Maserati 300S

I took this photograph in the paddock at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1995.

It's a Maserati 300S but didn't take part in any of the races that day, nor is it mentioned in the programme of the event and may well be a replica. The Maserati 300S has a 2,991cc 6-cylinder inline engine that was based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a longer stroke, and took part in the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 and 1957.

1957 Maserati 300S

This car competed in the 1950s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1998.

It’s Burkhard von Schenk’s 1957 Maserati 300S, a model that was built from 1955 to 1959 to compete in the 3-litre class of the World Sportscar Championship. The Maserati 300S has a 6-cylinder inline 2,991cc engine and Burkhard von Schenk’s car is chassis #3082.

Silverstone 1998 - 1950’s Sports Car Race

This is a photograph that I took at Luffield corner during the 1950’s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1988.

The car disappearing on the left hand side is Peter Hardman's 1957 Aston Martin DBR1 and following that is Nick Linney's green & yellow Lister Jaguar Knobbly, hidden behind which is Alan Minshaw's 1959 Maserati T61. Number 10 is Martin Stretton in Peter Scott’s 1955 Maserati 300S and behind that is Rob Walton’s White & Blue Maserati T61. The silver car following this group is Don Shead’s Kurtis 500S. In the background, from left to right, are Tony Smith's Aston Martin DB3S, Ron Gammon's Lotus Eleven, David Heynes' Lister Jaguar and Adrian Hall's Lotus MkX Bristol.

1955 Maserati 300S

This is a photograph that I took at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1994.

According to the programme of the event number 23 in the Classic Car Sports Car Race was supposed to be Thomas Bscher's Maserati Tipo 61 Birdcage, but he  drove his 300S instead, and this is a 1955 car, chassis #3053.

1955 Maserati 300S

I took this photograph at Lodge Corner during the Bonhams  Drum Brake Sports Cars  Race at the Gold Cup meeting at Oulton Park in August 2003.

It's the 1955 Maserati 300S of Rodney Smith, chassis #3060, and was driven in the race by Mark Gillies. The Maserati 300S has a 6-cylinder engine based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a lengthened stroke to bring the capacity up to 2,991cc. This car's first major race was the 1956 Sebring 12 Hour race where it was driven by Cesare Perdisa and Carlos Menditéguy, but Menditéguy crashed and overturned the car during the race. The car was then badly damaged when the trailer retrieving it was hit by a truck. The rebuild wasn't completed till 1957, but on its return to Sebring in 1959 the car was once again badly damaged in Edwin Lawrence's fatal accident during practice. It was rebuilt yet again with a fibreglass body, and later a 3.9 litre Chevrolet V8 engine was installed.  The car was fully restored to its current form in the early 1990s.

1957 Maserati 300S

This car took part in the 1950s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1999.

It's the 1957 Maserati 300S, chassis #3074, of Mark Knopfler and has a 2,991cc 6-cylinder inline engine that was based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a longer stroke, and took part in the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 and 1957. The car was originally bought by Brazilian driver Antonio Mendes de Barros and stayed in South America till the 1970s when it was acquired by Australian Bruce Spicer, then via Bob Jane and John R Sheppard to Kerry Manolas. In 1994 it was bought by Mark Knopfler. The white number 11 car behind the Maserati is the Don Law Racing 1954 Jaguar D-Type which was driven in the race by Win Percy, and beyond that is Paul Pappalardo’s 1959 Ferrari 250TR59/60.

1955 Maserati 300S

This was one of the competitors in the Bonhams  Drum Brake Sports Cars  Race at the Gold Cup meeting at Oulton Park in August 2003.

It's the 1955 Maserati 300S of Rodney Smith, chassis #3060, and was driven in the race by Mark Gillies. The Maserati 300S has a 6-cylinder engine based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a lengthened stroke to bring the capacity up to 2,991cc. The car's first major race was the 1956 Sebring 12 Hour race where it was driven by Cesare Perdisa and Carlos Menditéguy, but Menditéguy crashed and overturned the car during the race. The car was then badly damaged when the trailer retrieving it was hit by a truck. The rebuild wasn't completed till 1957, but on its return to Sebring in 1959 the car was once again badly damaged in Edwin Lawrence's fatal accident during practice. It was rebuilt yet again with a fibreglass body, and later a 3.9 litre Chevrolet V8 engine was installed.  The car was fully restored to its current form in the early 1990s.

