Maserati photographs and technical data - All Car Central Magazine P9

Maserati Automobiles, Cars

Photos and technical information of Maserati cars Gallery 9

Maserati 250F
Ferrari Challenge
Infineon Raceway 2008

Maserati 8CM 1934
Goodwood Revival 2011
Tim Surman Photo 2011

Maserati Tipo 151 sn-151.006 1962
Goodwood Revival 2011
Tim Surman Photo 2011

Tipo 151.006 History
In 1962 the FIA modified the World Sportscar Championship by shifting its focus to production based GT cars, abandoning the traditional open-cockpit sports prototype. This forced Maserati to stop the development of the V12 Tipo 63 and 64 rear-engine Birdcages. Organizers at Le Mans were concerned that this new GT class would not draw large enough crowds, so they created a GT prototype and experimental class with an engine capacity up to 4 liters.

U.S. Maserati importer and well-known Le Mans entrant, Briggs Cunningham, asked Modena to produce a Maserati prototype for Le Mans. In a relatively short period of time, Giulio Alfieri designed the Tipo 151 coupe. Only three were built; Tipo 151.002, for Maserati France sponsor Colonel John Simone, and 151.004 and 151.006, which went to Cunningham.

Tipo 151 borrows heavily from the one-off 1957 Maserati 450S coupe. It had a front engine 4-liter V8 engine that was good for 185-plus mph.
p At the 1962 24 Hours of Le Mans, Walt Hansgen and Bruce McLaren drove Cunningham 151.004 and Bill Kimberly and Dick Thompson in the Cunningham car 151.006, while Maurice Trintignant and Lucien Bianchi drove Maserati France car 151.002. All three 151�s were easily the fastest cars in a straight line, but the tricky and complicated rear suspension prevented them from placing higher than third on the grid.

After five hours of racing, the Kimberly/Thompson car, retired after its brakes failed, and five hours later 151.002 withdrew with suspension problems. The McLaren/Hansgen car was the last to retire after 13 hours of racing due to a blown engine.

Cunningham took his coupes, Tipo 151.004 and 151.006, and raced at the Road America 500 and at tracks across the country before selling it to San Francisco car dealer Bev Spencer who raced it once at an SCCA event. Spencer then sold it to Chuck Jones, a well-known drag racing owner who was starting a road racing team, Team Meridian, with driver Skip Hudson.

Team Meridian raced 151.006 only three times in 1963 at Cotati, Road America and Bridgehampton. Jones retired the Maserati, painted it red and registered it as a California street car. Two years later, he sold the Maserati to a San Francisco resident for cash and a Lincoln Continental.

The car was held in private hands until 1983, until Maserati enthusiast, Peter Kaus, purchased the car and returned it to its original Cunningham colors to display it in his Rosso-Bianco museum in Aschaffenburg, Germany.

In the winter of 2006, Maserati 151.006 was sold to Lawrence Auriana, who undertook a full restoration to make it race-worthy once again, a condition it currently is in for Derek Hill to drive in the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion.
Source: Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca Media 2014

Maserati Tipo 151 sn-151.006 1962
Goodwood Revival 2011
Tim Surman Photo 2011

Maserati 250F sn-2525 1956
Moss 1956 Italian GP winer

2,493 CC DOHC Inline 6-Cylinder; Three Weber DCO Twin-Choke Sidedraft Carburetors; 270 HP at 7,200 RPM; 5-Speed Manual Transaxle with ZF-Style, Limited-Slip Differential; 4-Wheel Hydraulic Drum Brakes; Unequal Length Double-Wishbone and Coil-Spring Front Suspension; De Dion Axle with Transverse Leaf-Spring Rear Suspension
Source: Gooding & Company 2014
Image Credit: Photo Courtesy of Gooding & Company Media