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The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

Maserati

Italian Car Day, Brooklands 2024

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Fiat 2300 Ghia, behind which is BAC 1/11 G-ASYD. Throughout its 29-year flying career SYD was used as a test aircraft for various variants and for testing technical equipment including ‘Fly by Light Control Technology.’ Donated to the museum by British Aerospace Airbus Ltd and landing at Brooklands (her 5004th landing) on the 14th July 1994.

Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

“Just follow the F40!” Not something I have said before but when my pal asked me which junction we needed to exit the motorway, it sounded so much better than “this one.” The F40 had just passed us, by the way, and it was obvious that we were both heading to the same event. So where were we going on this bright spring morning (4th May)?

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Fiat through OSCA at Concorso

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What car?

Photos by Brandes Elitch

Last week we brought you a report from Concorso Italiano, but only published half of the photos supplied by Brandes Elitch. This week we present photos of the Fiats through OSCA and beyond.

And like last week there are a few that are either not identified or incorrectly identified. As Elitch wrote last week, “Because of the informal nature of this show, the cars on display do not have placards that show who the owner is or where they live. This is why we are not able to show the owner’s name in the accompanying pictures.” And which is why we need your help. [Read more…] about Fiat through OSCA at Concorso

Uhle’s 8C Maserati

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From the VeloceToday Archives, November 2017

Story by Pete Vack

It was not unlikely that Henry W. Uhle II should have decided to own a Grand Prix Maserati. He was, after all, an engineer and a yacht designer whose career spanned 48 years. From 1945 until retiring in 1987, he was a project engineer for Sparkman & Stephens Inc., New York City and before that, from 1941 until 1945, he was a naval architect for various shipyards. Born in 1920, Henry was also one of the breed of postwar U. S. foreign car enthusiasts and had the kind of mentality that could appreciate what the Maserati brothers were doing in Italy.

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Ludvigsen Drives the Andrey Birdcage

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Photo by Irv Dolin

What was it like to drive a Birdcage in 1961? Below, Karl Ludvigsen graphically describes the feel, the noise, and the technique of driving the Magnificent Front Engined Birdcage. This article, originally published in the April 1961 issue of “Car and Driver”, has been republished here with his express permission. Originally published in VeloceToday November 2014.

By Karl Ludvigsen

When you click home the ignition key on the sketchy dash of a Birdcage, a strong red light burns deep within the broad, thumb-sized starter button. To me that light became a symbol of the vast power lurking with this apparently ramshackle piece of machinery, like glowing coals in the crater of a slumbering volcano.
[Read more…] about Ludvigsen Drives the Andrey Birdcage

Reflections on the SM Part 2

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What is this? Brandes has the answer below.

Story by Brandes Elitch

Read Part 1

A series of unfortunate events transpired to seal the fate of Citroën’s SM.

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Remembering the Citroën SM on its 50th

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This year at Retromobile, Hugues Vanhoolandt photographed a rare example of the SM on display. Heuliez, a coachbuilder, produced two examples of the SM “Espace,” which is a pillarless targa top convertible. The rear quarter windows do retract into the bodywork, unlike the SM.

By Brandes Elitch
All photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt unless otherwise marked.

“That the car was a moonshot didn’t concern our judges. Rather it invigorated them. Viewed in the perspective of the last 21 years, the SM fits more precisely in the spirit of the COTY, maybe better, than anything else being made in the world today.”

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Concorso Italiano 2019

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Story by Brandes Elitch
Photos by Brandes Elitch and Hugues Vanhoolandt

August 17, 2019 saw the 34th annual edition of the Concorso Italiano, in the eleventh year of its stewardship by Tom McDowell. It is located on the rolling turf of the Bayonet and Black Horse Golf Course on the old Fort Ord military base, adjacent to Monterey Bay. To get right to the point, this is the largest single day Italian car show in the world, with over 800 cars in attendance. [Read more…] about Concorso Italiano 2019

Gerelli at the Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti

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Photos by Alessandro Gerelli

The Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti, Alessandro Gerelli, and the Editor are all 71 years old. While this is purely coincidental, Alessandro’s phenomenal coverage of the modern event is not. It is the result of years of dedication to his photography, his passion, and his ongoing and remarkable support of VeloceToday.com. He began reporting the event, a re-creation of the original race that began in 1947, sixteen years ago in 2002 when Phil Hill was an honored guest. [Read more…] about Gerelli at the Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti

Maserati 8CM 3000 S/N 3002

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Story by Pete Vack

It was not unlikely that Henry W. Uhle II should have decided to own a Grand Prix Maserati. He was, after all, an engineer and a yacht designer whose career spanned 48 years. From 1945 until retiring in 1987, he was a project engineer for Sparkman & Stephens Inc., New York City and before that, from 1941 until 1945, he was a naval architect for various shipyards. Born in 1920, Henry was also one of the breed of postwar U. S. foreign car enthusiasts and had the kind of mentality that could appreciate what the Maserati brothers were doing in Italy. [Read more…] about Maserati 8CM 3000 S/N 3002

Maserati 8CM: A Portfolio

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Story by Pete Vack
Photos of 8CM Maseratis by Hugues Vanhoolandt
From the archives April 25 2013

The Maserati 8CM
The Maserati brothers built race cars with four, six, V16 and V8 configurations, but began in 1926 with the 1500 cc straight eight Type 26. The eights evolved, the 26B was a 2 liter, the Tipo 8C-1100 of 1929 were linered down Type 26 2 liters and was followed by the more refined 8C1500 and the 8C2500 and the hybrid 8C 3000.This wealth of experience culminated in the 8CM, first produced in 1933. It was Maserati’s first true Grand Prix car, designed with the new 750 kg formula in mind. A 69 mm x 100mm bore and stroke, 2992cc displacement, 260 hp at 5800 rpm via a supercharger produced a maximum speed of about 144 mph. [Read more…] about Maserati 8CM: A Portfolio

Remembering Kyle Fleming

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Kyle Fleming photo by Mary Decker Vack.

Story by Pete Vack
Color photos by Jim Salerno

After a brief illness, Kyle Fleming passed away on March 26th,2017. This article originally appeared in “Viale Ciro Menotti” in 2010 but we think serves well as a tribute.

757-499-5170: Anyone who has dealt with Kyle Fleming knows this number by heart. There is no second line and 5170 is always busy. There is no type of recording device. After forty years the number is still the same and still only one incoming line. As a nod toward modernity there are now three phones, one on the wall and two remotes.

Fleming once joked that getting in touch with him is like standing in line for a buffet; everybody’s in a hurry until they get there. “This way everyone has the same opportunity to contact me. I tried the leave a message routine but things got messed up and some people weren’t called back and that caused more problems.”

If you get through to this number you will quickly memorize, odds are Pat will answer. “I’m sorry but Kyle is on a run to the Post office, can I have him call you when he returns?” The voice is cultivated, polite, but firm. Pat has been Kyle’s companion since, well, she won’t say how long but a good while now. A good while. And when he broke his back—twice now, carrying unusually heavy Maserati parts—Pat, a Certified Nursing Assistant, was there for him, taking care of him, keeping the business going. Kyle is indispensable when it comes to Maserati owners; Pat is indispensable to Kyle. [Read more…] about Remembering Kyle Fleming

The Car that Saved Maserati

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The Maserati BiTurbo just may have saved Maserati from extinction.

The Maserati BiTurbo just may have saved Maserati from extinction.

By Wallace Alfred Wyss

In the late 1970s, Alejandro de Tomaso came to America to find out what kind of car Americans want. He had been building the Pantera since 1971 (continuing even after 1974 when Ford ceased importing it to the U.S.) and had bought Maserati, yet he wasn’t sure what kind of car Americans really desired.

It was by happenstance he dropped by Dick Guldstrand’s shop and Guldstrand invited me over to talk to Alejandro about what I thought he needed to build. I mentioned the BMW 2002 to the Italian car builder and told him what a great car it was in its time. He left and not long after I heard about the Maserati Bi-turbo. [Read more…] about The Car that Saved Maserati

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