1955 Maserati 300S

This is a car that I photographed at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in August 1996 at Silverstone in what I think was its first outing since an extensive restoration in the early 1990s.

It's the ex-Benoit Musy 1955 Maserati 300S, chassis number 3057, entered in the Louis Vuitton 1950s Sports Car Race by Peter Scott and driven in the race by Martin Stretton.  It has a 2,991cc 6-cylinder engine that was based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a longer stroke. This car was originally owned by Swiss driver Benoit Musy and I remember seeing it being driven by him at Oulton Park and Aintree in 1956.

Maserati 300S

I took this photograph in the paddock at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1995.

It's a Maserati 300S but didn't take part in any of the races that day, nor is it mentioned in the programme of the event and may well be a replica. The Maserati 300S has a 2,991cc 6-cylinder inline engine that was based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a longer stroke, and took part in the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 and 1957.

1957 Maserati 300S

This car took part in the Louis Vuitton '50s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1995.

It's the 1957 Maserati 300S, chassis #3074, of Mark Knopfler and has a 2,991cc 6-cylinder inline engine that was based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a longer stroke, and took part in the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 and 1957. The car was originally bought by Brazilian driver Antonio Mendes de Barros and stayed in South America till the 1970s when it was acquired by Australian Bruce Spicer, then via Bob Jane and John R Sheppard to Kerry Manolas. In 1994 it was bought by Mark Knopfler. The number 10 car behind the Maserati is Hartmut Ibing's 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO.

1958 Maserati 300S

This car competed in the Louis Vuitton '50s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1995.

It's the 1958 Maserati 300S of Burkhard von Schenk with the 6-cylinder inline 2,991cc engine derived from that of the Grand Prix Maserati 250F, and is chassis #3082. Its early history is rather sketchy, but it appears to have started off in Angola where it took part in the Angolan Grand Prix five times between 1958 and 1963. Álvaro Lopes drove the car on four of those occasions and in 1962 it was driven by Flávio dos Santos, the best result being when Álvaro Lopes took third place in 1963. It eventually went to South Africa where it remained until the 1980s when it came to the UK and was acquired by the notable German collector and historic racer Burkhard von Schenk.

1955 Maserati 300S

This car competed in the Louis Vuitton 1950s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in August 1996.

It's the 1955 Maserati 300S of Dudley and Sally Mason-Styrron and was driven in the race by Sally Mason-Styrron. The 300S was produced by Maserati from 1955 to 1959 to contend the World Sportscar Championship and had a straight-6 engine based on the 250F Grand Prix car's 2½ litre unit, but with a longer stroke to bring the capacity up to 2,992cc and this car is chassis 3055.

1955 Maserati 300S

This was one of the competitors in the Coys Race for Pre-1959 Drum Brake Sports Cars at the Gold Cup meeting at Oulton Park in August 2002.

It's the 1955 Maserati 300S of Rodney Smith, chassis #3060, and was driven in the race by Mark Gillies. The Maserati 300S has a 6-cylinder engine based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a lengthened stroke to bring the capacity up to 2,991cc. The car's first major race was the 1956 Sebring 12 Hour race where it was driven by Cesare Perdisa and Carlos Menditéguy, but Menditéguy crashed and overturned the car during the race. The car was then badly damaged when the trailer retrieving it was hit by a truck. The rebuild wasn't completed till 1957, but on its return to Sebring in 1959 the car was once again badly damaged in Edwin Lawrence's fatal accident during practice. It was rebuilt yet again with a fibreglass body, and later a 3.9 litre Chevrolet V8 engine was installed.  The car was fully restored to its current form in the early 1990s. The car number 18 in the background is the 1958 Cooper T45 of Anthony Ditheridge which took part in the HGPCA Pre-1966 Grand Prix Cars race.

Three Maseratis

Three Maseratis spotted in the paddock at the Silverstone Historic Festival meeting in August 2001.

On the left is the 1955 Maserati 300S of Michael Hinderer which was powered by a 2,991cc 6-cylinder engine that was based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a longer stroke. The Maserati 300S took part in the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 and 1957 and this car is chassis #3057 that was originally owned by Swiss driver Benoit Musy. The middle car is Alan Minshaw's 1959 Maserati T61, chassis #2453, and is a car that was almost completely destroyed in an accident at Daytona in 1959. The parts that could be salvaged were used to reconstruct the car in the UK in the early 1990s. The car on the right is the 1953 Maserati A6GCM of David Bennett, chassis #2044 that was at one time owned by Prince Bira, and has the blue and yellow Siamese racing colours.

