis #3082 was the last to be built. It’s history discernible from internet sources is less than exact.

Maserati 300S, Gregor Fisken, Sussex Trophy, Goodwood Revival

From known results it would appear #3082, road registered AVN-04-44, was raced in Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) taking part in 5 Angolan Grand Prix from 1959 to 1963 with Álvaro Lopes being the driver on 4 occasions and Flávio dos Santos driving the car in 1962 when it retired from the race.

Maserati 300S, Gregor Fisken, Sussex Trophy, Goodwood Revival

The result of Álvaro Lopes efforts in the 1959 Angolan Grand Prix do not appear to be recorded, but it is known he started. The following year carrying the #12 Álvaro did not finish the Angolan GP but finished 5th in the Leopoldville, DRC, Grand Prix.

Maserati 300S, Gregor Fisken, Sussex Trophy, Goodwood Revival

In 1960 the Álvaro recorded a 4th place finish in the Angolan Grand Prix in the #3082 chassis now carrying the #8 race number. This combination of car and driver appeared in the 1963 Angolan Grand Prix for the final time bearing the #4, but went one better and finished 3rd.

Maserati 300S, Silverstone Classic

By 1985 chassis #3082 had made it’s way via South Africa to the UK where Burkhard von Schenk purchased it for a reputed £200,000. The 2012 dated photo’s show the #3082 still in von Schenks ownership with Gregor Fisken at the wheel during practice for the Sussex Trophy at Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Maserati 300S, Silverstone Classic

In 2013 Austrian Martin Halusa bought #3082 for an undisclosed sum and the car is seen with fresh paint work in his ownership at this years Silvertone Classic in the remaining photographs.

Thanks for joining me on this “Angolan Adventures” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow for a look at an incredibly shiney Bugatti. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Bought In A Sugar Bag – Maserati 300S #3074/3035

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Today’s Maserati started life as chassis #3074 in December 1957 and was shipped to Antonio Mendez de Barros in Brazil for the 1958 season.

Maserati 300S, Silverstone Classic

Antonio raced the car with Luis Milan on it’s racing debut in the 1958 1000kms race in Buenos Aires where the pair finished 7th overall. For some reason the car was sent back to the factory and restamped chassis #3035 before being sent back to Antonio, according to the Maserati factory records. Driving the car now known as #3035 solo he finished 4th overall in the 1959 500kms race at Interlagos.

Maserati 300S, Silverstone Classic

Celso Lara Barberis bought #3035 in 1960 and recorded 3 wins all at various meetings run at Interlagos between 1960 and 1962 including the 1961 500kms race and the chassis last known race in May 1962.

Maserati 300S, Silverstone Classic

#3035 was rebodied in South America by the time Australian Bob Spicer described buying the car in a “sugar bag” in the 1970’s. After sorting out the contents of his sugar bag into a recognisable racing car he sold it to Bob Jane in 1976.

Maserati 300S, Silverstone Classic

Regular readers might remember that at this time Bob Jane still owned the 300S chassis #3059 at this time.

Maserati 300S, Silverstone Classic

#3035 remained in the Antipodes and was restored in Christchurch New Zealand before being returned to Europe via auction in 1994.

Maserati 300S, Silverstone Classic

Mark Knopfler bought the car at auction for over $600,000 and had it restored again with yet another new body as seen in these photographs taken earlier this year at Silverstone Classic.

Thanks for joining me on this “Bought In A Sugar Bag” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again when I’ll be looking at a Bugatti. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Danville Detailing – Danville Concours d’Elegance

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Last month Geoffrey Horton took his trusty Jaguar XK140 to the 10th anniversary Danville Concours d’Elegance, an event designed to raise funds for Parkinsons research and patient care.

Jaguar XK140 FHC, Danville Concours d'Elegance,

Above Geoffrey’s nephew’s Luke and Jack help out with a bit of detailing as the show get’s underway.

Bentley Mk VI, Danville Concours d'Elegance,

As we saw earlier this year most of the 4000 odd post war Bentley Mk VI’s fell victim to inferior steel supplied for their bodies by government edict. Above is the interior of the only Bentley Mk VI, a 1948 example, fitted with an opulent Sautchick body in France.

Maserati 250F, Danville Concours d'Elegance,

I believe Juan Manuel Fangio drove the Maserati 250F above to two race victories on home soil in Argentina in the space of two weeks in January 1957, his fifth and final World Championship winning season.

