Maserati A6G 2000 Gran Sport Berlinetta

The A6G54 was Maserati's only dual-purpose road/race car made in series production. After the A6GCS became a success on the racetrack, Maserati redesigned the model as a road-going sports car that was more suitable for increased production. Maserati expert Luigi Orsini called the model by its full name: the A6G54 2000 Sport. It was a high performance 2-litre sports chassis that was crafted into either sports tourer or racing car by the many Italian design houses.Maserati invested little time and capital on A6G54 development by relying on existing designs and choosing to outsource all the bodywork. Thus, no two cars were alike and each reflected the first customer's design preference. What they did have in common was a sporting pedigree from Maserati's past.Right before the all the Maserati brothers had pulled out of the company in 1947, leaving it to Commandatore Adolfo Orsi, they designed a bulletproof inline-6 engine which would eventually power the A6G54 in its definitive form. Initially, Maserati's six was placed on a simple ladder-type tube frame with a 1.5-liter, inline-six engine producing 65 horsepower that was a low point for Maserati performance. By 1951, a two litre version of the A6 was released and featured some fancy custom bodies, but it took until 1954 to get the design right.At that time Vittorio Bellentani was brought in to detune the A6GCS racing engine and make it suitable for GT driving. He tuned to the engine to provide a better power curve and fitted a normal wet-sump lubrication system specifically for the A6G54 2000. The twin-spark cylinder head with its 12 wire distributor was offered only as an option. It raised the ante to 190 horsepower in top form.The chassis was built by Gilco and resembled the simple twin parallel tube design used on he first A6. Suspension upfront consisted of double wishbones with a rigid axle in rear. Steering and braking came from the A6GCS.Second series A6G 2000 Sports were produced from 1954 until 1957. During that period sixty examples were created despite competition from Ferrari and Fiat with their 8V. As the specification of the A6G54 resembled a sporting nature, especially the Zagato-bodied models, some examples used a special competition cylinder heads. At the time, Maserati was campaigning their A6GCS leaving the A6G54 for the most part to private entrants.Bodywork All the cars were sold as bare chassis to be fitted with bodies from some of the best Italian design houses. The most celebrated of these was Zagato's purposeful coupe. Zagato's treatment of the Maserati chassis was similar to the Fiat 8V coachwork from 1954 which was sculpted out of aluminum into a flowing shape. A total of nineteen Zagato Coupes were built and the first, chassis, #2013, was built as a one-of spider. These 20 or so Zagato coupes formed the first concrete relationship between the companies.Of all the A6G2000s, the Zagato model was the most fit for racing. The methods used by Zagato ensured a lightweight construction. The body was formed, by hand, in aluminum with the Perspex windows all around. Total weight of the Zagato Berlinetta was 840kg (1852lbs). Each car had remarkable differences both inside and out. As an example chassis #2121 was the only A6 to receive the trademark Zagato double bubble roof.Vignale and Frua made some wonderful examples on the A6G54 chassis the former making a series of striking two-tone spyders. But these lavish bodies and interiors took very long to complete, so Maserati turned to Allemano who made a series of pedestrian coupes that Maserati were listed in the official catalogue. Eventually the Maserati took the responsibility of building their own bodies and series production of their first 'in house' grand tourer started with the 3500GT in 1957.Chassis &Sales
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2137-1956 Maserati A6G54 2000 Zagato Berlinetta. Delivered in racing red with a beige (Nocciola) leather interior to Conte Giuseppe Dettaiuti Leopardi on May 29th 1956. It was later purchased by Ulisse Pizzi who entered in in the 1956 Mille Miglia with starting number 312, then the Coppa Intereuropa at Monza with number 61 and finally later that year in the Targa Florio. Later 2137 was donated to the Maserati Museum in 1970 and it was restored. Eventually it was passed to the Panini collection based in Modena where it resided until 2005. At that time it was privately sold and a large restoration was performed with a new body by Franco Ferrari. It was offered at Coys' 2010 Legende et Passion Auction but did not sell with an estimate of €860000 - €950000.