1955 Maserati 300S

This was one of the competitors in the Coys Race for Pre-1959 Drum Brake Sports Cars at the Gold Cup meeting at Oulton Park in August 2002.

It's the 1955 Maserati 300S of Rodney Smith, chassis #3060, and was driven in the race by Mark Gillies. The Maserati 300S has a 6-cylinder engine based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a lengthened stroke to bring the capacity up to 2,991cc. The car's first major race was the 1956 Sebring 12 Hour race where it was driven by Cesare Perdisa and Carlos Menditéguy, but Menditéguy crashed and overturned the car during the race. The car was then badly damaged when the trailer retrieving it was hit by a truck. The rebuild wasn't completed till 1957, but on its return to Sebring in 1959 the car was once again badly damaged in Edwin Lawrence's fatal accident during practice. It was rebuilt yet again with a fibreglass body, and later a 3.9 litre Chevrolet V8 engine was installed.  The car was fully restored to its current form in the early 1990s.

1958 Lotus Eleven

This was one of the competitors in the Historic Grand Prix Cars Association Sports Car Race at the Christie's International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1992.

It's Peter Austin's 1958 Lotus Eleven, about 270 of which were built by the Lotus Company between 1956 and 1958. The Lotus Eleven was built with a variety of engines of different sizes from 750cc to 1500cc, and the programme of the event shows Peter Austin's car to have a 1,089cc engine. The red car at the side of the Lotus is Burkhard von Schenk's 1957 Maserati 300SI, and behind are the 1957 Jaguar D-Type of Sir Anthony Bamford (driven by Frank Sytner) and the 1957 Lotus Eleven of Malcolm Ricketts.

Maserati 300S

The Vintage Sports Car Club's SeeRed meeting at Donington Park in September 2005 featured the Maserati marque and many of the Maseratis that took part in that meeting, and others that didn't, were at various times displayed in a large marquee in the paddock during the meeting. This is one of those cars.

It's a Maserati 300S, and appears to be one of the early short nose cars, but didn't take part in the meeting and I've not been able to identify it. The 300S was produced by Maserati from 1955 to 1959 to contend the World Sportcar Championship and had a straight-6 engine based on the 250F Grand Prix car's 2½ litre unit, but with a longer stroke to bring the capacity up to 2,992cc.

1957 Maserati 300S

This car took part in the Champagne Charles Heidsieck Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1993.

It's the 1957 Maserati 300S, chassis #3074 of Australian Kerry Manolas that was driven in the race by Stephen Griswold. The Maserati 300S was powered by a 2,991cc 6-cylinder engine that was based on the 2½ litre unit of the 250F Grand Prix car with a longer stroke, and took part in the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 and 1957. The car was originally bought by Brazilian driver Antonio Mendes de Barros and stayed in South America till the 1970s when it was acquired by Australian Bruce Spicer, then via Bob Jane and John R Sheppard to Kerry Manolas. In 1994 it was bought by Mark Knopfler.

1958 Maserati 300S

This was one of the competitors in the 1950s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1999.

It's the 1958 Maserati 300S of Burkhard von Schenk with the 6-cylinder inline 2,991cc engine derived from that of the Grand Prix Maserati 250F, and is chassis #3082. Its early history is rather sketchy, but it appears to have started off in Angola where it took part in the Angolan Grand Prix five times between 1958 and 1963. Álvaro Lopes drove the car on four of those occasions and in 1962 it was driven by Flávio dos Santos, the best result being when Álvaro Lopes took third place in 1963. It eventually went to South Africa where it remained until the 1980s when it came to the UK and was acquired by the notable German collector and historic racer Burkhard von Schenk. 

Car number 62 in the background is the 1956 Maserati 300S of William Binnie, chassis #3069.

1955 Maserati 300S

This car took part in the 1950s Drum-Braked Sports Racing Cars race at the Vintage Sports Car Club's SeeRed meeting at Donington Park in September 2005.

It's the 1955 Maserati 300S of Tony Smith, chassis #3053, and has a 6-cylinder inline 2,991cc engine based on the 2½ litre engine of the 250F Grand Prix car. The car was originally campaigned in the USA by the Briggs Cunningham team and finished in third place in the 1955 Sebring 12 hour race driven by Bill Spear and Sherwood Johnston.