Aston Martin DB 2/4 Mk III, Danville Concours d'Elegance,

Between 1957 and 1959 Aston Martin produced 84 DB 2/4 Mark III Convertibles powered by a six cylinder motor, it is believed only 10 of these vehicles were fitted with optional triple carburetors, as seen above, which boosted the output from the standard twin carb 162hp to 195hp.

Land Rover 88, Danville Concours d'Elegance,

The 1963 88″ short wheel base Land Rover at our school was an oft over abused vehicle that used to carry the sailing kit for upto seven dinghies plus up to fourteen school boys plus a member of staff. It might have been a considerably faster vehicle if, like the one above it had been fitted with a a post 1989 200Tdi motor like the one above. The high turbo installation indicates this motor was originally sourced from a Defender rather than the SUV Discovery, in which the iron block aluminium head 200Tdi first appeared with the turbo mounted much lower down in the engine compartment.

RS Design Corsa Spyder, Danville Concours d'Elegance,

Most difficult to identify was this gorgeous red vehicle, from the front it looks a tad like a Maserati and from the rear not unlike a Ferrari P4/P412, but the pushrod motor, possibly a Ford, going on the depth of the rocker covers, gives the game away that this vehicle was unlikely to have been built in Italy. In fact the car is a one off special, made to exceptionally high standards and is known as an RS Design Corsa Spyder. Unfortunately all links to further info on RS Design and the Corsa Spyder built in 2009 have expired so if you know more, please do not hesitate to chip in below.

Geoffrey tells me he had the good fortune to enjoy spending a considerable amount of time with Alma Hill widow of 1961 World Champion Phil Hill who also drove for Geoffrey’s Uncle George Tilp. My thanks to Geoffrey for sharing his photographs, more of which will appear on Friday.

Thanks for joining me on this “Danville Detailing” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me tomorrow when I’ll be looking at what the Dodge Boys cooked up for the . Don’t forget to come back now !

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The Corporation’s 300S – Maserati 300S

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If cars had karma one might wonder what on earth today’s Maserati 300S chassis #3060 had been upto in it’s previous life.

Maserati 300S, Goodwood Festival of Speed

#3060 was originally sold to Maserati Corporation of America in October 1955 and the car made it’s debut at the 1956 Sebring 12 hours with Italian Cesare Perdisa and Argentinian Carlos Menditéguy at the wheel.

Maserati 300S, Goodwood Festival of Speed

39 laps into the race the car was retired with accident damage, then on the way back to New York the trailer carrying #3060 was hit by a truck causing further damage.

Maserati 300S, Goodwood Festival of Speed

By 1957 Maserati Corp of America had repaired the car and Dale Duncan drove #3060 to victory on the Little Switzerland Hillclimb at Euraka Springs. A week later Carroll Shelby then drove the car to the first of two consecutive victories first at Caumberland Airport and then a month later at Lime Rock.

Maserati 300S, David Franklin, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Bob Butcher bought the car miway through 1957 and he scored a 2nd at Thompson before hiring Carroll Shelby to drive #3060 in the Road America 500 at Elkhart Lake where he finished 2nd.

Maserati 300S, David Franklin, Goodwood Festival of Speed

It is believed that #3060 passed into the hands of Rallye Motors by 1959 and it is possible that #3060 was scheduled to be driven in the ’59 Sebring 12 Hours by Edwin P. Lawrence and James Cook. However there is at least one other 300S chassis, of a still extant vehicle, that Edwin was driving when he fatally crashed in practice.

Maserati 300S, David Franklin, Goodwood Festival of Speed

During the 1960’s #3060 was seen with a ‘ugly’ fibre glass body allegedly covering the original aluminium body, the chassis was also fitted with a Chevy V8 and GM Auto transmission.

The car was restored in 1991 and fitted with a motor that was assembled from ‘an amalgam of’ parts held by Cameron Miller. 1978 British Hillclimb Champion David Franklin is seen at the wheel of #3060 in these photographs during this years Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Thanks for joining me on this “The Corporation’s 300S” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l pshycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again for a look at a Sultan’s Bugatti tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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First, Second Or Retired – Maserati 300S #3059.

