Thank you Walter for the lovely photos of the A6.One was orderd buy a swedish guy but he never bought it.Is that right Walter? Magnus
Magnus, none of the A6G-Series showed up in Sweden in the 50ies!It was believed that someone from your country had ordered the Zagato #2160 - but there is no indication in the Factory files about a customer from Northern Europe! Ciao! Walter
I contacted Cozza about this mysterious customer from Sweden. He clearly mentioned that no order ever came from that country for the A6G`s! The car was bought by an Italien who took it to the US. Ciao! Walter
Hi Walter Thanks for clearing that out.Nice that you can contact Cozza when you dont know.I wonder if he remembers me from 1979? Ciao! Magnus
The identity of the Maserati A6GCS Monofaro displayed by Rezzaghi, November 1953 does indeed seem to be N. 2014. The photograph in the link shared earlier by "Johnei" came from the archives of the San Francisco Examiner newspaper. 2014 was sold originally in 1950 to Pietro Palmieri in Rome. His mechanic, Franco Meloni, told Corrado Bellabarba that the car was one of several cars that were never registered by Palmieri. This surely means that Palmieri must have had access to trade ("Prova") plates? Palmieri raced the car a few times in 1950 beginning with an 11th o/a finish on the combined Giro di Sicilia/Targa Florio event of 2 April, 1950. Then there was 5th o/a (eight laps down!) on the GP di Modena (F2) and then a crash "end over end" at the GP dell'Autodromo di Monza at the end of May. That was not the end for Palmieri or the car however as he was third overall on the Bologna - Raticosa hillclimb in the middle of September. Palmieri later owned A6GCS/53 chassis N. 2057 and 2086. 1951 and 1952 history is not yet identified for 2014, but it was sold to Walter K. von Shonfeld (sometimes spelled out as "Schoenfeld"?) in time for him to run at Sebring March 1953 where he was not classified as a finisher. A photo appears in "World Motor Sports Annual 1954" which acted as a program for the 1954 World Motor Sports Show in New York. Joel Finn's book, "Maserati - The Postwar Sportsracing Cars" also has a photo, showing race #64. Von Schonfeld also entered the car at the Floyd Bennett Races for August 29, 1953 (race #66, co-driver "Atkinson") but I am not yet aware of any indication that the car actually raced. Next, the program for the San Francisco Motor Sports Show (held 21 November through 29 November, 1953) has a blurb describing the car, written evidently by Charles Rezzaghi. The program was wrapped in a cover called "Motoramic" announcing that it was slated to begin publication February 1954. I don't beleive it ever actually got off the ground. In any case, Rezzaghi's description of the car stated, "Arrived last week on the S.S. Vesuvio" (which docked November 12 at 2:30PM having come from Los Angeles and theoretically before that, from Italy) and "prepared by Bignami". Bignami was a mechanic in Mantova. Other race programs of the day tell us that Rezzaghi came to the U.S.A. with the Ferrari team for the Vanderbilt Cup Races of 1937. The allusion is that Carlo Rezzaghi, Nuvolari and Bignami were all buddies. If the "prepared by Bignami" statement is true, then the car had returned to Italy for some work before coming to San Francisco "just in time" for the San Francisco Motor Sports Show. A couple of California racing Maserati cars certainly have yet to be identified, but I am not yet aware of the car having gone to the los Angeles area, nor of it having been fitted with a Ford V8. A similar car raced 1956 with one David Keppel, III out of the eastern USA ... Later, 2014 was "discovered" by Stan Nowak while he was working in New York as a dealer in the 1970's. As of 1994, the car was in Italy. I would welcome any additional information on this car or any similar car. Heck, it doesn't even have to be all that similar! John de Boer The Italian Car Registry
Anyone know the number of this A6GCS? I'll give you cookie. It is the James Martin car, he's taking on the MM. Sounds like he is a celebrity chef in the UK. http://www.italiaspeed.com/2008/motorsport/others/mille_miglia/preview/james_martin/1607.html
Johnei, This Monofaro is probably a car that claims to be N. 2006, a car formerly with Dubbini in Italy. I am not aware of any doubts about the provenance but it perhaps best to be cautious in making any absolute statements one way or another? The original car numbered 2006 was delivered 1949 to Musmeci as a replacement for his car N. 2003 that was declared "demolito" for some as-yet unknown reason a short time later. N. 2003 was a works car raced by Villoresi, for a time in berlinetta form. Sid's car (N. 2012) is now with a proud owner in Massachusetts, USA. All the best, John de Boer
If this is #2006 -as John mentioned- than we can clearly see that the restoration was NOT correct: a. the lower line of the radiator grill is not matching #2006 in this historic photos of it in the Catanie-Etna race 1951. b. IMO the position of the headlamps is not correct. Ciao! Walter Image Unavailable, Please Login
