'Who Dat" Maserati 450 SS powered Hydroplane Briggs Cunningham/Don Wilson

I thought some of you would be interested in this,....sadly the boat is no longer is with us. Where is the engine?????

http://www.vintagehydroplanes.com/whodat.html


Ciao and best!

~Trev

 

PS: doubt that's a 6.5 liter..... misprint of 4.5 more likely....

Perhaps not the same one, but still lurking in a shop out east........
Timossi hull
Maserati 450 S
(Surprised it has not yet been snatched for a repli-car....)
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Weren't these marine-engines to start with?

 

Nice photos, thanks for posting.

I'm pretty sure the Cunningham Maserati marine engine was a 6.4L; closer to 6.5L. It produced 780 BHP @ 7,500 RPM.

Ciao and best!

 

An original racing boat with that engine will most likely be more worth more nowadays than a 450S replica or recreation...

 

Probably yes, but not much...

 

In the middle 60's I purchased the hydroplane Who Dat from Don Wilson for George Walther, of Dayton, Ohio who was active in hydroplane racing as well as a many time owner of Indy cars in the 60's and 70's. I believe I paid Mr. Wilson $2,000.00 for the boat and trailer with another $2,000.00 owed should Mr. Walther approve of the engines preformance at that months Orange Bowl Regatta. I took the boat from Mr. Wilson's house and proceed to the Orange Bowl Regatta. During the regatta the boat was never taken off the trailer nor the engine started. After the regatta I then towed the boat back to Miamisburg, Ohio to Mr. Walther's warehouse where he kept his racing equipment. A short time after the boat was put into the warehouse Mr. Walther's Indy mechanic was asked to remove the motor from the boat. After last seeing the motor sitting on a skid in the warehouse was the last time I ever saw the engine and never heard of it again. I believe that Mr. Walther didn't know really what happened to it but my guess would be that a member of his family removed and sold it without his knowledge. I was told by Mr. Wilson that the engine was a one of a kind and a 6.5 litre enging. Many years later the Cunninghams were wanting the engine for their museum as they have never been paid for it and after some legal arguments they were sent the originally agreed to $2,000.00. Mr. Walther had always argued that he had not reveived the promised extra propellers when the boat was first purchased.

 

In mid 60's I was sent, by George Walther, Jr., hydroplane owner & Indy Car Owner, to Florida to purchase from Don Wilson the hydroplane Who Dat powered by Mr. Cunninghams Maserati 6.5L engine. I paid Mr. Wilson for the boat however he and Mr. Walther had a deal that the motor would not be paid for until it ran. I then promptly drove South to the Orange Bowl Regatta to be held at the Miami Marine Stadium. The plan was to start the engine once there and if all went well race the hydro. For a reason I don't remember the engine was never started and after the regatta I was asked to tow the boat back to Mr. Walther's warehouse in Miamisburg, Ohio where he stored his hydroplanes and Indy cars. After the boat was stored for a week or so Mr. Walther told his Indy mechanic, Buster Roark to remove the engine from the boat so that he could look at it. George was not only a owner of boats and race cars but was always one who liked to work on them mechanically. The last time I saw the engine was sitting on the skid Mr. Roark originally set it on and never saw it again. I was a good friend of Mr. Walther until he passed away and he never said but I believe that someone in his family stole the engine and sold it. There was also a large fire at warehouse once but as I was put in charge of making the insuracne claim I know that the motor was not listed as a loss. Sometime later on I believe Mrs. Cunningham (possibly after her husband died) contacted Mr. Walther asking for the motor back as to have it included in their museum as it had never been paid for due to an argument concerning propellers for the hydro. A check was finally sent to the Cunninghams in the amout of I believe $2,000.00 for the original amount of the engine when the boat was sold. As I understood it the engine was a one of a kind but as to where it went, how it went or who might have ended up with it is anyones guess and could possibly still be in the Dayton, Ohio are in the hands of someone who doesn't know what it is.

 

More info http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/maserati/342020-calling-walter.html

 

WOW that is amazing!! I'd LOVE to hear it run.

 

The boat is indeed original, and the engine is original to the boat. I was offered the boat for what I consider to be a very, very reasonable price, but had to decline. I would love to have it, but my wooden 52 foot/16 meter Baglietto Italian yacht took it "out of me".

The seller had many, many offers on the engine, but said no selling the engine alone, to his credit.

If anyone is interested in hydroplanes and boat racing this a fantastic opportunity,..... really a once in a life time chance for a REAL piece race and Maserati history.

Ciao and best!

~Trev

 

Hope the engine will stay with that beautifull racer.
Search results | Three Point Hydroplanes - Italia

 

Trev - I missed it ;-( what did it sell for?
TIA,Tritone