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Photograph copyright: Ron Kimball
1957 MASERATI A6G-2000 GRAN SPORT SPYDER
细节
1957 MASERATI A6G-2000 GRAN SPORT SPYDER
COACHWORK BY FRUA
Chassis No. 2197
Red with white noseband and cream leather interior with matching soft top
Engine: six cylinder, in-line, dual overhead camshafts, triple Weber carburetors, 1,985cc., 150bhp at 6,000rpm; Gearbox: four-speed manual; Suspension: front upper/lower wishbones with coil springs, rear rigid axle with radius arms and leaf springs; Brakes: hydraulic drums all round. Left hand drive.
With timeless elegance and a zesty engine, an A6 Maserati is just the machine to imagine a spirited drive top down along the Amalfi coast. While the A6 1500 lacked power, the two liter version, particularly with spyder coachwork by Carrosseria Frua, was a true blossoming of the Maserati GT tradition, one that will stretch until this Fall's presentation of the new spyder with the Trident's return to the US market.
According to factory records supplied by the ever helpful Ermanno Cozza, this desirable car left the factory on February 22, 1957 and was delivered new to Maserati's California dealer M. Rezzaghi. Records show that next the car was owned in 1959 by a M.C. Valdez of San Diego and further evidence shows that it was owned by a William Victor Hahn also of San Diego from June 1972 onwards. Claudio Zampoli of 1990's Cizeta Moroder 16 cylinder fame then owned it for a decade, during which it sat apart in his Los Angeles dealership before he sold it to Oliver Kuttner, a well known aficionado of Italian exotica.
In 1987 it was purchased by Jay Jessup of Virginia who described its condition at the time as a rolling basket case with parts in boxes, mostly complete with some detail parts missing. The body was in primer and showed no evidence of any accident damage, not the slightest door ding in fact, and importantly there was no rust in the frame. The body is of course in alloy. The decision was taken to begin restoration and all missing parts were either located or made to be as close to the original as possible which proved to be a very difficult challenge. There was a two year delay and as the car's rarity and appeal became clear the previous goal of simply turning it into a runner was upgraded to a full blown restoration. The process was assigned to Rob Stewart, a very experienced and meticulous Charlottesville, Virginia area restorer who traveled to England to examine another Frua spyder, chassis 2183, to help with this restoration. With some information supplied by the factory the restoration continued, although a number of parts such as the tail lights and master cylinder had to be made. When it was finished the engine needed tuning so Greg Jones in Florida was asked to thoroughly tune it, after which it was much better and the owner then recalled enjoying it on the challenging one lane back roads near his home. Indeed, it was so enjoyable and stable that he was surprised at his 90kmh speed (55mph) and was even more surprised once he got home and realized that he had in fact been driving at 90 miles per hour! All gauges are in English as was ordered by the California dealer decades ago when the car was built.
Once the restoration was completed in 1993 the superb effort was awarded no less than that year's First in Class at Pebble Beach, First in Class at Reading in 1994 and again at Meadow Brook the same year.
The car then took a break from the Concours stage before reappearing at the 2000 Monterey weekend on the occasion of the Maserati celebrations around the Monterey Peninsula. 2197 was photographed in the Maserati factory's magazine, issue #4 page 17, that covers the Maserati year in Monterey. As the venerable Pebble Beach Concours office has a rule that no car should be re-admitted during a ten year time span, the owner did not expect to partake in 2000. However, two months before the show the Concours staff called explaining that the car's presence was very much desired! As one might expect from a car that had been asked to bend sacred rules, it did very well indeed in the Concours, finishing Third in Class despite the now older repaint and the briefest of pre- Concours preparation. The presence of just-restored exceptional Maseratis from all over the world and of ever higher standards of restoration made the result that much better. The car was seen that memorable weekend by the current owner, himself a Concours champion, and a deal was struck to purchase the Maserati in September of 2000.
The condition today is still extremely good and the car has immense visual presence, painted in the striking color scheme of bright red with white noseband tapering up from the Trident badge to the windscreen. The panel fit is excellent and the bodywork is smooth and graceful. With immaculate chromework, smart polished Borrani wire wheels and Englebert tires, the Maserati is both pretty and purposeful. The interior has been fully retrimmed with cream leather seats and door trim and cream soft top with top cover. The red painted dash and machine turned aluminum instrument binnacle with Jaeger gauges have very strong visual appeal and the car has a correct type Maserati 2000 horn push in the center of the wood rimmed steering wheel. The odometer shows just 770 or so miles which is probably the distance the car has traveled since the restoration was completed.
Respected Maserati authorities Richard Crump and the late Rob de la Rive Box stated in the Maserati Buyers Guide: Of all Maserati road cars the A6G/2000 ranks with the Ghibli and Bora as the most desirable among enthusiasts. The Anglo Dutch pair went on to comment that among A6's, the Zagato and later Frua bodied cars are some of the highest rated; 2197 was the penultimate A6 built and the final Frua spyder, whereas chassis 2198 was an Allemano bodied coupe. Classic Maseratis have always commanded attention and this can only increase as the marque returns to the US. This is a beautiful car to be enjoyed on the open road, top down, engine singing and the miles flashing past.