Hi Walter, If Johnei's link(s) and entries are somehow off-topic, then I am sorry for contributing to the thread. I found this thread quite by accident while searching for some information on something else and I have not yet gone and explored the whole thread as yet. I saw a couple of questions, answered one ... and was then informed by the website when there was an additional posting ... to which I also responded with a bit of knowledge that might not be common knowledge. However, having now had a quick look at the first couple of pages, I don't see anything in the last couple of pages that is all that different than what came before to begin the thread. Unless we weren't supposed to talk about racing cars? But again, I've not had a look at the whole thread. If I have overstepped, I apologize and return the thread to you. But first ... Note that I am not saying that the UK "celebrity chef" car is 2006 for sure. Only that it resembles closely photos of a car that was owned at one time by Dubbini. I believe it was claimed to be chassis 2006 in a couple of books and it has been restated with photos that I have seen since. But, it was not Dubbini's only A6GCS Monofaro. Both of his cars were in his possession a long time ago and both were restored a long time ago, when restoration standards for "originality" were not what they are today. Furthermore, race cars are always difficult to judge as to originality. They were generally "works in progress" that evolved over time to cure problems that should never have been built into the car in the first place. Further work was often done as a result of new information or inspiration as to how to make a car faster ... or simply comply with rules in a new place or time. Furthermore, restorations of the 1970's in many parts of the world sought to make new what was old and often chose replacement as the easiest course. Lots of bodies were made new or partially new and there was not yet the readily available information we now have about a lot of these cars. Some "errors" were made ... but at least the car underneath survives! In this case, it is possible that one Monofaro was used as reference material for the restoration of the other? I do not know. Yet. All the best, John de Boer The Italian Car Registry
John, this feature mentions that this celebrety James Martin (who the heck is he???) "...painstakingly restored ...just a few months ago...!" In this case its a recent resto and that was not correctly done confirmed by the old photo - if this car of this "famous" Mr. Martin is #2006. But I also have a photo of #2006 that was taken in the early 80ies. Also there the correct front-grille is still visible. So,....! Ciao! Walter
I believe the line in the notice is poorly written. From the context, it could be that the car was acquired "a few months ago" or it could be that the painstaking restoration was done "a few months ago". Copywriters frequently do not know the subject they are writing about and get certain details wrong or out of context. Heck, even I can fall into the trap of editing and re-editing and then fail to proof what I wrote or read carefully enough to fail to recognize thatt I've mmade some silllly errrorr that Ishould have caught! John
I assumed it just meant someone restored it for him and or he purchased the restored car. I thought maybe someone would know the car immediately. Seems like a press release went out from Maserati UK. A google search for him and the Maserati turns up a lot of the same words. These pictures are pretty good and a bit larger. http://www.automobilesreview.com/1144/celebrity-chef-james-martin-in-his-maserati-a6gcs-at-the-2008-mille-miglia/
johnei, ..ahhh...those work much better! And I have to correct myself now with this better photos available: the radiator-grill-section on his car was correctly restored. This was on those smaller pics not really visible. Ciao! Walter
From the Bio Hombre Maserati Museum in Modena... enjoy Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Yep! The car was restored by CAMPANA in the 90ies ...and they made it completely wrong! They made the really stupid mistake to turn the front grill upside down and that ruined the beautiful appearance of this PF-A6GCS! Its unbelievable! Otherwise the car is very original and would be one of the 2 best from the 4 cars Maserati/PF made. Here is an old photo from the factory where you can see #2050 in the forground and the car in question -#2056- in the background. This is the way the front grill was positioned by PF. Ciao! Walter Image Unavailable, Please Login
Thank you Walter. Was that the only error they made restoring this car? Do you know any more about the folks who own Bio Hombre, and those cars? When I visited, no one was around. It was kind of surreal walking around an empty museum. Ciao, Brian.
In the original the car appears to be upbeat perhaps lusting after that engine in front of it? Plus it sports the nice wide stripes. In the other it exhibits a sad appearance. A car with no confidence. If the same car it is indeed an dramatic error with poor results. Bob S.
....was brokered by me today to a new owner for a world-record price!! Ciao! Walter Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I can inform you that the "missing" Frua Spider in Cuba, 2018, ex Cuban mafia boss and newspaper and televisionman, Amadeo Barletta, has been sold, locally to another Cuban and I have currently lost trace of it.. The owner thoiught that it was going to be restored locally, but probably FOR a foreign "REAL" buyer speculating in the opening of borders. (Like what I was thinking I am chasing current pictures from the ex owner now.. Nik