Cars from 1920 to 1950 - The golden age of the car

1933
Code 1204
Body style: GP single-seater

The tight-knit group of five Maserati brothers (Alfieri, Ernesto, Bindo, Ettore and Carlo) started motor racing in 1910.  From 1926 onwards, they were racing their own cars, sporting a trident inspired by Bologna, home of the family firm.  The Maserati 8 CM with its 3-litre supercharged engine raced against Alfa Romeos driven by Nuvolari, and both Alfieri and Ernesto won famous victories, before being joined by other great drivers such as Varzi, Fagioli or Biondetti. 

This single-seater Grand Prix racer has a six-cylinder, 1500 cc engine that churned out 175 horsepower. It was sold in Prague in 1933 and sent back to the factory in 1934 for conversion work, before being driven to victory in the Dieppe Grand Prix in 1934 by Philippe Etancelin.  

The history of individual racing cars is often complicated and it is often difficult to retrace their lives. These cars are very often modified, with a new engine, a new chassis, and sometimes a complete facelift. This Maserati is a good example. Maserati archives show that this chassis was originally numbered 1518 before being modified and renumbered 1520 following mechanical conversion work. The problem is that this information is given for a Maserati 4CS. As you see, these things are never easy, and these transformations were fairly common. Racing drivers often used whatever means they could to win, with many home-made customisations.