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French carte grise Chassis n° 2140 Engine n° 2140 - One of just 4 produced; refined, stylish coachwork by Frua - Matching numbers - Exceptional history - in same family for 55 years - Superb condition - 1956 Paris Motor Show Maserati delivered the chassis to the Frua workshops on 9 February 1956, and it left Frua on 6 July to receive its engine and finishing. It appears in the factory archives as 'internal engine number 76, 2 Marelli ignition coils, Frua 2-4 seater berlinetta, black paintwork and ivory upholstery, Veglia instruments.' It was then delivered to France, complete with import licence, passing its "Service des Mines" homologation test on 2 August 1956. It was registered the same day in the name of Jacques Fildier of Rue St-Dominique, Paris, with number-plates 1007 FH 75. Fildier was an architect and connoisseur of British and Italian sports cars, who owned several Aston Martins. He had ordered the Maserati from Garage Mirabeau on Avenue de Versailles in Paris, who obtained it through Maserati's official French importers, Etablissements Thépenier in nearby Saint-Cloud. Maserati's invoice to Jean Thépenier, dated 2 August 1956, refers to a vettura Frua, verniciata in colore nero, 3 carburatori Weber 36DO4 n. 836, 843, 850. The relatively modest price of 2,500,000 lire probably refers to the chassis, with the bill from Frua sent separately. Although it had already been delivered to its new owner, the car was exhibited at the Paris Motor Show in the Grand Palais in October 1956. Such practice was not uncommon at a time when firms like Maserati produced their touring models one at a time, with importers only buying them after receiving definitive orders. An article by Giovani Lurani in Auto Italiana, dated 30 October 1956, talks of a '2,000cm3 six-cylinder Maserati GT, colour black with de luxe finish.' Between 1956-59 the radiator grill was modified, perhaps after a collision, and the car acquired the grill it has today - less bulky and more elegant than the original. On 12 July 1957 the car was sold to Marcel Chalas of Avenue de Versailles in Paris. After appearing in a Rue de la Pink advertisement in May 1959, the Maserati was again sold on 17 December 1959, this time to Roger Baillon, a garage-owner in the 19th arrondissement. The number-plates were later changed to 267 CMP 92, probably when the car was registered in the name of Jacques Baillon. It has remained in the Baillon family since 1959: some 55 years in the same hands! The Maserati archives contain a letter from Jacques Baillon written in 2000, requesting technical information about the car. Our model was one of the very first Maserati tourers - the first being the A6 1500 of 1946. Production was slow, with just 61 cars completed by the time the 2000 version was launched in 1950. Distribution was even more limited, and the single-camshaft engine was somewhat lacking in power. For the new A6G/54 - A for Alfieri, 6 for six cylinders, G for Ghisa (cast iron block), 54 for 1954 - Maserati improved things, with an overhead twin-camshaft engine (albeit with the same capacity) and dual spark plugs. Power was increased to 150hp and the car was light enough to reach 125mph. The coachwork was assigned to Frua, Allemano and Zagato; Pinin Farina had stopped working for Maserati in 1952, and was now 'busy' at rivals Ferrari. Between 1954-57 sixty cars emerged from the Maserati factory, including four Frua berlinettas in the same style as the car offered here, and two later coupés with a longer bonnet. Frua also produced a very limited number of Spider versions. The Maserati A6G/54 and A6G/2000 were radical sports cars for the time, inspired directly by competition and reserved for committed racing aficionados. But they would also enhance the transition between the worlds of racing and touring. The 3500 GT, launched in 1957, was Maserati's first comfortable Gran Turismo, on which all the following series that established the firm's success would be based. The A6G 2000 thus represents a key episode in Maserati's history. The car we are offering is therefore exceptional, for several reasons. First, in terms of the model - rare, historically significant and technically sophisticated; secondly, for its stylish and highly refined coachwork; and lastly for its individual history, having belonged to the same family for 55 years while retaining its original appearance. It constitutes the finest example of this model available on the market. Our Maserati has been parked next to a Ferrari 250 California ever since the latter entered the Baillon Collection in 1971. Four years ago Jacques Baillon began work on replacing the clutch; he removed the transmission tunnel, but did not have time to complete the job. This sublime, historic Maserati, still with its original engine, therefore remains in its purest, never-restored state. Its proportions are perfect; its balance is thrilling. It worked its magic on us on our first encounter on 30 September 2014. We are sure you will be equally enchanted when you discover it at Retromobile!
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Taken on: October 23, 2023

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Camera:	Panasonic DMC-GX7
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