COACHWORK BY FRUA
Chassis No. 2197
Red with white noseband and cream leather interior with matching soft top
Engine: six cylinder, in-line, dual overhead camshafts, triple Weber carburetors, 1,985cc., 150bhp at 6,000rpm; Gearbox: four-speed manual; Suspension: front upper/lower wishbones with coil springs, rear rigid axle with radius arms and leaf springs; Brakes: hydraulic drums all round. Left hand drive.
With timeless elegance and a zesty engine, an A6 Maserati is just the machine to imagine a spirited drive top down along the Amalfi coast. While the A6 1500 lacked power, the two liter version, particularly with spyder coachwork by Carrosseria Frua, was a true blossoming of the Maserati GT tradition, one that will stretch until this Fall's presentation of the new spyder with the Trident's return to the US market.
According to factory records supplied by the ever helpful Ermanno Cozza, this desirable car left the factory on February 22, 1957 and was delivered new to Maserati's California dealer M. Rezzaghi. Records show that next the car was owned in 1959 by a M.C. Valdez of San Diego and further evidence shows that it was owned by a William Victor Hahn also of San Diego from June 1972 onwards. Claudio Zampoli of 1990's Cizeta Moroder 16 cylinder fame then owned it for a decade, during which it sat apart in his Los Angeles dealership before he sold it to Oliver Kuttner, a well known aficionado of Italian exotica.
In 1987 it was purchased by Jay Jessup of Virginia who described its condition at the time as a rolling basket case with parts in boxes, mostly complete with some detail parts missing. The body was in primer and showed no evidence of any accident damage, not the slightest door ding in fact, and importantly there was no rust in the frame. The body is of course in alloy. The decision was taken to begin restoration and all missing parts were either located or made to be as close to the original as possible which proved to be a very difficult challenge. There was a two year delay and as the car's rarity and appeal became clear the previous goal of simply turning it into a runner was upgraded to a full blown restoration. The process was assigned to Rob Stewart, a very experienced and meticulous Charlottesville, Virginia area restorer who traveled to England to examine another Frua spyder, chassis 2183, to help with this restoration. With some information supplied by the factory the restoration continued, although a number of parts such as the tail lights and master cylinder had to be made. When it was finished the engine needed tuning so Greg Jones in Florida was asked to thoroughly tune it, after which it was much better and the owner then recalled enjoying it on the challenging one lane back roads near his home. Indeed, it was so enjoyable and stable that he was surprised at his 90kmh speed (55mph) and was even more surprised once he got home and realized that he had in fact been driving at 90 miles per hour! All gauges are in English as was ordered by the California dealer decades ago when the car was built.
Once the restoration was completed in 1993 the superb effort was awarded no less than that year's First in Class at Pebble Beach, First in Class at Reading in 1994 and again at Meadow Brook the same year.
The car then took a break from the Concours stage before reappearing at the 2000 Monterey weekend on the occasion of the Maserati celebrations around the Monterey Peninsula. 2197 was photographed in the Maserati factory's magazine, issue #4 page 17, that covers the Maserati year in Monterey. As the venerable Pebble Beach Concours office has a rule that no car should be re-admitted during a ten year time span, the owner did not expect to partake in 2000. However, two months before the show the Concours staff called explaining that the car's presence was very much desired! As one might expect from a car that had been asked to bend sacred rules, it did very well indeed in the Concours, finishing Third in Class despite the now older repaint and the briefest of pre- Concours preparation. The presence of just-restored exceptional Maseratis from all over the world and of ever higher standards of restoration made the result that much better. The car was seen that memorable weekend by the current owner, himself a Concours champion, and a deal was struck to purchase the Maserati in September of 2000.
The condition today is still extremely good and the car has immense visual presence, painted in the striking color scheme of bright red with white noseband tapering up from the Trident badge to the windscreen. The panel fit is excellent and the bodywork is smooth and graceful. With immaculate chromework, smart polished Borrani wire wheels and Englebert tires, the Maserati is both pretty and purposeful. The interior has been fully retrimmed with cream leather seats and door trim and cream soft top with top cover. The red painted dash and machine turned aluminum instrument binnacle with Jaeger gauges have very strong visual appeal and the car has a correct type Maserati 2000 horn push in the center of the wood rimmed steering wheel. The odometer shows just 770 or so miles which is probably the distance the car has traveled since the restoration was completed.
Respected Maserati authorities Richard Crump and the late Rob de la Rive Box stated in the Maserati Buyers Guide: Of all Maserati road cars the A6G/2000 ranks with the Ghibli and Bora as the most desirable among enthusiasts. The Anglo Dutch pair went on to comment that among A6's, the Zagato and later Frua bodied cars are some of the highest rated; 2197 was the penultimate A6 built and the final Frua spyder, whereas chassis 2198 was an Allemano bodied coupe. Classic Maseratis have always commanded attention and this can only increase as the marque returns to the US. This is a beautiful car to be enjoyed on the open road, top down, engine singing and the miles flashing past.