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This weeks featured Maserati 300S chassis #3059, seen below driven by Carlo Vögele at the Goodwood Revival a couple of years ago, has an astonishing known record of finishing first or second if it made it to the finish line at all in every competition into which it was entered between 1956 and 1962.

Maserati 300S, Carlo Vögele, Sussex Trophy, Goodwood Revival

#3059 was retained as a factory racer in the 1956 season. Pierro Taruffi drove #3059 in each of it’s first three races recording a second place finishes on the Giro di Scilia and Targa Florio which were interrupted by a trip to the Nurburgring 1000kms where Pierro was joined by Harry Schell, Stirling Moss and Jean Behra to record the chassis first win.

Cesare Perdisa recorded the chassis first retirement in the Rouen GP in France, but two weeks later Stirling Moss jumped into the car win the Bari GP. Moss and Behra driving #3059 failed to finish the Swedish GP in August 1956 but by December 1956 their mojo returned and they shared another victory at the wheel of #3059 in the Australian Tourist Trophy in Melbourne.

#3059 changed ownership twice in Australia before Bob Jane recorded the chassis next known finish, second overall, in the 1958 Fisherman’s Bend Victorian Sports Car Championship.

After an accident in a race at Albert Park in 1958 Bob Jane had #3059 fitted with a roof so he could compete in GT events during the 1961 season.

In GT form Bob drove #3059 to two class wins in the Australian and New South Wales GT championships and recorded a final in period second place finish in the Australian TT in December 1962.

A decade later Bob had his 300S returned to spider configuration and after a change of ownership in 1982 the car returned to European ownership in 1992.

Thanks for joining me on this “First, Second Or Retired” edition of ‘Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres’, I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at the ’90’s Bugatti Revival. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Gathering African Dust – Maserati 300S #3057

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Today’s featured car the Maserati 300S chassis number #3059 was sold to Benoit Musy of Fribourg Switzerland midway through 1955.

Benoit is known to have raced #3057 in at least 16 events which including a pair of maiden wins Spa and Chimay in 1955 and three more in 1956.

Maserati 300S, HGPCA Test Day, Silverstone

In October 1956 Benoit was killed driving a Maserati 200S at Monthlery and two years later the car was acquired by Automovel e Touring Clube de Angola, Africa where it is known to have been entered in at least five events up until 1962.

Before it’s last known in period event the motor was damaged and replaced with a Ford V8. After the 1975 Communist Revolution in Angola the car was turned into a street car but was soon left to gather dust for over a decade until it was discovered by Norwegian Stein Johnson who imported the car to Oslo in 1991.

Between 1992 and 1994 #3059 was restored in the UK with a fresh motor, what remained of the original motor was repaired and fitted into chassis #3069.

#3059 seen above at a HGPCA test day at Silverstone last year currently belongs to German Stefan Rettenmaier.

Thanks for joining me on this “Gathering African Dust” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a Bugatti. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Ditching The Iron Block – Maserati 200S #2408

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In 1952 Giulio Alfieri led the development of the Maserati Type 52, which would become known as the Maserati 200S, that was to replace the iron block A6GCS sports racing cars.

Maserati 200S, Silverstone Classic

The new alloy block 2 litre / 122 cui 4 cylinder motor featured 2 valves per cylinder actuated by two overhead camshafts.

Maserati 200S, Silverstone Classic

The chassis frame shared many components with the Maserati 150S and the rear axle was inherited from the A6GCS. The first three 200S frames were manufactured in house while 25 more were outsourced to Gilco.

Maserati 200S, Silverstone Classic

The first five 200S aluminium bodies were fabricated by Celestino Fiandri with the remainder, as seen on today’s featured chassis #2408 by Fantuzzi.

Maserati 200S, Silverstone Classic

Chassis #2408 was sold in September 1956 to Brazilian Severino Silva who is known to have raced Maserati sports cars on at least two occasions bookending 1957.

Maserati 200S, Silverstone Classic

In December 1957 Severino entered his car, for himself and Italian Corrado Manfredini to drive in the Sao Palo Grand Prix. Severino and Corrado finished 6th after starting from 10th place on the grid in this vehicles only known in period competitive event.

I believe Roger Lucas has been the owner of #2408 since 2006 during which period he briefly had it painted red, but by 2009 it was carrying it’s Brazilian colours again.

Thanks for joining me on this “Ditching The Iron Block” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again, for a look at a Bugatti tomorrow. Don’t for get to come back now !

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