Maserati – A6G/54 (1956)

A total of some 60 Maserati A6G/54 sports cars were built. The Berlinetta was launched in 1956 and was powered by a 2 litre dohc (dual overhead camshaft) six-cylinder engine fitted with three Weber carburettors and twin spark ignition derived from Maserati’s A6GCS and A6GCM competition cars. The bodies were styled by Allemano, Frua and Zagato with about one third of these Berlinettas being bodied by Zagato across the three-year A6G/54 production run. This A6G/54 was clothed in lightweight aluminium bodywork, showcasing its racing intentions. It is probably the only A6G/54 to be styled with a ‘Double Bubble’ Zagato roof and this vehicle is believed to be number 17 out of the 20 Berlinettas bodied by Zagato. The car was produced for Luigi Fornasari to compete in the 1956 Mille Miglia and the finished article was delivered just a few days before the ferocious Italian road race was due to start. Fornasari competed in the car with no paint finish, highlighting the unburnished attributes of its artisanal coachwork in aluminium. The Maserati set off from the starting line in Brescia before sunrise at 03:11. Hopes for a well-placed finish came to nothing on the rain-lashed roads in Ravenna. Fornasari crashed the brand-new Maserati, which landed on its roof, but luckily he sustained no injuries. The car was returned to Zagato for repairs and this time it was liveried in Silver Metallic with a more modest radiator opening and lowered headlights. It was accented with a one-of-one alloy trim from the front bumper to the door handle – the only known A6G/54 Berlinetta bodied by Zagato with this embellishment. The Maserati campaigned again in smaller events driven by a number of Italian owners from 1957 onwards. By 1984, the Zagato had been restored but was accompanied by a change in colour to red and equipped with covered headlights. The ‘double bubble’ in this guise was presented at concours events, displayed at shows, and also featured in glossy magazines. In 2000, the car underwent a restoration back to its original configuration in 1958 and was reunited with Gianni Zagato after an absence of forty years!