1948 Maserati 4CLT

This is a photograph that I took in the Donington Park Museum in March 1996.

It's a Maserati 4CLT which was a development of the pre-War 4CL and has a 4-cylinder inline 1,491cc supercharged engine. The first 4CLT was produced in 1947 and the 1948 variant made its debut at the San Remo Grand Prix, winning the race in the hands of Alberto Ascari. The 4CLT has ever since been known as the 'San Remo'. After spending some time trying to find this car's chassis number I eventually came across this site  which says it's #1607 and gave this information:

'Maserati 4CLT-48 [1607]: To Enrico Platé for 1949 (dated 14 Nov 1949 in Maserati records) and raced by Bira up to Geneva 1950. Car fitted with a 4450cc OSCA V12 engine for Bira for the 1951 season. The OSCA was taken to Australia in 1955 by Bira as a spare car to his 250F and sold there to Alf Harvey who raced it from 1955 to 1959. The car then went to the UK for historic racing and was bought by Tom Wheatcroft in 1971. Subsequently in the Donington Museum.'

1948 Maserati 4CLT

I took this photograph in the Donington Park Museum in May 1989.

It's a Maserati 4CLT which was a development of the pre-War 4CL and has a 4-cylinder inline 1,491cc supercharged engine. The first 4CLT was produced in 1947 and the 1948 variant made its debut at the San Remo Grand Prix, winning the race in the hands of Alberto Ascari. The 4CLT has ever since been known as the 'San Remo'. The museum car was apparently built up by Reg Parnell in late 1950, possibly using the chassis of 4CLT 1597 which was crashed in Brazil in March 1949 by Alberto Ascari. The figure behind the car seems to represent Juan Manuel Fangio who drove a Maserati 4CL in the late 1940s and early in 1950 before joining the Alfa Romeo team.

Silverstone 1994

I took this photograph at Luffield corner during the Chopard HGPCA 100 Mile Grand Prix Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1994.

Leading is Jeffrey Pattinson in his 1954 Maserati 250F, chassis #2508, originally owned and raced by Stirling Moss. The car behind him is the 1949 Maserati 4CLT of Dan Margulies, which was being driven by Peter Hannen, followed by the 1955 Connaught B-Type of Paul Burdell, chassis B4, originally raced by the Rob Walker team.

1949 Maserati 4CLT

This was one of the competitors in the Pre '52 Grand Prix Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1995.

It's the 1949 Maserati 4CLT of Dan Margulies which was a development of the pre-War 4CL and has a 4-cylinder inline 1,491cc supercharged engine. The first 4CLT was produced in 1947 and the 1948 variant made its debut at the San Remo Grand Prix, winning the race in the hands of Alberto Ascari. The 4CLT has ever since been known as the 'San Remo'. Dan Margulies' car may be chassis #1604.

Maserati 4CLT

A note in the programme for the 1998 event says:

'The sensational highlight of this year's Coys International Historic Festival Presented by Chrysler is undoubtedly the re-creation of the 1948 British Grand Prix grid. This was by far the most important race held in Britain since the War but also the first ever Formula 1 race at Silverstone. History was being made and, this weekend, thanks to a great deal of hard work and research, it will be re-created with perhaps as many as 17 of the original 26 cars that were present that October day.

Where the actual car no longer exists, or is not available, an admirable substitute of the same model has been sourced, with the exception of the sole Alfa Romeo. Each car will carry the same number it was given for the 1948 race, and perhaps the most emotive of all will be the number 27 Maserati. Not only is this the car that raced in 1948, but it will have in its cockpit the same driver who drove it 50 years ago: Roy Salvadori.'

The cars were on display in the paddock at times during the meeting (several of them were competing in races at the event) and here's one of the photographs I took of two of the cars.

They are both Maserati 4CLTs, numbered 18 and 19 in the 1948 race. The programme says this about them:

18 Maserati 4CLT

Although this is a Scuderia Ambrosiana 4CLT, it is not actually the car driven to victory here in 1948 by Luigi Villoresi. But it was at Silverstone that day, a sister car to the winner, entered as No. 28 for Leslie Brooke. Raced more recently by Peter Hannan it is now owned by great Maserati enthusiast and, of course 1995 Global GT Champion, Thomas Bscher, who has retired it from racing but will drive it this weekend.

19 Maserati 4CLT

Again a substitute car, this time to the one entered for "B.Bira", believed to be the sister Squadra Achille Varzi car raced by Fangio. Owned by Jean Louis Duret from France.

Maserati 4CLT

This car competed in the Chopard HGPCA 100 Mile Grand Prix Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival Meeting at Silverstone in July 1994.

It's Peter Hannen's 1948 Maserati 4CLT, chassis number 1595, and was driven in this race by Dan Margulies. The first 4CLT was produced in 1947 and the 1948 variant made its debut at the San Remo Grand Prix, winning the race in the hands of Alberto Ascari. The 4CLT hes ever since been known as the 'San Remo'.